The Awakening
by SniperGirl0907
Summary: The gods have been gone for too long: cursed to exist as giant voiceless monsters, they have awakened to find humanity at the edge of extinction, & at the mercy of the creatures known as 'titans'. Now, with the help of a young adventurous girl, a brave courageous mother, and their equally intrepid friends and family, they must find a way to save all mankind.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Prologue

The late afternoon sun was a welcome reprieve from the cold: this winter had been one of the hardest in living memory, so it was a true delight to finally have the warmth cut through the frigid air, and bring a little relief to the land. The snow was thick on the ground, and the road was icy in certain places, so traveling was still very restricted; today however, with the sun keeping the air mild enough to endure, this was one of the few days he was able to travel into town.

As his horse made its way down the street, he was struck by how quiet it was: not many, if barely a handful of people were out today; 'How strange?' he though offhand. 'With the sun out, you'd think there'd be more folk about'. As he pressed on, he could smell the delicious aroma of freshly baked bread coming from the bakery, and meat roasting over a fire wafting out of the nearby inn, and suddenly, he felt his hunger sharpened: he made a mental note to pick up a small bread bap for the journey home.

Finally, he arrived at his destination: bringing his horse up alongside the establishment in question, he dismounted, gave his mount a handful of oats for a journey well done, and tied up the reins to the hitching rail. Stepping up to the door, he was relieved to see the shop was still open, and proceeded inside.

"Hello Stanley," the old man smiled, as he poked his head up from behind a large pile of books on the counter; "Long time no see: I see you decided to take advantage of the sunshine eh? I'm amazed not more people are out today"

"It's certainly milder" Stanley replied as he loosed his scarf and took off his gloves: "But personally, I got a feeling the weather's going to move in again tonight"

"Yeah, quite probably" the old man sighed offhand, "So? What can I do you for?"

"Ah, heh," Stanley sheepishly smiled as he approached the counter, "Well? Our lil' Krista's turning five tomorrow: but between this weather and the food shortage, work at the farm's been doubly hard this winter, so today's the only day I've been able to get out to buy her a present. I thought maybe a story book or something? You know, help her with her reading, with some nice pictures to look at?"

"Ah geez" the old man sighed as he scratched his head, "With the roads iced over I've not received any new stock for weeks," he then suddenly perked up: "... But listen, I was cleaning out the cellar last week and found a dozen boxes of books I'd completely forgotten about, been down there for years and never even remembered they were there! I decided to put them up for sale and see if there'd be any takers: I don't know if there's anything your daughter would like, but you're welcome to go and have a look?"

"Oh thanks Fritz" Stanley smiled with relief,

"Third floor, up on the left hand side: just shout if you need anything" Fritz smiled, before disappearing back below the counter again.

The climb up the stairs was daunting at best: as the old floorboards squeaked and creaked under his weight, the rest of the building sounded like it was having a hard time staying upright too; with the dusty cobwebs hanging from every corner, and every surface covered in a thick grey layer of dust, it was a wonder this bookshop remained in business at all. The grimy windows made it hard to make out anything, between the gloom of the lamp-less rooms and the dark shadows of the corners and gaps between the bookshelves: it wasn't hard to imagine a few ghosts could be hiding in a place like this.

Finally, he reached the third floor: a small dusty dismal room where everything seemed to be tinted the same shade of grey, illuminated by a single circular window that hadn't seen a wash cloth or soapy water in decades, with beams of sunlight lighting up the dusty air, and turning them into warm beams of gold that brought hues of yellow to the otherwise depressing interior. Seeing the books in question, Stanley turned his head to better read the spines, and glanced over the large collection; there were books for a whole range of different things, from cooking and cleaning, to crafts and handiwork's, even a sizable collection of novels and stories. But, nothing that seemed to be suitable for a child.

Deciding to be thorough, Stanley perused the nearby bookcases along the walls: using one of his gloves to dust off the spines, he inspected the few children's books that were present, but they didn't really seem to fit what his daughter would like; none of them had any pictures, and the stories weren't particularly exciting (nothing that read like a fairy tale at least). Standing back and placing his hands on his hips, Stanley sighed in defeat; he couldn't go home without _something_ for his precious little girl, the look on her face if she knew he wasn't able to get anything for her on her special day, made his heart sink. Of course there was the toy shop across town, but the guy there never kept regular hours, so there was no guarantee he'd be open today; and with very few other options available, it was looking pretty hopeless.

As he let another sigh of defeat escape his lips, Stanley suddenly heard something: a soft, almost inaudible fluttering sound, like a butterfly's wing beats; looking around as his ears tried to hone in on the sound, he could hear it was coming from above...from the window. There, amid the bright golden light of the sunbeams, was a large white butterfly, flapping against the glass...A butterfly? At this time of year? Stanley figured it must have flown into the shop sometime during the late summer, and had been trapped inside ever since. Then, the butterfly left the window, and flittered its way towards him, landing on the corner of a nearby bookshelf that reached his eye level.

As he gazed down at the small insect, Stanley was surprised to see just how pristine its white wings were; they were the whitest white he'd ever seen, almost to the point they looked like they were glowing; as it flexed its wings back and forth, they almost seemed to glisten, as if they were covered in tiny flecks of starlight. It was...beautiful...

In that moment, Stanley felt a strange sense of calm and tranquillity come over him, as if there was no danger anywhere in the world: time felt like it was melting into an eternal age, as the sun seemed to shine brighter through the dirty window, the dusty air glowing with warm radiance, until the whole room was bathed in warm golden light, and everything glowed in the same tinted shade of yellow. Stanley's eyes grew heavy, as he felt his body relax, and steadily give into the soft welcoming warmth; he felt a soft warm hand gently caress against the back of his right hand, and the strange feeling that he was not alone.

 _Follow me_

Jumping with fright and shaking his head, he snapped back to reality, still standing in the same grey dusty room: looking around, he saw no one was there, "That's funny" he frowned in confusion, "I could've sworn I felt-

He looked down at his right hand, but it was just the same; "...Weird" he thought aloud, the far-off gaze in his eyes reflecting his bemusement "Maybe there are some ghosts in this place?"

Looking back up at the bookcase, he saw the butterfly was gone, looking around; he spotted it at the far end of the room, resting on another bookcase. Wandering over, he approached it slowly, but the insect took off, fluttering around the case to the one behind it. Stepping carefully around the towering bookcases to where the shelves and cases met the back wall; Stanley caught sight of it, but this time, it was perched on a book at the very top of the highest bookcase in the room. The book immediately caught Stanley's attention, as it seemed to be the only one not covered in dust: its red spine standing out from the drab colours of all the other spines. 'How odd' he thought.

Stepping up onto the footstool at the bottom of the case, he stretched his whole body up so his arms could reach the top-most shelf, and with the very tips of his fingers, he gently teased the book from out of its place, until it fell out and nearly landed on his head, with the butterfly taking off just as it slipped off the shelf. Looking down at the cover, Stanley was surprised to see it had no title, except for the emblem of a golden flower of some kind, one he'd never seen before, and depicted in a style he wasn't familiar with. Opening the cover, the book creaked in protest, it obviously hadn't been opened for a good number of years, and as he flicked through the first several pages, he was taken aback by the beautiful detailed illustrations and elegant calligraphy; the colours practically radiated off the pages, and some lines and paragraphs seemed to have been written in pure gold, as they reflected the sun's golden rays, lighting the pages up as if they were on fire.

"How did a masterpiece of such quality end up in a place like this?" Stanley thought aloud as he continued to flick through the pages, mesmerized by the beauty and colour of the artistry: indeed, a book of this level of craftsmanship could only be found in the capitol, and the price alone would have been worth nearly a quarter of his land; wondering just how much it was worth anyway, Stanley glanced up at the price board at the top of the shelf: knowing his luck it was probably a pretty steep price; but his eyes practically popped out of his skull when he saw it was the sales shelf. Everything to go, all books only five copper pieces.

' _Five copper pieces?!'_ Stanley's mind stammered, looking down at the book in surprise; he slammed it shut, and hurried back downstairs to the counter: he wasn't going to waste time wondering how he got so lucky. After paying Fritz and thanking him, he left the shop with a pleasant feeling of satisfaction; 'Krista's going to love this' he thought as a smile crossed his lips, and quickly tucked the book away into his satchel, returning to his horse.

* * *

The next day, late evening:

"So, did you have a great birthday?" the tall blond girl smiled as she followed close behind,

"Oh yes yes!" her little sister beamed as she jumped into her bed and scooted under the covers; her older sister removed the bed warming pan from the foot of the bed, and placed it on the floor before sitting down next to her, and reaching for the book on her bedside table: "I had a wonderful day sissy!"

"Really? What would you say was your favorite present?" the older girl smiled,

"Daddy's book! It's so pretty! And I love all the pictures!" the girl smiled as she grabbed the book and flicked through the pages.

"It is really pretty..." the older girl thought aloud, "So, what story would you like me to read to you?"

"Hmm?" the little blond hummed as she thumbed through the pages, until one page in particular caught her eye, "-That one!"

"Hm..." the older girl glanced at the title, "The sleeping gods huh? Sounds kinda different, but hey, it's your birthday right?" she smirked,

"That's right, now read! I wanna know if it's got a nice pretty princess in it!" she smiled as she handed the book to her sister and snuggled down further under the covers.

"Okay, here we go..." her sister cleared her throat, and started reading the first paragraph; "...Long long ago, before the time of the great sorrows: the world and all its peoples lived in harmony with the gods. There were many different gods, that did many different things, and they all lived in many different places all over the world; from the lands of the burning sands, to the frozen wastelands of the top and bottom of the world, the great mountains of the cloud kingdoms, and the eternal oceans of the west..."

"What's an 'ocean' sissy?" the little girl tilted her head to one side,

The illustrations on the page next to the text, depicted a vast lake with no land surrounding it, mountains so tall they pierced the sky, hilly golden fields of sand, and vast white lands of snow and ice, surrounded by deep blue water and covered by glowing clouds of green and pink light in the sky. And in the center of the picture, a circle of people dressed in flowing white robes, with flowers and crystals woven into their hair, holding hands and dancing together.

'Burning sands? Frozen wastelands? Cloud kingdom, and-, what the heck's an 'ocean'?...' the girl quirked an eyebrow in confusion, "I've no idea" she shrugged, but continued to read, "...Through their powers, they did many good things to keep the world at peace: but their most important duty, above all others, was to care for, and teach the peoples of the world, how to live in harmony with nature and the spirits..."

The illustration on the following page depicted another robed figure: a male with long brunet hair comforting a crying child, while a tall elegant woman with flowing white hair, was addressing a large crowd of people, with white light beams bursting forth from her long elegant dress.

"She's really pretty!" her little sister pointed to the picture,

"They taught many things to the people, and showed them how to be better, kinder, more caring human beings to the world, and to one another...But then, one day, a very evil wizard, who had never been good once in his whole life, grew bitterly jealous of the gods and their power. He didn't like having to share anything with anyone, he didn't like the fact that he couldn't just do whatever he wanted; the gods wouldn't let him, least his actions would have dire consequences for everyone, and above all, he _hated_ the fact, that he was a mere mortal: and like all mortals, he too would have to die one day..."

Another illustration depicted an bitter looking old man in a long black robe, seemingly sitting alone in a cave, with a bubbling caldron at his side, and carved onto the cave wall above his head, was what looked like an eye with light beams surrounding it, a slit for a pupil, and jagged symbols of some kind.

"He looks like a real meanie!"

"Yeah, he kinda does doesn't he? ... After many years of wallowing in his hatred: he decided to take the gods power for his own, and he knew exactly how to do it...Finally, after all his preparations had been completed, he sent out an invitation to all the gods of the world, that there was to be a grand feast held in their honor, in celebration of all their good works. Flattered by this, all the gods accepted, and on the night of the feast, they all came from every corner of the world; it was a glorious and happy night, filled with feasting, dancing, music and laughter. A grand time had by all, and when the time came, the wizard raised his cup and toasted the gods, and they in turn, raised their cups to him, in great thanks for this magnificent and wonderful feast"

"Its poison!" the little blond squeaked,

"...But then, suddenly, as they drank form their cups, all the gods began to feel strange, as if something didn't feel right: and before they could do or say anything, all the gods screamed in agony as they were changed by the evil magic. For you see, every cup the gods had drunk from, had been laced with a powerful potion: a potion that turned the gods from their beautiful selves, into giant hideous creatures of titanic proportions. And as the evil magic did its work, and all the gods howled in despair at what they had become, the wizard revelled in the sorrow he had brought upon them...But his evil didn't stop there"

"What? How can you get anymore meaner than that?!"

"Cursed to exist as voiceless hulking giants, the gods could do nothing to fight back, as the wizard threw them all into the deepest darkest pit he could find, and there they remained his prisoners, shackled and chained... For a year and a day, he would visit them at noon and at midnight, every day and every night: and with an enchanted blade he had crafted from bones and dragons teeth, he would cut their flesh and bleed them of their blood: for the blood of a god, contains many potent and powerful magical properties, and with it, the evil wizard could summon the most powerful of magic's to do his bidding; mountains would kneel before him, whole oceans would part before his feet, and he would even become the ruler of death itself..."

Another illustration depicted the dark wizard: laughing with a look of vindictive glee in his eyes, holding up a giant bowl, full of a bright glowing blue liquid with sparks flying out of it: while behind him, was a deep dark hole with giant shackled hands reaching out, trying to break their chains.

"...Wow"

"But, his evil endeavors did not go unnoticed. For when the gods disappeared, the peoples of the world despaired and had searched high and low looking for them: until finally a band of kindly and good wizards had found the evil wizard and his lair, deep in the black mountain, and had learned of what he had done. Outraged, they summoned their most powerful magic's to fight him, but with the blood of the gods coursing through his veins, there was no way to kill him; so instead, the wizards tricked him, and imprisoned him deep inside the mountain. In a tomb so dark that no light could ever touch it, and so deep down beneath the mountain's heart, that no living man or creature could ever reach it"

The double spread on the next two pages, depicted a group of men with long white beards, clothed in shining silver armour and long white robes, fighting the dark wizard, that now looked more some kind of hideous monster than a man. Gazing as the white wizards, she noticed the flower emblem on their breast plates, was the exact same one on the cover of the book. That was odd.

"Serves him right, but what happened to the gods?"

"...With the battle won, and the evil wizard banished forever: the good wizards searched far and wide, looking for the pit the gods had been imprisoned in. For a year and a day they crossed the land and seas, searched the skies and all the deepest places of the world... With the gods gone, the world and all its people fell into sorrow and despair: for without the gods to guide them, mankind slowly forgot the wisdom of their teachings, and little by little, hatred crept in where love once was, greed overthrew generosity, spite defeated kindness, and the once best of friends, had now become the most bitter of enemies. War upon war played out across the lands, bringing even more misery to all...Finally, the wizards found the pit, and deep down at the bottom, they found the gods: bled of all their power, and deep in a death-like sleep. Gone they were, from this life and mortal chapter of their lives, for the evil wizard's malice, cruelty and hatred was such, that the curse could not be broken; the wizards broke their shackles and took their bodies from the pit, and lamented for the failure of the mission"

"That's really sad"

"...But, not all was lost: for the gods were immortal, and it would take far more than a mere wizard to be the end of them. Although the curse could not be broken, the wizards _could_ change it, so that one day far in the future, the gods would awaken from their death-sleep, and find a way to break the curse themselves. And restore balance to the now broken world of men...Summoning the last of the magic held within the god's blood, the good wizards took the gods bodies to the Hidden Land, and under the shade of the great tree Yggdrasil, they placed them within enchanted tombs, and hid them deep in the forest of giant trees: where they would lay for over three ages, uncorrupted by the passing of time, and unseen by all, except those who know the secret places of the world, and keep them secret, from any who wish to do harm...And to this day, there they remain, asleep in their tombs, waiting for the day when they will finally awaken: and allow the awakening of mankind to begin anew...the end"

"...Cool, but, when are they gonna wake up Daisy?"

"Who knows?" Daisy shrugged, "Could be tomorrow, could be never?"

"But they gotta wake up sometime, it say's so in the book: do you think they could asleep out in the woods?"

"Uh, I think if here were a bunch of giant tombs full of giant sleeping gods, we'd have seen them by now" Daisy chuckled, before placing a kiss on her little sister's forehead, "Anyway, I gotta go help tidy up before bed: you want the candle left alight?"

"Yes please, I wanna look at the pictures..." she beamed as she grabbed the book and started flicking through it, "Hey daisy, is Frieda coming by tomorrow?"

"Yes, and if your good, she might bring along one of her mum's saffron buns" Daisy smirked as she got up to leave the room, "We'll be gone most of tomorrow so don't wait up for me okay?"

"Okay...Hey Daisy?" she stopped at the door and turned to face her, "...Is Frieda gonna be okay? She hasn't been the same since-..."

Seeing the look in her little sister's eyes, Daisy approached the bed, and softly placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder, "...I'm sure she'll fine, she's just-, been going through a rough patch is all. She and her uncle Uri were really close; loosing someone so dear to your heart isn't easy to deal with...She just needs time to grieve, and to deal with it in her own way, okay?"

"Okay"

"Alright Krista, now don't stay up too late now" she placed another kiss on her forehead, and turned to leave the room.

As she listened to her big sister's footsteps disappear down the stairs, Krista gazed out the big window, and smiled as she saw snowflakes drifting down from the inky black sky. "Pretty!" she beamed, "...Are you still asleep out there?" she whispered to the dark.

Outside, perched on the edge of the roof beneath the window, a large white butterfly sat still: its radiant white wings glistening with starlight as the snow fell all around, until a strong but gentle wind blew up, and carried it off up into the night air.

Across the sky it soared on the winter winds like a shining white ember: over the walls Sina and Rose, across villages and towns, farmlands, prairies, forests and mountains, until it reached the towering forests of Wall Maria, and the forests of giant trees. Down it fluttered amid the falling snow, deep into the forest where the thick branches of the canopy kept the majority of the snow off the ground. And in a deep narrow holler, far from house or road, where the air slowed to a crawl and the trees slept quietly waiting for the spring melt, a giant stone structure lay hidden amongst the thick undergrowth and dead-fall.

It was very large, about the size of a large house, except it wasn't a house: there were no doors or windows, just hundreds and hundreds of strange patterns and symbols carved into the sides, filled with moss, lichens and fungi, and the top was completely flat, covered in even more strange symbols, though no one would be able to tell on account of all the thick vines and dead leaves sprawled across the surface, concealing the majority of the elaborate designs. At a distance, it looked quite strange: very out of place all the way out here in the deepest reaches of the forest; some might mistake it for a building of some kind, while others, might be inclined to suggest it looked more like a tomb.

The butterfly drifted down, and landed on the very tip of the most exposed corner of the structure. Resting as the air stilled, and the silence grew until it was almost deafening.

Then, amid the giant trees and undergrowth: countless disembodied voices began to quietly whisper in unison, speaking in strange unknown languages, not heard for many ages; untamed, innocent, and ancient. As if the very forest and the air around it were calling out to someone.

Inside the stone structure, a deep soft rumbling reverberated out through the cold stone, and echoed through the trees.

 _It's nearly time_

The butterfly took off, flitting up through the cold air into the canopy, and disappeared.

Another rumble sounded from inside the structure, followed by a low steady rhythmic beating: like a drum, or, a heartbeat.

If anyone had been standing nearby, they could be mistaken for thinking that they heard thunder booming far off in the distance.

Or a giant titan turning in its sleep.

* * *

 **You know? it's funny how little things have a way of making big differences, like changing the course of one's fate. For instance, in this world, a number of years ago, Alma (Krista and Daisy's mother) had originally set out to the Reiss family estate to seek work there as a maid; but on the way, she got lost and ended up at Stanly lens farm by mistake. Being too nice and polite to turn her away, he offered her the job instead, and after a two year courtship, she finally agreed to marry him. One year later, Daisy came along, followed by Krista ten years later. It's curious to think what might have happened to Alma, if she did take up that job at the Reiss's estate, eh? (nudge nudge, wink wink) ;D**

 **Anyway, welcome to the start of my new AU fanfic, the Awakening; buckle up tight and get your pairing bladed and 3DM gear ready,cuz it's gonna be one heck of a ride! Magical gods and titans galore, with everyone's favorite Scouts being dragged along for the adventure.**

 **I hope you enjoy, and do leave me a review on the way out, thanks! :D**


	2. Chpt 1: Meet the Neighbors

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Chapter 1: Meet the Neighbors

Shiganshina, late January, 840:

"Is it me or is it not as cold today, as it was last week?"

"It is _a bit_ milder, but then, winter doesn't hang around here as much as it does up in the north: at least, that's what I've been told"

"It is colder up near Isscal, but when you've been living up in the mountains for as long as we have, everything below a thousand feet feels warmer" the young woman smiled in reply.

The winter winds blew over the rooftops and chimney stacks with a cold yet calm nip: not frostbiting, but still, enough to make one rub their hands to keep the numbness at bay; across the city, all of Shiganshina went about its usual business, albeit at a quieter pace. Winter was the hardest time of year, and working hard just to survive the cold was a battle everyone had to fight. But for those who knew how, and were well seasoned at enduring this rough time, they took it in their stride and carried on, no matter what. And today was no different for the two women hanging their laundry out to dry in the frigid air, while bundled up as warmly as possible.

"So uh? You live a few doors up the street from us, right?" the young woman changed the subject, "Only, we're still trying to figure out who lives where and what's the best route to the market place" she sheepishly added.

"That's right, I saw you and your husband roll up in that huge cart last week: It's nice having a new set of faces in the neighborhood" the older woman smiled, "I'm Carla by the way. Carla Jaeger"

"I'm Lisa" the younger woman greeted with a polite nod, "Speaking of the cart, the left-side wheel is starting to loosen a bit: you wouldn't happen to know anywhere in the city we can get that looked at, can you?"

"Actually, you could go and see Gustav about that; he's pretty skilled at fixing most things. He owns the forge next door to the Black Stallion," Carla replied, she was about to speak again, when two familiar faces caught her attention, "Oh hello you two!"

Lisa turned, and saw coming up the street, two rather contrasting-looking women: one was a little old lady with her silvery-gray hair tied up in a huge bun with wispy bangs coming down over her ears, and wearing a rather serious look on her face; while her companion was a large stout woman with a huge mess of fiery red curly hair and bright green eyes, sporting a large hunting knife on her leather belt, and wearing a jacket made from a wolf's pelt. She seemed the friendlier of the two, as she greeted them with a broad smile.

"What's that you're talking about my idiot brother?" the older of the two women demanded sharply, "He hasn't been giving you grief again has he Carla? I know your husband's a doctor but if he's been badgering him for something for his joints again I'll-

"-It's alright Miriam" Carla was quick to assure her, "Gustav's been behaving himself" she chuckled.

"Yeah well, this time of the year's a pain in the ass for him, _literally._ He always feels the cold in his hip: never leaves that forge unless he needs to" the old woman added in a grouchy tone, before noticing the younger woman. "This the new neighbor?" she gestured to her with a skeptical eye. Lisa wasn't sure what to think, a little put off by Miriam's stern tone, she was afraid to open her mouth for fear of saying the wrong thing; but glancing over at Carla and seeing she was unfazed by the old woman, she quickly got the impression that this was probably a regular thing between them.

"Yes, this is Lisa" Carla smiled: "Lisa, this is Miriam and Freya; Miriam owns the Inn, and Freya's our neighbor; we've been best friends since she first moved here"

"Liar. You only made friends to try and get your hands on my fruit wine recipes" Freya smirked jokingly, "Watch this one: she'll be pilfering your kitchen before you know it"

"It's not my fault you make such good wine" Carla smirked as she finished pegging the last few garments to the washing line. "So what brings you two out here in the cold?"

"Came to check on the ankle-biters, what else?" Miriam shrugged as she rubbed her gloved hands, "Gale, Poppy and Belle are late for lunch"

"Hope they haven't been giving you too much grief: only, Ariana said they'd be going over to your place to play" Freya smiled.

"Uh, no?" Carla smiled in surprise, "Eren said he was going over to the Inn to play with the girls and Armin"

"Well they ain't at the Inn and they ain't at Freya's place, so where did they-

Miriam stopped as she suddenly realized what she was saying: glancing at one another, all three women suddenly came to the same realization, and facepalmed in exasperation.

"I'll go fetch Tyto" Freya grumbled, turning and heading back to her home across the street.

"Uh, sorry, did I miss something?" Lisa sheepishly asked.

"Sorry Lisa" Carla apologized, "Looks like my son and his friends have snuck off... _Again_ "

"Oh, I'm sorry: where could they have gone?"

"Same place they always sneak off to" Miriam grumbled.

* * *

Meanwhile, out in the forest, alongside Wall Maria:

"Come on Armin! You can do it!" Ariana called out

"I-I-I don't think I can! It's t-too h-high up!" Armin stuttered in fear,

"Oh come on!" Belle rolled her eyes, "It's not that bad, really! We ain't got much further to go anyway!"

Glancing up at the huge wall, Armin swallowed hard; the wall was so vast and tall, it practically filled his entire field of vision; as he clung to the dead tree with everything he had, his friends climbed up alongside him, and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Come on, I'll help you up, we'll do it together" Ariana smiled.

"Yeah, come on, we'll keep you from falling" Eren smiled.

The winter had been hard on the forest this year: many of the giant trees had lost a number of branches, and some had toppled over completely due to the sheer amount of melt water washing away the earth around their roots. This had provided a good supply of readily available fire wood for those living out here, and for a gang of eagerly adventurous children looking for something to do, one dead tree that had fallen against the wall, made an ideal ladder to try and climb up.

"How long do you think it'll take for us to get to the top sis?" Poppy asked as she followed close behind.

"Dunno, but it's a long way up" her older sister Gale replied,

"Gale, Poppy, Belle, help me get Armin up" Ariana huffed as she pried Armin from his grip on the trunk, and pushed him up onto the next brunch above. Gale and Poppy came to her side to keep Armin from falling, while Belle, who was the furthest in front, offered the smaller blond-haired boy a hand up.

"It's a good thing this tree fell against the wall" Eren huffed as he helped Armin find his footing on the next branch up, "What do you think we'll see when we reach the top?"

"Dunno, but I bet it'll be awesome!" Belle grinned wildly as she eagerly climbed up the trunk,

"Do you think we'll see any titans?" Poppy asked nervously.

"Maybe? That's where they all live, right?" Gale shrugged

"But they can't get us, right?" Poppy swallowed hard.

"Mr Bryson says they can't, he said they only get about twenty feet high: and he should know, he used to be part of the Scouts, remember?" Ariana assured her.

"Hey! We're almost there!" Belle pointed to the top-most branch of the tree: the other four youngsters eagerly climbed up, with Armin cautiously bringing up the rear, and as they climbed onto the highest branch, they all stared up at the wall, and sighed and moaned in annoyance. They hadn't reached the top, they weren't even close: there was still so much of the wall left, that the top wasn't visible from this level.

"Aw" Eren whined, "how're we gonna get up now?"

"This sucks!" Belle fumed, "We shoulda bought some rope or somethin', maybe a huge ladder?"

"C-c-can we go d-down now? I really d-d-don't like this!" Armin whimpered,

"He's right" Gale sighed, "There's not much we can do now except-

"-HEY YOU!"

The six youngsters snapped their heads in the direction of the raised voice, and gasped in panic. About a quarter mile away, and running towards them fast, were a couple of the Garrison troops and one of the Wall Cultists: who, even from all the way up in the dead tree, looked to be red in the face with outrage.

"Crap! It's _them_ again!" Poppy gasped

"What're we gonna do?!" Gale panicked

Looking down the huge wide trunk of the tree, and noticing the angle at which it was propped up against the wall, Armin suddenly had an idea, "W-w-well? This is gonna sound crazy, but we could slide down the tree?"

"Sound's good enough for me! Hold on tight!" Belle grinned wildly as she scooted down the trunk, grabbed Armin and Eren by the sleeves of their jackets, plopped down on her butt, and let gravity do its thing.

"No wait! I don't- AAAAAAAAAH!" Armin cried out in a panic as he slid down the trunk, while all Eren could do was hold onto Belle and hope he didn't fall off.

"BELLE! WAIT UP!" Gale and Poppy called out as they jumped down and slid after her, with Ariana following suit.

The slide down was as petrifying as it was fast, as they narrowly avoided crashing into the branches and falling over the sides, all the while screaming in a mix of panic and exhilaration, the six youngsters soon made it to the bottom, jumping over the enormous roots and tumbling to the frozen ground, landing in a pile on top of one another.

"Wow! Good call Armin!" Belle tossed Poppy off her legs and stood up: nonchalantly pulling the still-trembling boy up onto his feet, "That was fun!"

"Yeah but they're still coming!" Gale pointed to the guards and cultist.

"Crap! What now?!" Poppy panicked as she sprung to her feet, pulling a half-dazed Eren up with her,

"We run and hide! Just follow me!" Ariana boldly stated as she ran into the tree line; the others all ran after her, not stopping to look behind as their pursuers quickly closed the distance behind them.

"Hey you lil' brats! Stop!" one of the guards angrily called out.

"The goddesses will have your souls for this sacrilege you heathen spawn!" the cultist added as he kept his eyes on them.

As they chased the children into the forest, the three men could just barely make them out among the thick evergreens: despite the lack of foliage usually abundant in the spring and summer months, there were a lot of smaller low-lying pine trees that made it hard for the tall men to run through: but for the shorter children, it wasn't too much of a challenge as they easily zipped through the labyrinth of pine and dead-fall, and the fact the snow hadn't settled in this area meant there were no footprints to follow. As the ground began to drop down into a hollow, the children disappeared from sight, and as they came to the edge of the steep ground, the men stopped and looked around; but the children were nowhere to be seen.

"Where could they have gone?" one of the guards blinked in confusion.

"Well they didn't just vanish into thin air!" his comrade snapped in frustration, "they had to have gone somewhere!"

Looking around the hollow below, they couldn't see any footprints in the sparse patches of snow, and none of the undergrowth seemed to have been disturbed; this was most peculiar, and as he considered his options, the Pastor passed a sigh of regret, before turning to walk back the way they had came. "Forget them for now: we need to get the foresters out here to have that tree removed"

The guards glanced at each other in bemusement: "Are you sure Pastor? I mean, their just kids, it's not like they can do anything to the wall, it's just a bit of fun as far as their concerned?" one of them pointed out.

The pastor snapped his head round, and glared daggers at the guard as he angrily stomped towards him: "As far as the divine architect is concerned, _any_ desecration to his bulwark is a sin of the highest order! Any who dare to lay a hand upon the goddesses shall be made an example of! The next time you see those little heretics, I want them arrested and brought to the church immediately! They _will_ face the judgement of the lord, and they _will_ know what it means to treat their salvation with such disrespect!" he fumed, and stormed off. The two guards glanced at one another, and rolled their eyes in exasperation as they took off after the pastor.

As their footsteps grew fainter, and the sounds of their voices disappeared beyond the tree line: Ariana cautiously poked her head out from her hiding place within the hollow cavity of a huge fallen tree that lay on the ground, next to the edge of the hollow covered by a thicket of small pine trees, and looked around; listening to the sounds of the forest, before turning back inside and assuring everyone in a hushed voice, "Okay, their gone, it's safe to come out"

One by one the children climbed out and dusted themselves off: "That was way too close" Gale sighed nervously as she buttoned her jacket up, "Yeah, they were standing right next to us this time; we're lucky we had this tree to hide in" Poppy concurred as Belle helped her up.

"How'd you know this tree would be here anyway?" Eren turned to Ariana.

"My dad took me and my brothers up here last month to look for pheasants, it started snowing so we hid in there 'till it stopped" she smiled.

"Wow, you know all the best hiding places in the forest Ariana" Armin thought aloud as he nervously stood up and brushed off the dead leaves that stuck to his jacket and trousers.

"Well, that was a pretty wild idea _you_ had, sliding down the tree to get down quickly" She smiled at him.

Armin sheepishly blushed, "It-, just seemed like the best thing to do, there wasn't any time to climb down, or they'd have caught us" he nervously replied, "But, I don't think I wanna go climbing any more trees today"

"Me too, I'm tired" Poppy huffed,

"Okay" Ariana nodded, before suddenly getting an idea, "Hey, you guys wanna see something cool?" she grinned,

"It doesn't involve climbing a tree does it?" Gale asked worryingly

"Nope, we just need to walk is all" Ariana shook her head.

"Oh okay then"

Taking point, Ariana led the gang further into the forest: following one of the smaller animal trails, and staying along the tops of the hollows and ridges that shaped the forest floor into steeply contrasting inclines and sheltered coves and clearings; they stayed close as the canopy high above blotted out the light, and made the forest's shadows dark and gloomy. All around they could hear the distant echo's of various animals moving through the pines. The scratching of rabbits as they dug for roots among the trees, the haunting scream of a fox, and the twittering of birds as they took shelter in the higher trees.

"It's kinda spooky in here" Armin nervously thought aloud as he stayed close to Eren's side: "Aren't you afraid Ariana?"

"Not really" she shrugged, "Dad's taken me and my brothers up here plenty of times, I know this place real well. And besides, we're almost there"

Another several minutes of walking brought them to a large but sheltered clearing, where a thick blanket of snow had accumulated on the ground: and in the middle of the clearing, spread out in a thirty foot wide circle, were a collection of huge boulders. But these were not like the other boulders they'd seen in the forest: these ones were a slightly different colour, they stood upright like pillars and posts, almost thirty to forty five feet tall, and their surfaces were covered in strange worn markings, the likes of which none of them had seen before.

"Here we are" Ariana smiled, "What'd you think?"

"What is this place?" Eren stared up at the boulders in awe,

"Dad calls it 'the crossroads', it's supposed to be a special place" Ariana explained as she ran a hand along one of the markings, walking around the boulder as she followed the line all the way around. Studying the markings, Armin noticed how they seemed to form strange patterns consisting of long straight lines, spirals, circles and dots: "Why's it special?" he asked curiously,

"Dunno" she shrugged, "But he likes it here: he says it's where the spirits live"

"Huh" Eren replied offhand, not really paying attention, "So, how'd these stone get like that?"

"Duh! Someone put them like that" Belle deadpanned, before walking around the base of one, "But, how'd they do it?"

"Beat's me, but dad says they've been here a really really _really_ long time, like, _waaaay_ before the walls were built kinda-old" Ariana explained.

"Seriously? Come on, nothing's _that_ old" Eren smirked, "Nothing's older than the walls"

"My Dad says there are: he says there are _many things_ that are way older than the walls"

"Like what?" Poppy offered

"Time?" Ariana shrugged

The kids looked at one another in confusion, "Time?" Eren echoed in disbelief, "Your dad comes up with some crazy things Ariana" he laughed.

Rolling her eyes, Ariana waved him off, "Yeah whatever: I just thought you guys would like this place. No one else ever comes here"

"What do think these are for?" Armin thought aloud as he ran his hand over one of the circles and lines.

"Dad says they were carved by the ancient ones: the ones who came before us"

"Us?" Belle echoed

"You know? People?" Ariana looked at her weirdly, "They lived in the time before people, when the world was new and there was only light and darkness, and fire and water. I don't know how long ago that was, but it must have been a pretty long time ago"

"Whatever; you wanna build a snowman?" Gale pointed to the large patch of snow; quickly abandoning the conversation, the others eagerly agreed and in no time at all, the subject was forgotten.

As they went about their task of rolling up the snow into a sizable body and head, Ariana couldn't help but glance up every now and then. This whole area of the forest was silence, except for the delicate clattering of bare branches knocking together in the wind, high in the canopy above: no one and nothing else was here...

So why did she get this feeling that they were being watched?

An unknown length of time passed, and before long the snowman was finished, complete with twigs for arms, pebbles for eyes and a nose, and a smile made from a twisted piece of wood. Looking up at the hole in the canopy, they all noticed how the sky seemed gloomier than before, and how the clouds were dull and grey.

"We should probably start heading back: you know the way back to the road from here, right Ariana?" Gale asked her.

"Yeah," Ariana nodded, "Come on"

"We should definitely come here again" Belle suggested, "If no one else comes here, then we don't have to worry about those nut jobs in the wall cult finding us, right?"

"Yeah I guess?" Ariana replied offhand as she glanced up at the canopy, listening for anything that might suggest the presence of another person; but nothing could be heard. Letting it go, Ariana took point once again, as she led the gang out of the clearing, and back down the trail that led them here.

As the children left, high in the canopy above, something watched them with intense fascination; to the casual observer, it might have appeared as a white flame flickering on the very tip of a twig where a leaf would be. But to someone with a sharper eye, it might have been something else: something, one could only describe as ethereal. The small anomaly flittered off its precarious perch, and let the wind carry it high above the canopy.

As they made their way back to the road, the children's minds wandered to other things, and soon they were talking and laughing over the kinds of things five and six years old's tend to talk about most. None of them knew how long they'd been walking for, but when the road appeared in sight, it was a relief.

"We better get home, I don't wanna get stuck out here in the cold" Armin though aloud,

"Me neither" Gale concurred. They were about to step out of the tree line and onto the grassy verge by the side of the road, when suddenly, Ariana grabbed the back of their jackets and yanked them back into the bushes.

"Hey! What gives?" Gale demanded: Ariana pressed a finger to her lips and shushed her, Belle pointed to somewhere down the road; looking over at where she was pointing; both Armin and Gale were dismayed to see it was the guards and pastor from earlier. They were standing about a hundred and fifty yards down from them, talking with some other guards, and more wall cultists.

"Great, how're we gonna sneak by them?" Eren huffed in annoyance as he pulled his red muffler tighter around his neck.

"We could back-track and go right around them?" Armin suggested.

"Yeah but then-, Ariana stopped as she heard a cart approaching in the opposite direction, and the voices of two men talking grabbed her attention...

* * *

At that same moment, further up the road:

"I'm telling you West it's going to be great: three bedrooms, a pantry, a wine cellar, and all the furniture thrown in for a quarter of the price! Deals like that don't come every day"

"I'm not faulting your haggling skills. But Pascal, did we _really_ have to move there in the middle of winter?!" the younger gentleman gripped as he stuffed his hands under his arms in an attempt to keep the growing cold from nipping his fingers.

His friend glanced at him with an expression of mock hurt: "Oh come on, it was either this or spend another night at that damn tavern in Trost, and frankly, I'd prefer to sleep without the company of rat under the bed thank you very much. That, and the deal had a strict time limit, either I buy there and then or not at all"

Dropping the subject, West had something else come to mind: "Speaking of deals: I know we've decided to take 'early retirement', but is this side-line business really going to keep us afloat?"

"Hey, 3DMG ain't cheap for the military to make, and there are a lot of people in the interior that are willing to pay an arm and a leg to get their hands on one: trust me, it'll keep food on the table and the horses saddled. There's a guy I know in Shiganshina who's owed me a favor for years, he's got the trade route and customer list set up; all we gotta do is sell the things and give him a cut of the takings"

"And how do we actually get our hands on them?" West raised an eyebrow,

"Oh the guy knows we're retired, he said he'll take care of the 'procurement': don't worry, I got it all laid out" Pascal assured him with a sly smile.

"Yeah well, just as long as we don't have to get involved in anything that demands more than we're willing to sacrifice. We've made it this far: I don't want to have to leave one set of problems behind, just to get mixed up in another set of problems" West replied concernedly, as he pulled out the map in his back pocket, and read it over for the umpteenth time: "...Are we even there yet? How much further do we have to go?"

"Give me that" Pascal snatched the map from out of his hands, and looked it over in confusion: "Ah I can't tell where we are, all the trees look the same to me!"

"You gotta admit though," West smiled as he gazed up at the canopy; "They weren't kidding when they said the trees here grew to be absolute giants"

"Yeah I guess" Pascal shrugged as he pulled the reins, and directed the horse to pull over to the side of the road, coming to a stop on the grassy verge. "Watch the cart a minute, I gotta go take a piss" he added as he jumped down, and headed through the undergrowth to the nearest tree. "Actually, I better go myself" West concurred as he too jumped down, and headed off in the opposite direction across the road.

Having watched the cart stop practically right in front of them, the kids decided to act on their hastily-concocted plan, and quietly snuck out of the bushes, being careful not to alert the men to their presence. They crept around the back of the cart, climbed up onto the body via the back step, and quickly scooted under the loosely tied down tarpaulin, being sure to lie as still as possible.

As Armin tucked himself under the tarpaulin, they suddenly heard the men climb back on, and before he had a chance to panic, Ariana quickly clasped a hand over his mouth to silence him. The driver ordered the horse to walk on, and the cart steadily began to trundle down the road again. Glancing out from the small gap between the tarpaulin and the cart, the kids watched as they soon passed by the pastors and Garrison guards, and to their relief, were not spotted. Exchanging smiles of relief and excitement, the kids remained in their hiding place: satisfied their plan had worked.

"What do you suppose that's all about?" West thought aloud as he looked over his shoulder, at the gathering of Garrison guards and Pastors that were assembled by the side of the road, talking in hushed voices and glancing at them with suspicious looks.

"Eh, some idiot must have tried to scale the wall. Those nut jobs in the cult get all twitchy whenever someone so much as touches the damn things" Pascal shrugged, "Ah well, it ain't our problem: the only problem we got right now, is trying to figure out where that damn cottage is" he sighed as he got the map out of his pocket, and took another look at it.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in Shiganshina:

"Ah I'm sorry Carla" Freya sighed as she sat down at the table, opposite her friend.

"For what?" Carla blinked in surprise,

"For scaring Lisa off, I don't think I did any favors by losing it like that in front of her" the red-headed woman sighed sheepishly as she took a sip of her tea,

"Oh don't worry about it" Rosemary smiled as she poured the tea, "She'll soon learn that's how Miriam has always been, she's just-, very 'matter-of-fact is all" she added as he brought the cups over, and handed them to Carla and Freya. Miriam's older sister, Rosemary was the polar opposite of her younger sister: kind, polite and easy-going, she was much easier to get along with, as she was often a soothing balm to her sister's more abrasive attitude. "And don't worry about Gale, Poppy and Belle; they'll be getting a good talking to when they get back. I would stay but I've got to get back and get the evening shift started"

"Thanks Rosemary" Carla waved her goodbye as she stepped over to the front door. "Oh and Freya darling, your payment for the week is ready for picking up whenever you like" Rosemary added as she stepped outside and pulled her shawl tightly around her shoulders.

"You know, I sometimes wonder what on earth the rest of her family would do without her?" Carla thought aloud with a smile.

"It doesn't bare thinking about..." Freya smiled, before her smile fell away into a more downcast expression "...It's my own fault they snuck off: I should have specified they could only play at the house or the Inn"

"Oh don't blame yourself: _I'm_ the one who should have double-checked where Eren was" Carla was quick to assure her, "...Is this the fourth or fifth time they've snuck off like this now? I honestly can't remember"

"The fifth I think? In any case, I know it's Ariana that's the instigator: maybe this time I should ban her from seeing Eren, until she learns not to do it again at least" Freya though aloud, concern laced in her voice.

Hearing that, Carla felt a pang of concern go through her. Ever since they were babies, Ariana and Eren had been close friends, she and Armin where the only friends Eren had in this world, the only children that got along with him (with the exception of Gale, Poppy and Belle, who Ariana talked into playing with him). Ever since he was born, Eren had always been headstrong and wilful, and a real handful at times: but between Armin and Ariana, he had somehow found a level of calm that kept his more impetuous tendencies in check. It was good to see him being friends with others, and knowing that her son was not an outcast.

"Oh no, I don't think there's any need for that" she was quick to politely object, "I'll-, talk to Eren, reinforce the ground rules so to speak, maybe double his chores for the next week or two?"

"Same here" Freya smiled offhand as she watched the grey clouds up in the sky; a long silence passed between, before Freya softly spoke: "...I sometimes wonder if moving here was really a good idea?"

"Why's that?" Carla asked offhand,

Glancing at her friend with half a smile, Freya let a sombre sigh pass her lips, before explaining: "...Ariana was born to the Marian forests, it's why she always sneaks off: she's far more at home there than here in the city, she knows the forest and its spirits, it calls to her, like the sky does to the birds...It wasn't easy choosing to move out of the forest and into the city: but, you've got to do what's right by your family, and making sure their safe and have a roof over their heads is more important than holding onto family nostalgia...Don't get me wrong Carla, it's not been all bad: having neighbors like you and Grisha has been a blessing, Bryson, Breck and Claude have been wonderful too, and the Willums have been so good to us, I can't complain really. But sometimes I can't help but think-...well? You can take a hunter out of the forest"

"But not the forest out of the hunter" Carla nodded in understanding, "Well? You are a family of hunters after all: I guess it's that kind of instinct runs in the blood?"

"And then some" Freya sighed, "...Maybe it's time for Ariana to begin her training and initiation?"

"Training and initiation?"

"For hunting: I was about five when I began my training, as was Evrard, Tyto, Eraman and Falken when they were younger; you can never start too young in our family, and if it'll sate her need to be in the forest than that'll give me some peace of mind at least...My one greatest fear is if she tries to climb the wall and gets caught"

"Ugh, don't remind me," Carla sighed in exasperation, "I know Eren's not a particularly curious child, but if something happens and he gets caught-... _God_ , I worry what the cult would do to him; they don't take 'desecration of the goddesses' lightly. Young or old, anyone who gets caught is-..." she shuddered, "...Well, I just hope he's smart enough to heed what I've told him about them"

"You know? If you want, I could ask Tyto if he'd teach Eren how to hunt too? There's no harm in instilling some new skill sets, along with a little discipline and character building to boot. He'd make a good hunter you know? He may not seem like it now, but that boy's got real determination, and he doesn't give up lightly"

"Tell me about it..." Carla held her head in her hand as an exasperated smile crossed her lips, "Thank you, but I couldn't put you to such trouble; I'll think of something to rein him in, please don't worry"

"Well if you say so, but if you need anything, you just holler okay?" Freya smiled as she drank her tea,

"...You're way too good Freya, you know that right?" Carla couldn't help but think aloud.

"Yeah well, there ain't many mothers out there who know how to handle kids as impetuous and spirited as ours: most would have thrown in the towel by now: but not us, we both hung in there, and somehow found a way to get on top of it. The world's a cruel enough place without a fellow neighbor not being there to help a fellow neighbor in need. Simple acts of random kindness are really not that hard, as long as you can be bothered to give a damn; don't think you're putting me to any trouble, because you're not, okay?" Freya explained frankly with a reassuring smile,

"Okay" Carla nodded

At that moment, the front door opened, and another familiar face stepped in.

"Hello darling" Carla greeted her husband as she got up to place a kiss on his cold cheek.

"Sorry I'm late, the hospital's got double the frostbite and flu cases this year: it's absolute madness," Grisha sighed as he took off his hat, scarf and gloves, and slipped out of his coat; "Afternoon Freya, what brings you over here?" he smiled.

Both women glanced at each other with deadpan expressions, and glanced back at the doctor in exasperation; suddenly realizing what had happened, Grisha sighed as he shook his head in dismay: "Oh dear, where did they run off to this time?"

"That's what Tyto and Evrard have gone to find out" Freya replied.

* * *

Meanwhile, over at the Black Stallion Inn:

The place was busier than usual, busier than it had been the previous week at least; as the usual punters and out-of-towners drank their drinks, and filled the bar with the usual hubbub of chatter and laughter, in the back room behind the bar: Rosemary was busy helping to prepare the evening menu.

"So when will they be back? It'll be getting dark soon" Miriam impatiently asked as she sat in the small office next door to the kitchen, tallying up the day's takings.

"Whenever Tyto and Evrard get back with them, they've got to find them first, and that's a lot of forest to search Miriam" Rosemary pointed out as she peeled the potatoes.

"I warned you this would happen!" A gruff voice sounded as a crotchety old man stepped into the kitchen, picked up one of the steamed potatoes and started eating it. He was real geezer, short with a mop of wild untamed grey hair, and a beard and mustache that seemed to be equally unruly: and despite sporting a lean aged frame, he had a fair bit of muscle on him. "Those brats were gonna start to get curious about stuff sooner later; they'd wanna go an' explore places and get up to who knows what!"

"Oh really Gustav! You make it sound like their out all hours of the night consorting with criminals and the like!" Lucille scolded him. The middle sister of the four Willum siblings, Lucille stood out the most on account of her rather tall and skinny frame, with a huge mess of curly grayish-silver hair, but like her elder sister Rosemary, she was a kind old sweetie who was easy to get along with. "Any besides, those potatoes are for the customers!" she added as she shelled the peas.

"All I'm saying is we've arrived at the point we might fail as parents, unless those brats get some discipline instilled, we'll never be able to rein them in!" Gustav added as he took another bite of his potato.

"I don't know about discipline per se, it's not like their intentionally causing trouble: they've just got a lot of energy to spare at their age, and it's just a question of redirecting it" Rosemary suggested.

"What? Like putting them to work behind the bar or up in the guest house?" Gustav replied with a skeptical raise of the eyebrow.

"Why not? We were about their age when mother and father put us to work in this place" Rosemary shrugged, "It could be what they need to burn off some of that energy of theirs. And besides, it never hurts to get an early start on acquiring new skills and trades at their age"

"The sooner the better" Miriam piped up as she exited the office, "Those girls need to learn some boundaries if they're to have any chance of survival. As long as they live within this walled world, they can't afford to dream of what cannot be achieved. It's time they learn to aspire towards something they _can_ attain"

"Oh let them dream Miriam" Lucille waved off, "They may live within the three walls, but that doesn't mean they should be denied something that gives them hope"

"Even if that hope means they risk being caught by the wall cult?" Gustav pointed out, "You know _damn well_ what those bastards would do to them if they caught them trying to sneak over the wall; they ain't fussy about things like age, or harmless childhood capers. They punish anyone and _everyone_ "

An uneasy silence fell over the kitchen, before a commotion out in the bar grabbed everyone's attention: suddenly, a black haired boy ran out of the bar and up the stairs, with a younger ash-blond girl chasing after him: followed by a young woman with short red hair: "Fox wait!-" she stopped when she saw the elder Willum siblings, "Oh, sorry, I didn't know you were all in here!" she sheepishly apologized.

"What happened?!" Miriam demanded.

"W-well? It's Fox, he was serving a customer, and he noticed the scars on his face and he-, well, you know," she sheepishly tried to explain.

Her expression turning dark, Miriam rolled up her sleeves, cracked her knuckles, and stepped over to the door: "Who was it?" she glowered,

"The guy over by the fireplace" the young woman pointed into the bar; following the direction of her finger, Miriam spotted the customer in question. A rather large, well fed, well dressed merchant who had obviously been knocking back one too many ales, and was now laughing his head off, alongside his equally drunk buddies. "Give me a minute" she growled as she stepped out into the bar, and reached for something under the counter.

"Oh goodness no! Miriam! Not the knuckle dusters this time! _Please!_ " Lucille panicked as she ran after her, while Rosemary merely looked over at the younger woman with an apologetic look, "You better go and see to the boy Mable, I'll take care of things down here"

"You sure Rosemary?" Mable hesitated, "I mean, you don't think-

"Oh I wouldn't worry too much darling," Rosemary smiled, as the sound of a scuffle and a loud CRACK! Sounded from out of the bar (the sound of someone getting their jaw punched in). "I don't think we're going have to call Hannes this time; now go and see if Fox is okay, you know terribly sensitive he is"

"Well okay, but, just shout if you need help okay?" Mable replied as she took off up the stairs. At that moment, a young girl with messy black hair tied up in a ponytail stepped into the kitchen from the back door, and looked over at Rosemary with a deadpan look. "Someone called Fox names again?"

"I'm afraid so Bemadette" Rosemary nodded regretfully,

"Figured as much, Miriam just threw some fat guy out head first into the street" she thumbed over to the bar door, before looking over at Gustav, "I'm done cleaning up pops, Bren said he'll be in soon"

"Okay then, go get your chops filled with some food and off to bed: you'll need the sleep. Mr Cooper's getting all his horses shoed tomorrow, including Ol' Devil"

"Ol Devil?" Bemadette grumbled: she knew the horse he was talking about, the ill-tempered one that tried to trample her the last time it came to the forge to have its shoes replaced, "...Great" she headed for the stairs and headed up to her room.

"Dinner will be ready in ten minutes!" Rosemary called up to her.

"... She's a quick learner that one" Gustav commented in an unreadable tone, "Knows what to do, and how to do it...Damn shame her mother doesn't see it that way"

"There's not much we can do about that Gustav, her circumstances are what they are. I don't agree with it, but at least she had the common sense to know her limits" Rosemary pointed out in a hushed tone.

"I just don't get why she didn't accept Miriam's offer to come and work here, at least then she and her kid could be together" Gustav frowned, "Being a woman of the night? Running with _that_ crowd? That ain't no way to live"

"I don't understand her reasons for choosing that line of work either, but whatever they are, they're _her's_ to deal with. All we can do is abide by our end of the agreement, and ensure Bemadette has a place to live and learn. That's all we can do"

"Speaking of which, when do you think we should put the brats to work?"

"Well? They're going to have to be reprimanded in one form or another, so tomorrow morning I guess?" Rosemary shrugged.

"Very well, I'll go fetch the whips and chains" he joked, finishing off his potato, and heading outside to the outhouse, "Oh you are terrible Gustav" Rosemary smirked, "Then I'm on point" he smirked.

* * *

Meanwhile, out in the forest:

"How much further do you think these guys have to travel?" Poppy whispered,

The cart had traveled quite a distance from where they left the Garrison troops and wall cultists behind. Now, the kids were waiting for another opportunity for the driver and his friend to leave the cart, and let them sneak away unnoticed. But that hadn't quite proven to be the case: fortunately, through the gap in the tarpaulin, the kids recognized the road and knew Shiganshina's inner gate wasn't far from here, but wherever these guys were going, it was somewhere up north east of the farmlands, on the edge of the great forest. They needed to get off before then, or the walk back home would take hours, and it was starting to get dark.

"We need to get off soon guys, or it's gonna take forever to get home" Gale whispered.

"We could try and distract them somehow?" Armin suggested

"Yeah but how?" Belle pointed out.

"Maybe we could just slip out and hop down while they're not looking?" Eren offered.

As they debated on what to do, something caught Ariana's eye; in the large crate she laid next to, she saw two sets of 3DM gear, minus the paring blades in the holsters. Were these guys ex-military? It's the only reason she could think of as to why they'd have 3DM gear in their possession. Were they retired? On leave? Something about this made her curious.

"Well I think we should just get up, tell them to stop and let us off, and if they give us any trouble, I can always come at them with a left hook, just like Great-aunt Miriam showed me!" Belle hissed.

"You can't do that! They ain't done anything to us!" Poppy protested, trying to keep her voice down.

As the youngsters debated at length over what to do, little did they know, their cover had already been blown; as they listened to the hushed conversation in the back of the cart, Pascal and West exchanged smiles, and decided to have their own fun. Stopping the horse, Pascal gently got up, and grabbed the edge of the tarpaulin, "You know? You could always just-

He threw back the tarpaulin, and the children screamed in shock, quickly scrambling to their feet.

"-Get the hell off our cart!" he placed hands on his hips, and tried to look as intimidating as possible, "Okay, what the hell are you brats doing hiding back there, and what were you going to try and steal?!"

Belle's fear turned to anger as she studied the tall red-headed man; he looked surprising well dressed, decked out in a clean shirt complete with cravat, a waistcoat, and had his red hair slicked back in such a way that it made him look a bit like a pheasant. The small cleanly shaven pencil-thin mustache completed his well groomed appearance, while his companion looked more casual with his appearance: dressed only in basic slacks fit for the outdoors, he had light wavy brunette hair that was combed back with a few bangs framing his forehead, and a small goatee that was deliberately shaved to point up to the corners of his mouth; she glared at them both as she spat back: "Who the hell are you calling thieves?! We didn't steal anything!"

"Yeah! We ain't got anything on us! So back off!" Eren backed her up, trying to puff out his chest so as to try and look bigger.

"Yeah, we kinda figured kid" the brunette man smiled, "We're just messing with you"

The kids glanced at one another in confusion.

"However, what _were_ you doing in our cart in the first place? Bored out of your little minds and looking for some fun?" the red-headed man in leaned closer as he studied them skeptically.

"Um? Well? You see, we were uh? Kinda-" Gale stammered nervously,

"We were hiding from the garrison and wall cult!" Poppy blurted out, "We tried to climb the wall and they nearly caught us!"

"-That's why we had to hide in your cart" Ariana quickly added, "It was the only way to slip by them on the road back there"

"So that's what all the fuss was about?" the man raised a skeptical eyebrow, "All those troops and cultists, for six little kids? You guys must have done something big to get them riled up like that" he smirked with a sly look in his eyes.

"We climbed up the side of a fallen tree that was propped up against the wall, we just wanted to get to the top is all" Ariana added sheepishly

"Huh, and there's me thinking that you'd somehow concocted some elaborate scheme using ropes ladders and grappling hooks" he teased them.

Belle smacked Gale up the side of her head, "I told you we should've used ropes and ladders!" she reprimanded.

"U-u-uh, look, we just want to go home is all! Please don't turn us over to the Garrison mister!" Armin trembled in fear.

Studying the kids, and concluding there was no real harm done here, Pascal took a deep breath, and sighed: "...Tell you what kids, I'll do you all a deal: you point us the way to Finchbury Pass, and we won't tell anyone we saw you, sound fair?"

The kids all glanced at one another, and nodded in agreement; "...You're going in the wrong direction. Finchbury pass is back the other way: take a right at the crossroads, and follow the road up for about two miles until you get to the bridge, and it's just on the other side down past the hollow on the left side of the road" Ariana explained.

"...Thanks" he smiled.

"Okay then, back to the cross roads it is" West grinned as he commanded the horse to turn, and they headed off back the way they came.

"So? You guys new here? Only, you got all this stuff here in the back" Eren asked curiously as he and Ariana pulled the tarpaulin over the contents of the cart, and sat down on the back with their feet hanging over the edge

"Yep, just moved here" West nodded,

"Really? Where'd you guys come from?" Poppy asked curiously.

"The capitol" Pascal replied offhand deliberately, young innocent naive gullible kids were always a good source for local information: might as well see what there was to learn about the locals in this area. Knowing what he was up to, West said nothing, and listened in.

"The capitol?!" the kids all gawked, "Like, where the king lives, right in the heart of the three walls capitol?" Belle breathed in surprise.

"Not unless there's another capitol we don't know about?" Pascal shrugged, "So I take it having a couple of 'big-wigs' from the heart of the interior is a big deal round here?"

"Kinda, no one from Wall Sina _ever_ come here unless their doing business with one of the guilds in Shiganshina, and that's usually to do with food" Gale replied,

"Really? What kind of food?" West asked offhand.

"The kind that only grows this far south: there are some farms down in the valleys that grow things like lemons, oranges, limes, tea, coffee, tobacco, cotton, you know, the kinda things that can only grow where it's warm most of the year? Those plants are very rare in other places, so the farmers make a lot of money from selling their crops to the interior at luxury goods" Armin nervously replied, "There are silk farms further to the west of the valleys too"

"Really?" Pascal raised an eyebrow, "So I guess that means there must be a lot of money passing through the city huh?"

"Yeah, but we don't get to see it much" Ariana shrugged, "Everyone round here mostly grows the stuff or works for one of the guilds shipping it to the interior. The only way you can taste an orange is if you wait for it to fall off the tree and roll under the fence"

"Tough break" West shrugged,

"So are you guys some rich merchant-types come to do business here? Only, if you're traveling by the road, you might not want to tell anyone your rich" Belle pointed out,

"Oh really? And why not?" Pascal smirked,

"Because of all the criminals out here"

"Yeah, a lot of people get robbed out here on the roads late at night; some even get their throats slashed by the really crazy ones!" Eren piped in,

"I heard some people even get kidnapped, and taken to the interior to be sold as slaves. Of course, that's just a rumour, I dunno if it's true or not" Gale added offhand.

"Oh I forgot to ask, what're your names?" Ariana smiled,

The two men glanced at one another, and West replied, "Eh, it's probably better we don't tell you kid: we're trying to keep a low profile while we're here. You know, so, if we ever get jumped by those criminals, they don't recognize as rich folk and try to kill us and-, stuff" he hastily explained, half wincing at how bad his excuse sounded: but then, these were a couple of five and six years old's, they were too young to pick up on little lies like that, right? Glancing over his shoulder and seeing that they hadn't seemed to have noticed, Pascal shot him a reassuring wink.

"Okay, probably a good idea..." Ariana shrugged, before adding, "So, were you guys in the military? Only I saw the 3DM gear back there, and figured you guys must be part of the Military Police if you came all the way from wall Sina"

The two men began sweating musket bullets as they quickly thought up a cover story. "Uh, yeah, we-

"Ariana?" a voice called out from down the road. Recognizing who it was, the kids all snapped their heads round and beamed with delight when they saw who it was, "BRYSON!" they yelled in excitement, hopping off the back of the cart, and running for the wagon that was steadily approaching. As they passed by, Pascal and West stopped as the kids climbed aboard and greeted the three men seated at the front. "Ah, are these your kids?" Pascal smiled, managing to keep his cool.

"Our neighbor's kids" the light brunette gentleman corrected with an unreadable gaze; he seemed like he could hold his own in a fight, tall and lean but with noticeable muscles beneath his shirt, he held a strong commanding gaze, as his intense green eyes scanned the two of them up and down with an air of skepticism. The gentleman sitting next to him was practically the spitting image of him: twin's maybe? But his eyes held a softer, more friendlier gaze, while the gentleman seated at the other end of the wagon was totally different. Tall and skinny with green eyes that lay behind a pair of pince-nez glasses, he had thick wavy black hair shaved into an undercut, and combed up into a sort of pompadour-type style, his eccentric style was further defined by his smart shirt and cravat that was tied into a Gordian knot, a blue waistcoat that sported a distinct floral pattern, and black trousers that meet his black socks at the knee with smart buckled ankle-high boots; clearly, this guy had some serious cash to burn if he sported a look like that, and his friends didn't seem to be too far off either, as they too look well dressed and smart. How did a trio of rich guys like theses know a bunch of working-class kids like them? Their laborer's kids maybe? House staff? "And who are you two?" he asked in a very matter-of-fact tone.

"Who us?" Pascal blinked in surprise, "Uh we just were-

"They were giving us a lift back to the inner gate!" Ariana quickly piped in, "We were walking back home, and they offered us a lift"

"Uh yeah!" Pascal quickly went with it, "Lil' kids that young shouldn't be out on these roads, not when it's starting to get dark, and there might be some unsavory characters lurking about in the woods, so we offered them a lift back to the city"

"Well, thank you for your concern gentlemen, but we know their parents, and we'll make sure they get home safely, you have my word" the gentleman replied with a courteous nod.

"Oh really? Well what a relief" Pascal smiled sheepishly as he commanded the horse to walk on, "You kids stay out of trouble you hear? Cheerio!"

"We will!" They all replied smiling, "Bye! And thanks for the lift!" Ariana waved goodbye, West waved in return, as the cart quickly disappeared over the next rise.

Once they were some distance down the road and were sure they were out of earshot: the two men allowed themselves to relax, and both let out sighs of relief: "That was close" West thought aloud.

"Not too close, but still..." Pascal frowned in thought; seeing the look on his face, West knew there was something on his mind, "What's up?" he asked in concern.

"...I dunno? ..." Pascal replied in uncertainty, "Did those kids _really_ try to scale the wall? I know the cult overreacts every time they hear of someone touching the damn things, but..."

"You think they might have actually come close to doing it?"

"Who knows? Probably not, you know how kids can blow things way outta proportion...but still: there was something about that kid, the auburn-haired one...I can't put my finger on it, but-"

"What?"

"... Ah forget it, I'm just paranoid. Old habits dying hard...Still, it might be an idea to lie low, until we got ourselves set up in our new home: just to play it safe"

"Sure thing" West nodded.

* * *

"Who were they?" Bryson asked the kids

"Dunno, some rich guys from the capitol" Eren shrugged,

"Oh really?" Bryson deadpanned: somehow, he didn't believe that, everything about them seemed a tad shady for his liking: Maria forbid they were human traffickers that nearly got lucky; it didn't bare thinking about if they hadn't been passing along when they did, but seeing as the kids were safe and well, Bryson put it out of his mind and concentrated on the road. With a flick of the reins, the horses walked on, and they resumed their journey, while the kids hunkered down inside the wagon behind them.

"So? What mischief have you young miscreants been up to?" the black-haired gentleman smirked in a posh clipped accent that would have told anyone he was from Wall Sina.

The kids all glanced at one another as they tried to think up a cover story: "Uh? Well we-

"Hey Bryson!" A garrison guard called out as he approached the wagon.

"Hannes?" Bryson called back as he noticed the check-point up ahead, and brought the wagon to a stop by the side of a T-junction: "What's up?"

"Sorry guys, mandatory check point'," the guard smiled as he approached the wagon half-stinking like a tavern, and went around to the back, "Some kids were seen climbing the wall earlier and pissed the cult off good and proper this time, so we gotta check to see if-

But the second he poked his head in the back of the wagon, and saw the six kids staring nervously back at him, Hannes's smile dropped, and he facepalmed with a long drawn out exasperated sighed: "Uuugh! Why the hell am I _not_ surprised? _Of course_ it had to be _you_ six trying to climb the wall, _again!_ "

"You tried climbing the wall again?!" Bryson exclaimed in alarm, "Oh dear," his twin pinched the bridge of his nose: "Oh dear indeed" their black-haired friend worried as he adjusted his glasses.

"We just wanted to see the top! We didn't mean any harm!" Belle squeaked in alarm,

" _I_ know that: but the wall cult doesn't see it that way! And those nut jobs will _really_ bring the hammer down on you this time for sure!" Hannes wagged his finger.

"So? What do we do?" Ariana panicked,

Looking back and forth between them and the check-point, Hannes sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair: "...Stay down and don't get back up until the check-point is outta sight, got it?"

"Got it!" The kids hurriedly tucked themselves down between the crates and boxes stacked up in the wagon: "And take the western road back to the inner gate, there're no check-points along there" Hannes added,

"Thanks Hannes" Bryson nodded,

"Yeah yeah, just buy me a quart later and we'll call it even" he grumbled as Bryson turned the wagon, and headed down the other road, bypassing the check point. "Their clear guys!" he called out his comrades down the road.

Keeping an eye on the check point: Bryson and his passengers played it cool as the road led them across some open fields, before steadily dropping down into a shallow valley, which was sheltered by several thick copses of hazel, ash and willow; as soon as the check-point was well out of sight, Bryson turned and announced: "Okay, you can get up now"

"Thanks Bryson" Gale sheepishly replied

"Don't thank me; you can thank Mr Hannes when you next get the chance: how many times has it been he's stuck his neck out for you?" he glanced at them with a stern gaze.

"Uh?" Eren tried to guess, as did the others,

"Oh, that's a rhetorical question: no need to answer" the black-haired gentleman tried to point out.

"Seriously Claude?" Bryson shot him a dry look,

"Oh uh? Sorry" he sheepishly shied away,

"My point is," Bryson turned around to face the children, "This _has_ to be the _last time_ you children try to pull this stunt! It's dangerous enough _actually trying to climb_ the wall, if the wall cult catches you-

"Augh! _What is it_ with the wall cult?!" Belle suddenly snapped in frustration, "Everybody keeps saying their dangerous, that if they catch you trying to climb the walls, that bad things will happen to you! _Well like what?!_ What do they do to you that's so terrible you have to be scared of them?! They're a bunch of crack-pots, no one takes them seriously when their hawking that horseshit of theirs on the street corners, so why should we be scared when they catch us trying to climb that stupid wall?!" she folded her arms and leaned back against one of the crates with a serious huff.

Glancing at one another, the three gentlemen knew it wasn't much use staying silent: there would come a point the children were going to learn the truth sooner or later; maybe that day had come sooner than expected? Turning to face Belle, Bryson's twin drew in breath, and tried explain as best he could: "...Belle, I know it frustrating, believe me. But, just because someone doesn't make sense, doesn't mean their harmless. If anything, it can sometimes be that: _belief_ , by itself, with no reason, sense, or logic to keep it in check, can be a very dangerous thing"

"Dangerous how?" she raised an eyebrow; the others were now curious as to what he meant by that too, "Yeah, what do you mean Breck?"

Breck wracked his brain to try and think of a more simplistic answer: but his twin brother beat him to it: "Put it this way; people who are unwilling to listen to reason, _cannot_ be reasoned with. And the wall cult haven't had need of reason in their line of thinking, for many years now"

"You still haven't answered my question" Belle stubbornly pointed out: "What would the wall cult do to us if they caught us?"

The three gentlemen exchanged uneasy glances, before Claude replied: "Um? Maybe its best you ask your parents; we're _really_ not qualified to be trying to explain that one to all of you"

"It's-, rather complicated" Breck assured them: "More to do with grown-up stuff than anything else. Just-, don't go trying the climb the wall again, please? Your luck nearly didn't hold out this time, and there's no guarantee you'll be able to get away with it next time; it's not worth the risk, alright?"

"Fine" Belle sighed in frustration, "Whatever"

"He's got a point Belle" Armin sighed, "We might not be lucky next time, and I don't want anyone to get hurt"; the others all reluctantly nodded in agreement.

"Very good..." Claude smiled, before changing the subject slightly, ..."So? How far up did you get this time?"

"Pretty far" Eren beamed, "We found a tree that fell against the wall, so we were able to climb up way further than before!"

"Oh really? You think you managed to beat your own personal record?" Breck smirked: Bryson simply rolled his eyes: trust Claude to change the subject in the other direction.

"By about thirty feet, I think?" Armin nervously replied,

"Thirty feet?" Bryson blinked in surprise, "That _is_ a new record"

"Almost fifteen feet higher than last time" Claude pointed out, "Most impressive!"

"Hey Bryson, when you were in the Scouts, did you ever go on top of the wall?" Ariana asked offhand,

"A fair few times" he smiled, "Had to help the Garrison do some long-range observations in 'sighting the herds' so to speak. That, and there were a few times we had to scale the wall on our 3DM gear when a group of abnormal's caught us by surprise; had to jump off the horses and just go straight up"

"Where you scared?" Armin asked nervously,

"Of course he wasn't scared!" Eren elbowed him, "He's a Scout! Their as tough and brave as they come! You gotta be hard as nail to run with those guys!"

"Well? I'm not sure about being 'hard as nails', but it does take a certain level of bravery to be in that line of work; and even then, you're still scared on the inside" Bryson replied frankly.

"But I thought you weren't scared of anything Bryson?" Ariana tilted her head to one side in confusion.

"There's being scared, and then there's using your fear to stay alive: there's no shame in admitting your afraid, going up against the titans? Hell, I'd think there'd be something very wrong with you if you _weren't_ scared at all. And being in that state kind of makes you more aware of your surroundings; you move faster, think harder, and you can attune yourself to everything around you. Bravery isn't about pushing away your fears: you're always going to be scared of something in life, it's about keeping in mind that there's something more important at hand, than being afraid" Bryson explained.

The kids all looked at one another in confusion: they didn't know what he was talking about exactly, but no one asked, and they let it go.

"... Hey Bryson, what's it like out beyond the wall?" Eren asked with a twinkle of intense curiosity.

"Yeah! Is it different? Or is it the same as here?" Belle chimed in.

"It's not too dissimilar to the open prairies and grasslands south west of Karanese; but the big difference? Once you're far enough away that you can't see the wall anymore, you turn to face south, and it just keeps on going forever" he smiled nostalgically, "Nothing but open space as far as you can see, all the way to the mountains"

"And beyond the mountains?" Ariana asked eagerly.

"The rest of the outside world" he smiled at her, "No one know what lies beyond there, because no one has ever gone that far before"

"I'm gonna go that far!" Belle proudly announced with an intense look of determination in her eyes, "I'm gonna join the Survey Corps, and I'm gonna see what's beyond those mountains!"

"Oh really?" Breck couldn't help but grin,

"Really!" she hammered the point across with a raised fist, "I'm gonna be the first Scout to go further than anyone has ever gone before! I'm gonna go beyond those gates, and explore the outside world!"

"And what about the titans?" Bryson teased with a raised eyebrow.

"Eh, I'll just kill any that get in my way" Belle waved off nonchalantly

"Just like that?" Claude couldn't help but giggle.

"Just like that! You know Claude, our great-aunt Miriam says we Willums were beating up titans long before the Scouts were ever formed! While humanity was quickly trying to build the walls to keep the titans out, we Willums were taking care of the ones that managed to slip by, and kick their asses back over the wall!" Belle stated boldly with her chest puffed out.

Bryson tried his best to stifle a chuckle: trust Miriam to be telling her grand-nieces tall tales about her family's exploits. He knew the woman had a 'larger-than-life' sense of humor, but she could be prone to overplaying it at times; but then, no one disputed her over the authenticity of her grand and eccentric stories: mostly because they knew her word was law, and any who objected, quickly found out why she was knick-named 'the old goddess of knuckle-dusters'. "Really? Well if that's the case, why didn't more of your family join the Scouts sooner?" he grinned.

"Because we had an Inn to run!" Belle shot back, "Those pints an' quarts ain't gonna pull themselves you know! And where else would the Scouts go after a long expedition? Or the Garrison, after a long day's work playing poker by the gates? They gotta spend their winning's somewhere!"

"That last part's certainly true!" Breck burst into laughter,

"But I'm gonna be the first Willum to break tradition and join the military!" Belle added, "I know it's gonna be a long wait, since I can't sign up until I turn twelve: but that gives me plenty of time to get a head start on training. Say Bryson; are you interested in loaning out your old 3DM gear? I promise I'll clean it every day and make sure the tanks are always replaced when they run out"

Bryson laughed out loud before joking: "That depends how much you're willing to fork out! My rates aren't cheap you know!" he calmed down and collected himself, turning serious: "...But seriously, that gear is too sentimental to me to loan out to anyone: but, I can make a compromise. If you want to come round the back of the shop sometime, I can set the gear up to test to see whether you have the balance required for using it, sound fair?"

"Can I try it out too Bryson?!" Ariana piped up, "Yeah, me too! I wanna try!" Eren eagerly asked, as did Poppy and Gale, while Armin nervously smiled, "I-I'd like to try it too, please?"

"Okay okay" Bryson tried to calm them down, "You can all come, just make sure you let your parents know first: don't go sneaking off again, okay?"

"We will!" Ariana beamed.

"There you are! ..." a deep booming voice sounded from out of the nearby hazel copse: recognizing who it was immediately, Ariana leaned out of the wagon, in time to see two huge burly men step out of the tree line and into the road.

"Dad? Uncle Evrard?" She swallowed hard, realizing she was busted.

"Tyto, Evrard" Breck greeted with a friendly smile: "No prizes for guessing what you two are doing out here"

"Sorry gentlemen, I hope our little magpie hasn't been giving you too much grief" Tyto smiled as he came up alongside Bryson. Tyto was a giant of a man: built like a bear with a broad strong frame, he was a man who could easily hold his own in a fight, and the huge hunting knife strapped to his left calf would further put across the message that he wasn't to be messed with lightly. But he was not the type to want to rush into a fight: as his deep brown eyes held calmness that spoke of his peaceful nature, and a deep gaze that reflected his years of experience and wisdom. He had long dark auburn hair that was greying at the roots, cascading down his back in three long plaits, two of which came down over his ears, while his face sported a bushy mustache, and even bushier goatee, and a set of sideburns that almost completely covered his ears. "We've been looking all over the valley for you" he glanced at Ariana through the front of the wagon with a serious gaze.

"Indeed. Do you have any idea how worried your mother is?" Evrard placed his hands on his hips, trying to seem as intimidating as possible. Unlike Tyto, Evrard was much larger, and much more intimidating: equally built like a bear, but with the constitution of a colossal boar, Evrard could easily win any fight, and then some: his intense green eyes held a wild fiery fierceness; the kind that only hunters have, that reflected their strength and spirit. His long thick unkempt red hair fell down his back and over his shoulders like a lion's mane, while his thick sideburns seemed to complete his appearance, giving him a really wild and grizzly look. "Sneaking off like that, your folks are equally worried too you know" he glanced at the other kids.

The six youngsters hung their heads in shame: "...We're sorry" Ariana mumbled sheepishly: glancing up at Bryson, she waited in dread as she expected him to tell her father about what had happened. "So? What did you catch them doing this time?" Tyto asked with an exasperated sigh: the tone of his voice wasn't an angry or annoyed one, more like, one of relief to see and know they were all okay. Knowing she wasn't likely to receive a serious chewing out from him, Ariana relaxed a little, and let a sigh of relief escape from under her breath.

Bryson glanced back over his shoulder at them, and sighed, "I'll let them fill you in: why don't I give you guys a ride back to the city; it's the least we can do"

"Oh good, my feet are starting to kill me!" Evrard sighed with relief as he jumped up onto the tail board of the wagon. Rolling his eyes, Tyto shot Bryson an apologetic look: "Thanks Bryson, we owe you one", and went round the back of the wagon and jumped up next to Evrard, allowing Ariana to squeeze in between them. "Ah don't worry about it, everyone's safe and well, and that's all that matters" Bryson smiled as he flicked the reins, and the horses continued on their journey.

"So" Tyto gazed at the kids with a knowing smile, "What grand adventures have you youngsters been embarking on this afternoon?"

* * *

Later that evening:

It was quite dim by the time they got back to Shiganshina; and as expected, the obligatory punishments were waiting for the children, after facing their respective parents/guardians for a stern chewing out. But no fuss was made and they accepted their punishments as such... The walls weren't going anywhere, so, it's not like there wasn't going to be another opportunity to try again. The rest of the day passed by uneventfully, with chores, dinner and more of the day's chores to be completed before bedtime: the last of the daylight was fading into the indigo of night, as Ariana quietly climbed out of her bedroom window, up onto the roof, and made her way across to Eren's house. Climbing over her roof and jumping across to the house next door, the house in question was quite long, and sat right behind the Jaeger's place, in front of Eren's bedroom.

Like a cat on the prowl, Ariana carefully climbed down to the edge of the roof: a climb she had made many times before, and knew exactly what to do to avoid slipping and falling off; as she approached the bedroom window, and saw (as expected) Eren sitting in bed with a single candle to light his room, she scooped up a piece of moss that was growing out between the roof tiles, and threw it at the window: instantly grabbing Eren's attention, he opened the window and propped his chin on his hands.

"So, how long did you get grounded for?" Ariana smiled sympathetically,

"Two weeks with chores" Eren huffed, "Two weeks is like, _forever_ ; how long did you get?"

"Actually, I didn't get grounded" Ariana shrugged, "Mum and dad says it's time for me to start my initiation: to start learning how to hunt and how to live out in the woods an' stuff"

"What?!" Eren exclaimed, "That's not fair!"

"That's what I said!" she concurred in annoyance, "Dad says it's time I learn the family traditions, like learning how to shoot arrows from a bow, how to set traps, and how to sneak around without anyone or anything knowing your there. That and a bunch of other things I gotta learn how to do in order to survive! It sounds so boring!"

"Huh?" Eren blinked in surprise, "How is it boring? All that sounds so cool, you get to be outside and not stuck indoors like me"

"...Oh yeah," Ariana suddenly realized: "Well? The being outdoors part is true, but it's not like I'll get to do whatever I want: and, you and Armin won't be there; neither will Gale, Poppy or Belle. It just-, sounds like it's gonna be a lot of work, and not a lot of fun. That and my idiot brothers are gonna be joining us, and they won't be any fun! Josefa, Jaye, Hazel and Clay will be there too, Ashlyn and Hawk as well: Their okay, at least they won't try to boss me around or anything"

"That doesn't seem so bad, your cousins are okay" Eren shrugged: "So when do you start?"

"Dad and my uncles are carving our bows, and say we won't be able to properly start until the snow's completely melted anyway, so, not 'till the end of the month probably?"

"But that's _weeks_ away, what are you gonna do until then?"

"Mum's got that sorted: she's going to teach us how to make our first backpacks and kit bags out of leather, which, she says we should have ready in time for when our bows are done. That and I've got a load'a chore's to do, you know, for running off like that?" she smirked; a familiar set of scent's caught her attention, and as she looked back the way she came, glancing over to the roof of the Black Stallion Inn, Ariana saw several figures sitting next to the chimney stacks, and recognized who they were right away. "Hey! The others are out, wanna come with me?"

Looking back at the door, Eren passed a sigh and shook his head: "I don't think I should, Mum was real mad earlier, and I think she's starting to figure out I can get out of being grounded by climbing out the window and onto the roof...Also, if Ash, Rowan and Dale are there, I don't really wanna piss them off again"

"You're still scared they'll beat you up again?" Ariana frowned: Eren nodded with a sullen look in his bright green eyes: "Ugh!-" She huffed in frustration, "I'll talk to them, tell 'em to leave you alone; if they don't I'll beat 'em up again!"

"...Why are you the only one in your family who plays with me?" Eren asked offhand in a dejected tone.

"Because you're different, like Armin" Ariana smiled, "And, I kinda like different..." her smile fell away as she contemplated his words, "...I just-, don't know why everyone doesn't get that. Why they don't get _you?_ "

"...You're kinda different too you know" Eren thought aloud,

"Really? How?"

"I don't know, you just are" Eren shrugged, "I'll figure it out one day: but, you're different in a good way..." he smiled. Hearing the sound of his mother's footsteps coming up the stairs, Eren panicked a little: "You better go, I don't want my mum to catch you here, or we'll both be it trouble!"

"See you around between chores!" Ariana waved goodbye, as she galloped up the roof on her hands and feet like a squirrel, and proceeded towards the Inn's rooftop. "Good night!" Eren quickly waved farewell: closed the window and quickly scooted back under the covers, just before his mother poked her head through the gap in the door; seeing him all tucked in, she allowed a smile of content to cross her lips, before head back downstairs.

Across the rooftops, Ariana jumped and climbed her way onto the Black Stallion's roof, which was right next door to her home. Living right next door to a pub/guesthouse wasn't easy at the best of times: between the noise of the punters and the activity in the livery and forge behind the building; the Inn was always bustling right up until the late hours. Which was perfect for sneaking out at night, as the noise concealed her footsteps; and of course, it hadn't been long until the Willum sisters, and her brothers and cousins had figured out it was a great way to sneak out too.

Gathered around the smoking chimney stacks, huddled together for warmth: Gale, Belle and Poppy were present, as were Ariana's elder brothers Ash, Rowan and Dale; her cousins, Clay and Hazel, the twins, Josefa and Jaye, and Hawk and Ashlyn. And sitting on the roof tiles next to them, were a black-haired boy, and a younger ash-blond girl.

"Hey guys!" Ariana greeted as she sat next to the chimney, "Hey Fox, nice to see you out here" she smiled at the black-haired boy. He grunted something incoherent and shrugged: "...Just ignore him," the ash-blond girl spoke, "He's in a bad mood" she spoke in a monotone.

Turing to look at her, Ariana saw the large set of scars on the left side of his face, and quickly looked away: "Okay..." Ariana shrugged: she knew not to press the subject with him, "So? Busy day in the Inn Shyla?"

"Kinda" she shrugged, not showing any particular emotion: "It's always busy before the melt" she turned to look at Ariana, "Dale says you guys are going to be learning how to hunt"

"Yeah, apparently" Ariana rolled her eyes,

"Only because you ran off and got caught" Rowan frowned,

"I didn't get caught!" Ariana shot back, "Dad and uncle Evrard found me, there's a difference!"

"Whatever: because of you, we're gonna have to be living out in the woods 'till the autumn!" Rowan shot back in annoyance.

"Oh shut up!" Clay smacked him upside the head, "Your just ticked off because you won't be around in the street to keep the other kids in line" he reprimanded him, before shooting a smile over at Ariana, "Don't worry about it, my dad say's it'll be great fun for everyone"

"That's what I'm worried about" Ariana grumbled as she glared daggers at her brother.

"Hey, we saw you in front of Eren's window" Rowan challenged her, "What were you talking to the runt about?"

"None of your business!" Ariana snapped back at him,

"Why do you even hang out with that lil' twip? He ain't got no spine, and that daffodil that follows him around everywhere is just as spineless. Seriously sis, you can do way better than them" the raven-haired boy huffed as he crossed his arms.

"What? Like you?!" Ariana punched him hard in the arm, knocking him flat on his backside, "Why the hell do you have to be such a jerk to him all the time?! If fact, why do you have to be such a jerk to all the other kids on the street?! What the hell did they do to you?!" she fumed,

"Oh come on Rowan, don't start this again" Josefa sighed in annoyance, "Yeah, what exactly are you hoping to achieve, other than the fact your an expert at throwing a strop" Jaye added sarcastically.

"Let's face it bro" Dale placed a hand on his brother's shoulder, "This is getting pretty old. So Eren ticked you off that one time, that doesn't mean you have to keep torturing the guy just because he's a bit odd"

"Yeah, your one to talk" Hawk raised an eyebrow,

"Okay enough! Now lay off!" Rowan exclaimed angrily, turning to face away from everyone.

"Ugh! That's your answer to everything!" Ariana huffed in frustration. "So how is Jaeger these days?" Hazel glanced over at her; "Okay" Ariana shrugged, "he's got chores for the next two weeks, but that's no big surprise"

"You guys nearly reached the top of the wall, right?" Clay smiled; "Kinda, it is a pretty big wall" Ariana sighed, gazing out over the rooftops of the city, and seeing the wall loom up towards the sky.

"Why do you keep wanting to go over the damn thing? There's nothing on the other side you know" Rowan huffed as he continued to push his luck,

"Really? You know that for a fact? ..." Ariana sarcastically shot back, shutting him up, "... Why? Why not? _It's there_ and, I want to see what's on the other side. Is that such a terrible thing?"

"It is if the wall cult catches you doing it again" Hazel pointed out, "Seriously Ariana, this has got to stop: I heard your mum and dad talking earlier, they sounded really worried this time"

"Like that's anything new" She huffed sarcastically, "Their always worried about me running off into the forest: I don't see what the big deal is? They lived out there before coming here to Shiganshina; they know what's out there, so why worry? I know how to hide from people and predators, I know how to find my way home, I know which berries are safe to eat, and I know how to sleep outside without getting cold. Big whoop"

"Yeah, I know the feeling" Ashlyn sighed, before perking up: "But hey, we'll get to spend loads'a time out in the forest together, it'll be great!"

"Yeah, but Eren and Armin won't be there" Ariana glanced downwards in disappointment.

"We don't need them" Rowan frowned,

Ariana was about to have another go at him, when Ash stopped her: "Okay, if your gonna be like that, go back inside Rowan. You're just being a dick". Rowan glared daggers at his elder brother, before storming off back to the rooftop of their home, and proceeded to climb down into the window of his bedroom.

"What was his problem?" a young boy with pale ash blond hair asked as he walked along the roof tiles, followed closely by his twin sister.

"Oh hi Lucius, hi Lucy" Gale greeted as the twins approached and sat down next to them; "Nothing, Rowan's in another one of his moods"

"Eren?" Lucy raised an eyebrow,

"Who else?" Ariana huffed, "I don't know _why_ he has to pick on him all the time?"

"'Cuz he's easy game, that's why" Bemadette replied as she climbed up onto the roof from her window in the attic, carrying a roasted chicken leg in one hand: "Kid's like Eren don't make it easy on themselves if they can't get along with the other kids; then again, Rowan's one to talk, he _never_ gets along with _anyone_ : period. Always needs his brothers to get him outta trouble" she sighed as she took a bite out of the leg.

"I don't think it's anything personal" Lucy replied offhand, "I think he just doesn't know how to cool off like everyone else does? He gets angry, and someone _has_ to take the blame: he shouts, and he has to be sure someone's shouting back at him; it's weird, but some people are just different like that"

"And he gripes about Eren being different?!" Ariana fumed, "What a jerk!"

"Speaking of which" Dale sighed as he and Ash got up, "We better go and make sure he's okay; make sure he hasn't done anything stupid like put another spider under your sheets again... 'Night guys"

Everyone bid the brothers good night as they returned to their bedroom window; Ariana leaned back against the chimney, and let out a long exasperated sigh as she tried to untie her vexed thoughts. "...Dad say's being different isn't a bad thing, that it's what makes the world beautiful and always in motion; so how come everyone treats it like it's a bad thing?"

The others all glanced at one another: "... I don't know" Lucius shrugged, "But I have a theory; ...different, is the opposite of being the same: and being the same, mean you know what to expect. I think a lot of people are comfortable with knowing what to expect, there are no surprises, good or bad; it's safe, because it means you have control: you don't need to worry about things you don't know about...like the walls" he gestured to wall Maria, everyone gazed over at the huge structure as he continued, "...All we know about them, is that over a hundred years ago the titans appeared, starting eating everyone, and that humanity retreated behind them to find safety, and we've been here ever since. They've always been there: always tall and strong, they kept the titans out, and that's all that ever mattered"

"But in all that time," Lucy continued without missing a beat, "As people surrendered to their feelings of surety, certain that the walls would last forever: they didn't stop to ask the important questions. Like, where did the walls come from? Who built them and how? Were they built only to keep the titans out? Or did they have another purpose before the titans appeared? These questions and others like them fell by the wayside and were even forbidden from being asked"

"The point is" Lucius picked up again, without missing a beat: "The walls were, and are, a constant confidence for all mankind: their strength is unquestioned, because in the hundred years mankind has lived behind them, they have always remained intact. They've always been the same, and nothing changes; and people are not only okay with that, they _want_ it, more than the desire the venture beyond them and see the outside world"

"But the problem with that belief is," Lucy picked up, "It's doesn't take into account the inevitable"

"The inevitable?" Josefa and Jaye both raised a skeptical eyebrow,

"Time" the pale haired twined replied in unison, "And the fact that if a wall can be built, it can be demolished as well" Lucius pointed out,

"Whether by some great powerful force or simply the decay of time: everything that stands above the ground has to come back down to the earth eventually. And then what? What defenses will we have to keep us safe? All of mankind will perish simply for the fact that we believed everything will carry on the way it does forever, that the walls will last forever. But _nothing_ lasts forever" Lucy added without skipping a beat.

"And it's only a matter of time; even if we don't see it in our lifetime. _Something different is going to happen_ , and when it does, how will we know how to counter it, if we don't know how to _be_ different?"

Everyone stared at the twins weirdly: "...That's some theory" Clay couldn't help but smirk, "Wow, you sound just like that Arlet kid: he said something like that once"

"We know" the twins deadpanned: "But he had a good point" Lucius added, "The walls are something no one wants to live without: and it's kinda dangerous, what if something _does_ happen to the wall and the titans get in?"

"We let the Scouts do their thing and slay them of course!" Belle exclaimed,

"But would they be enough?" Lucy pointed out, "Would the combined strength of the Scouts, Garrison and Military Police _really_ be enough? Even if everyone inside the walls was to take up arms and fight the titans hand to hand, would it be enough to ensure the majority of mankind survives?"

Everyone fell silent.

"...I don't know? ..." Ariana sighed as she gazed up at the stars, "...All I know, is that-, there are many things that are different in this world. Different animals, different plants, different things, different _people_ ; and I don't know why but somehow, _it all works_ , it _all_ makes the world work... So how come the other grown-ups say it's bad to not be like everyone else, when _they're_ not like everyone else themselves? ...I just-... _I don't get it_..." she trailed off.

While the other kids sat there scratching their heads, trying to pick apart the perplexing line of wisdom to try and make some sense out of it: in the attic directly below them, Mabel and her husband Bren were eavesdropping in a mix of fascination, and surprise; " ... Wow, I knew the Cooper kids were smart for their age, but _that_ just blew me away" Bren thought aloud in a hushed voiced, hoping the kids didn't hear him.

"It's an interesting theory for sure: I just hope they don't repeat it somewhere someone might overhear them," Mabel worried as she folded some linen and stashed it away in the small cupboard next to the bed, "They could be labelled heretics for that kind of talk. Not that they are mind you they raise a valid point: it's just, what with the wall cult constantly riling people's fears up and the royal government banning all interest in the outside world: it's not like there's any room to make such an argument"

"And if there is, well? ..." Bren sheepishly scratched the back of his neck, "... This world isn't kind to idealists, and those who want their freedom: you have to constantly fight for the life you choose"

"And we both know a thing or two about that: don't we?" Mabel weakly smiled as she placed a hand on his shoulder: Bren gently took her hand, and placed a kiss on her wedding ring: "...And I'd do it all over again, for you, for _us_ " he smiled. "And you know I would too..." she smiled as she pulled in closer to his embrace. "...We've made many sacrifices, but it's all been worth it to be together, for the life _we_ want together"

"I should hope so, no one warned me eloping would be such a feat to pull off" Bren smiled as he leaned in t place a kiss on her lips. As she kissed him back, the door suddenly swung open to reveal a dark brunette gentleman with a cleanly shaven beard and mustache; he blushed in embarrassment as Bren and Mabel shot him a deadpan look. "Evening Derek" Bren rolled his eyes as Mabel gently pulled away.

"Uh? Sorry," he apologized sheepishly with an awkward smile as he stepped inside the room to hang his coat, hat and scarf up on the hooks on the back of the door, "I thought you were both working downstairs tonight"

"Miriam gave us the night off, since we pulled a double shift last night..." Mabel replied, before handing him a pile of clean shirts and trousers, "I take it the new job is starting to get a bit testy? This is the third night in a row you've been late home"

"Ugh, don't get me started," he huffed in exasperation as he sat down at the small table, "The client can't make his mind up whether to have the stables on the north side of the building by the coach house, or out west behind the guest house; in addition, his wife wants a drive laid down from the front of the house to the gates; that's five acres of trees were going to have to clear, which means that's another two months of work. I just spent the last three hours with her going over the ornaments for the gates! For Sina's sake, how hard is it to make your mind up between a pair of unicorns, lions, dragons, or hounds? That: _and_ we're starting to run over budget"

"But they're paying you on time for each piece of completed work, so what's the problem?" Mabel asked offhand as she folded some more laundry.

"Trust me, with all the wealth they have to spare, money is _not_ the issue" Derek waved off; "It's just the _attitude_ I can't stand; why can't people from wall Sina get it through their heads things are _different_ here in the outterlands?" he ran his fingers through his long bangs, "I know I worked in the interior before and I know to expect this from their ilk; but since moving out here to Maria, the definition of reasonable has seemed to have changed in the interior"

"Wait-, why are they moving out here to Maria again?" Bren thought aloud with a confused squint.

"They're not moving out here to live, the property is their new summer residence. Their one of the wall cult families: you know, the ones that have owed allegiance to the cult since god knows when, and keep the cults pockets well lined by 'donating' a portion of their wealth to them? Well, their eldest son recently became a Pastor in Hermina, and as a 'reward' for their 'generosity and holy grace', the cult allotted them a portion of land they acquired recently, allowing them to build their new summer mansion"

"And the catch? There's always a catch with the cult" Mabel smirked,

"They've got to have a guest house built so as other visiting cult members from the interior don't have to mingle with us 'unclean penurious dogs' by renting out town house apartments or staying in guesthouses"

"Miriam's not going to like that" Bren smirked, "Still, it seems the wall cult are everywhere these days; you can't turn a corner on any given street without bumping into a pastor or brother"

"The fact the wall cult allowed me to take this latest commission at all was incredible: there aren't many architects of my calibre in Maria, and they know it... And let's face it, how many architects are there within wall Sina that would be willing to come all the way out here to take a commission? Having to live alongside 'the common folk' for any period of time?"

"It's certainly a different world beyond wall Rose" Mabel sighed, "That's why I love it here" she smiled

"What? No rigid rules to follow? No keeping in mind who you can associate with and who you should avoid?" Derek smiled,

"Well that" Mabel nodded, "But, it's the honesty I find myself agreeing with; people from Maria are bluntly honest, if they hear something that sounds off, they call it as they see it. They don't mess you about, and they expect to be treated the same way"

"That's certainly true" Derek nodded frankly as he got up off the chair, and headed for the door, "It'd be nice if there was a little more of that attitude in this walled world; maybe then, we can actually live a little more honestly with ourselves... I'm heading downstairs to see what scraps Miriam's put aside for us" he joked.

"Check the pantry" Mabel called after him as he disappeared out the door, "...Oh, one other thing!" Derek suddenly remembered as he quickly re-entered the room, and handed Bren a crumpled envelop: "Here, and don't start with me about how I should be looking after myself, I'll be fine, it's you two that need this more than me. See you later" he smiled, and quickly headed out the door, and down the stairs.

Opening the envelop, both Bren and Mabel blinked in surprise at the amount of money inside: there was enough to buy groceries for the next three months, or two good horses complete with saddles and all the tack needed. "I knew this latest job was paying him well, but wow" Bren thought aloud.

"I wish he didn't feel he needs to do this" Mabel winced slightly, "Between my job here in the Inn and yours in the forge next door, we're able to keep ourselves afloat just fine, and still have enough left over to save up for a new home"

"I know I know" Bren nodded, "But you know Derek, it's who he is, it's what makes him happy. Family's always been important to him and he likes to be sure he's helping out in one form or another"

Mabel slipped two thirds of the notes from out of the envelope, and handed them to Bren: "Give this to him, and tell him he needs two new shirts, a pair of shoes, and a new coat; _that_ raggy old thing is just barely hanging onto his shoulders" she gestured to the tatty old coat hanging on the door, which, considering how many holes there were in it, was just about ready to give up the ghost. "And if he objects tell him I'll punch him on the nose" she added in mock stern tone.

"Okay" Bren took the money and slipped it into his back pocket, "But you do know he's going to insist on it"

"I don't care, he needs to think of himself a little more: at least enough to buy new clothes when he needs them" She sighed as Bren headed out the door, "And tell him: thanks for the rest, he's a great brother-in-law" she smiled.

* * *

A few doors up the street, all was quiet in the Jaeger household: Eren slept soundly upstairs while Carla finished cleaning the dishes, and Grisha was finishing up some paperwork at the table. As the gentle glow of candlelight bathed the room in gold, a noise outside grabbed Carla's attention; glancing out the window: she saw a very drunken Hannes being helped to stay upright by Bryson and Breck, as he staggered up the road, while Claude was busy relaying one of his stories. She couldn't help but smile as the gentlemen were laughing about themselves, nearly tripping over each others feet.

"Hannes again?" Grisha couldn't help but smirk as he heard the men stagger past the front door.

"It'll be quite a hang-over for the poor man..." she smiled as she put the plates away in the cupboard, but her smile fell away as she remembered the day's events: "...I'm thankful he was there for the children today. That Eren wasn't-

She paused in dread, as she thought about the worst case scenario: "...No one warned me motherhood would be this tough. Just the worrying alone gets me, every time he sneaks away getting up to god know what"

Sensing her worry, Grisha got up from the table and stepped round to stand in front of her, gently taking her hands in his: "Your doing just fine," he told her with a reassuring smile, "And Eren will be okay too, he'll learn in time that it doesn't pay to repeat one's mistakes; today was too close a call, and he knows it now"

"But he's so headstrong, wilful and persistent" Carla sighed

"Sounds like someone else I know" Grisha smirked. Knowing what he meant; Carla playfully swatted him over the arm, and stood in front of the window with her arms folded: "... Why did you marry me?" she thought aloud: "Of all the women you could have chosen in this city, why me?"

"...Because..." Grisha gently wrapped his arm around her shoulder, and gazed out of the window, "From the moment we first met, there was a certain tenacity and fortitude you possessed: that I admired about you ...You had a strength I'd never seen before; and I must confess it totally bewitched me"

"Hm, save your sweet musings for the bedroom" she smirked, thinking he was trying to be flatter her.

"It's true" he turned to face her; somewhat surprised, she met his gaze as he continued: "I know you believe that one doesn't need to be special in order to accomplish great feats in life. But _you are_ special, for two reasons: one, you are not only my best friend, but you gave _me_ the greatest honor of becoming my wife. And secondly, you blessed us with a son who was born free to this world, and deep down in his heart he knows it. His spirit, his will, his tenacity and fortitude? He certainly didn't get those from me" he smiled.

Touched by his words, and knowing they were not mere flattery, Carla couldn't help but smile: "...He is free..." she thought aloud, before a slight look of worry crossed her face, "I just don't want him to get mixed up in anything that'll put his life in danger"

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it, but for now: don't worry too much okay? He'll be fine" Grisha assured her; glancing down at his pocket watch, he suddenly realized how much time had passed: "...Huh, I better get a move on, I don't want to leave the paperwork until tomorrow" he glanced back at her, "Don't wait up for me okay? I might be a while"

"Sure" she placed a kiss on his lips, "See you in the morning darling". "Good night love" he smiled: reached for the key that was hanging around his neck, and headed down into the basement.

Watching him as he closed the door behind him: Carla couldn't help but wonder what he had hiding down there. She knew he was a very privet man at times, and that he didn't give away his most guarded secrets. But on the day of their wedding, he assured her he wouldn't keep anything from her that would jeopardize their relationship, or their family; trusting what he said to be the truth, she didn't question him about the basement when he told her it was 'sensitive work'.

But still, it didn't stop her curiosity from wondering what he had going on down there. The key he always had around his neck was mystery too: the basement door didn't have a lock on it, so what did the key open?

These questions and others would refuse to leave her at times; but she trusted Grisha to be honest with her, and trusted that whatever he was doing down in the basement: wouldn't pose any risk to their family.

As she turned back to look out the window, she thought about Eren, and what the future might hold in store: and at the back of her mind, she wondered about life he would choose to follow, within the confided of this walled world.

"Please don't go looking for any more crazy adventures" she couldn't help but smile; "I don't know if I'd be able to keep up"

* * *

Deep in the forest, far from Shiganshina's inner gate; the trees grew still as the winds dropped, and a strange other-worldly silence fell over the land as the stars shone bright and the moon arched high over the distant mountains beyond Wall Maria.

All throughout the vast giant woodlands: a strange presence could be felt; one that had not existed for many an age, and seemed to pass through the trees and undergrowth like a great shroud, draping everything in some strange ethereal energy. Alive with life and energy, and teeming with something one could only describe as, magic...

In a shallow hollow, surrounded by some of the oldest giant trees in the Marian forest; a huge tomb-like structure about the size of a large house stood still and silent: covered in ivy and dead leafs, its worn stony face bore a complex pattern of strange intertwining markings that had moss and lichens growing out of them.

Everywhere around, not a single creature stirred, and the tress almost seemed to be frozen in time; even the air itself would not move. As if something had suspended the motion of the world for a brief moment, and slowed time itself to a crawl.

Then, a deep rumble sounded from within the giant 'tomb', and echoed out all around into the pitch black forest: another few rumbles emanated, before the forest fell silent again, and the wind, for some explicable reason, seemed to pick up again.

All of this happened without anyone baring witness to it: except for a single white butterfly that was perched on a dead leaf on the ground nearby. It's wings so white and radiant that they almost appeared to glow and glisten with starlight.

* * *

 **Welcome to the neighborhood ;) and do stay tuned for chapter 2! please remember to R &R before leaving, thank you!**


	3. Chpt 2: Lost

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Chapter 2: Lost

The Marian forest, June, 840:

"Okay, can everyone tell me what this one is, and what it's for?" Evrard asked the assembled group, as he held up a small plant with diamond-shaped leafs and small white star-shaped flowers.

"Ohohoh! I know that one!" Ashlyn eagerly threw her hand up: "It's Lady's star: you use it to cure stomach aches and indigestion"

"And _how_ , do we prepare it?" Evrard added with a sly smirk,

"You brew it into a tea, and add some dandelion to help it work properly"

"Good girl" he smiled, before holding up another plant: "Now, can anyone tell me what _this_ is, what it's used for: and what it's _commonly mistaken_ for"

As Hawk, Ashlyn, Josefa, Jaye, Clay, Hazel, Ash, Rowan and Dale all debated among each other over the identity of the plant: Ariana watched silently from the bower of a close-knit group of trees nearby, carefully glancing all around, looking for a way to sneak off without alerting anyone.

The last six months had seemed to pass by in relative brevity: winter turned to spring, and then from spring into early summer, and before anyone knew it half the year was already gone. The long days and warm sunny weather had brought life and vigor to the land: the farms in the valleys just beyond Shiganshina were busy growing their first crops of the season, while up in the forests game was plentiful and varied. Despite the harshness of winter, this summer promised to be a bountiful one.

For the children however, this was the year they were being initiated into the family tradition of hunting, and surviving the wild. A process that was, no doubt, going to last until well into adolescence, as there was much to learn: but for now, the last six months had been spent learning the basics; archery, wood whittling, tracking, knowing which plants and fungi were safe to eat and which to avoid, how to find and/or build a hide or dray, and how to set traps. Every few days of the week, the children would be taken by their father's up into the forest, where they would either spend the whole day, or camp out for days at a time; today's lessons had mostly consisted of plant identification and learning how to find north without a compass.

And while the children's attentions were mostly focused on the tasks at hand, as far as Ariana was concerned, this was now getting tediously boring, and it was time to find something better to do. As she retreated into the gloom of the undergrowth, Ariana quietly crept through the tall bracken, heading back towards the road. She was about to make a break for the cover of a huge cluster of small pines, when suddenly, a large black hawk with a tapered crest, long forked tail and piercing golden eyes landed right by her side, followed by a pair of large ravens that perched on a branch above her head.

"Ah ha!" a jovial voice chuckled, "Thought you could sneak off eh?"

"Hey uncle Falken" Ariana grumbled in annoyance as she stood up: knowing she was found out it was now useless to hide.

"When are you going to learn you can't escape Evernight's sharp eyes?" Falken smiled as he called his hawk back to him with a sharp trilling whistle; the bird, which was about the size of a small eagle, took off and landed on the thick leather glove on his left hand, and eagerly started scoffing down the piece of rabbit meat that was waiting for her. Falken wasn't as tall as Tyto and Evrard, but just as stoutly built with a robust frame, and sporting a long lion's mane of brunette hair with the bushiest eyebrows one could imagine.

"Falken?" another voice called out: at hearing this, the ravens instantly perked to attention,

"Over here Eraman" Falken called back. From out the bushes, another stoutly-built gentleman appeared, he was shorter than Falken with a thick mane of black hair and soft blue eyes, and with another pair of ravens perched on both shoulders; holding up one arm, the pair above Ariana returned to their master, perching on his outstretched arm and began crunking in excitement. "Alright you two, you found her, now go on and return to the others" Eraman cooed to them, stroking their breast feathers with the back of his fingers. All six birds took off up into the canopy, heading back towards the group. "I take it we're getting bored eh?" he glanced over at Ariana, who simply turned her gaze away in stubborn defiance.

"Don't worry, I got this," Tyto assured them both as he appeared out of the trees: "give us a minute will you?"

"Alright, but just so you know, we're letting the birds go for today" Eraman pointed out as he stroked Evernight's back.

"Fine, just make sure they get back to their nests alright" Tyto nodded,

"Don't we always?" Falken grinned as he and Eraman headed back the way they came.

"You know, your stalking has really improved these last few months..." Tyto smiled as he approached his daughter, and kneeled down before her, "You managed to get at least ten meters further than last time: and if Evernight and the ravens weren't here, I'm pretty sure you would have made it back to the road unseen"

"You think?" Ariana huffed, still annoyed,

"Would I lie to you Ariana?" Tyto tilted his head to one side, grabbing her gaze and looking her in the eye: "Even I couldn't get this far when I was your age. Being able to stay silent and move like a shadow? You have a natural knack for it. And it's a rare quality even the best of us are seldom gifted with"

Seeing she was still upset, Tyto decided to get to the point: "...What's wrong Magpie? You've been like this all day; is there something troubling you?"

Deciding it wasn't worth lying, Ariana huffed: "...I wanna go play with Eren and Armin; ever since we started learning how to hunt an' stuff, I haven't seen them as much as I used to, and it's not fair: is learning all this stuff really more important than my friends? I don't want them to think I've forgotten them" she stubbornly explained, her cheeks turning red as tears threatened to well up.

Looking at his daughter and seeing the frustration and unhappiness laced in her eyes, Tyto drew in breath, and let out a long sigh as he contemplated her words. Gazing up at the sky through the canopy, and seeing the sun was steadily approaching the horizon: he decided to try something different today: "...You know? We've been working pretty hard these last few days: and it looks like it's going to be a lovely evening. What do you say we call it a day, go home, and have dinner at the Inn? And if it's okay with Mrs Jaeger, maybe Eren can come too. Sound good?" he smiled.

Ariana instantly perked up: "Really?!"

"Really" he leaned forwards and kissed her on the forehead: "Now run back and get your things: we'll start packing up"

Without another word, Ariana's grin spread wide across her face as she took off running through the undergrowth back to the campsite. As he followed behind at a slower pace, Tyto stopped to watch as she disappeared into the green of the forest. "She's getting better you know, pretty soon you won't be able to keep up with her" Falken sighed as he emerged from the greenery of the bower, as if out of nowhere.

"I know" Tyto sighed in contemplation, "Considering how much she's progressed these last few months it's no wonder she finds this all this boring. It comes so naturally to her"

"I wouldn't worry too much" Eraman smiled as he too emerged from his hiding place, with his ravens watching him from the branches of the trees above: "She's just going through that restless phase we all went through. Wanting to be out here, free of rules and doing her own thing; she'll learn to find her own balance in time, you'll see" he patted him on the shoulder.

"It has to be said though, she _is_ a magpie through and through: bold, brazen, and free at heart" Evrard grinned as he approached them, "Glad you decided to call it a day, I think the kids were starting to lose interest anyway"

"Well I don't know about you gents, but I think we've earned ourselves a round of cider" Falken patted Tyto and Eraman on the back as they started walking back to the camp, "And if I remember correctly, today's Friday, which means-

"Miriam and Rosemary's pulled pork and apple sauce" Evrard grinned in nostalgic delight, salivating at the thought of the delicious pig roasting over the Inn's fire pit, "Good call Tyto"

"You do know first round's on you, right?" Eraman smirked

"Ha ha very funny" Evrard rolled his eyes, "Seriously, it's _your_ turn to get the drinks this time"

"Bye dad! See you back home!" Ariana called out as she dashed out of the undergrowth, past her father and uncles with her bow and quiver slung over her shoulder, and her pocket knife strapped to her leg in its holster.

"Whoa whoa whoa!-" Tyto gently caught her by the back of her shirt, "Where are you running off to in such a hurry?"

"I'm gonna go back via the Hawthorn trail, it's quicker that way" she pointed to the direction she was heading,

"Well? ..." Tyto thought about it for a moment, "Alright, but let someone go with you"

"Fine. Whatever" Ariana rolled her eyes in annoyance,

"I'll keep an eye on her" Hazel offered as she approached, with Clay, Ash, Rowan and Dale trailing close behind.

"Alright, but no sidetracking: I don't want you staying out after sunset" he told them in a serious tone.

"We won't: see you guys back home!" Ariana waved goodbye, and took off into the thick undergrowth; "Make sure you keep an eye on her!" Tyto called after the kids as they took off after her: "We will!" Hazel called over her shoulder. Glancing back, Rowan shot his father a rather stern glair, before taking off to keep up with his little sister.

"... Think he'll be okay?" Falken thought aloud.

"Hm? Who?" Evrard frowned in bemusement.

"Rowan..." Falken glanced over at Tyto with a slight air of concern laced in his eyes, "...I don't know if it's just me, but, has Rowan seemed a little, well? ... _Off_ , these last few weeks?"

Tyto's gaze dropped, as he glanced off into the forest: "...You noticed that too huh?"

"Maybe he's feeling a tad overworked too? I mean, he's really been pushing himself with the archery and stalking lessons of late; you don't suppose he's trying to catch up to Clay do you? I mean, he's a born bowman, the eye and arm on that kid? I wouldn't be surprised if he took down his first boar within the next year! ...You don't think it's a case of 'cousin rivalry', do you?" Eraman thought aloud,

"Call it a hunch Eraman, but I don't think it's to do with Clay or the archery" Tyto frowned in concern: "Whatever it is, I'm not sure if he's ready to open up about it just yet"

"Whatever it is, I'm sure you guys will be able to talk about it father-to-son; maybe it's just something he needs to get off his chest and he's waiting for you to open up the line of dialogue?" Evrard assured him, "Don't worry about it: Rowan maybe a hot-head, but he'll come around in his own good time. Now come on, let's go pack up" he beckoned them to follow, as he treaded back through the undergrowth.

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the forest:

"... You're sure they'll work okay?" the gentleman eyed Pascal skeptically, as his friend glanced down at the two 3DM gears in the crate by his feet.

"Gentlemen, please" Pascal smiled, "I had them serviced only yesterday: what good would it do me to sell them if I didn't know they're working properly? I tested them, I cleaned them, I even checked the gas levels to ensure they don't go empty of you. Trust me, these beauties are _quality_ items; and for what we're asking you won't find a more reasonable price: compared to what they're going for in the interior, their practically a steal"

The two gentlemen glanced at one another, before looking back at Pascal, and handing him a large wad of money: "Okay buddy, you got yourself a deal"

"Delighted to hear it," Pascal's grin grew wider as he took the wad, and discreetly tucked it into his breast pocket, "Just remember though, we do charge for gas refills"

"Hey, it's no problem for us" one of the gentlemen shrugged as he took the crate and headed outside: "We'll be fine for gas, we only came here 'cuz we heard you were selling the gear at a much cheaper price" the other gentleman added as he headed outside. "Considering how much money there is floating around in wall Sina, I'm surprised no one sells it cheaper there too" Pascal shrugged as he followed him outside, where he climbed up onto the waiting wagon, and his friend commanded the horse to walk. "Yeah; in any case, thanks" he waved goodbye.

"Pleasure doing business with you gentlemen!" Pascal called out as the wagon disappeared down the dirt road, before heading back inside the cottage, and eagerly counting the wad of money. Seeing the correct balance had been paid up, he headed for the basement where he hid it under a loose floor tile in the far corner, beneath a few crates of stuff, before returning upstairs in time to see West coming down the stairs. "Hey, how'd it go?" he asked offhand.

"Not bad at all" Pascal grinned as he headed for the kitchen, "Sixth sale of the month. And according to our guy in Shiganshina, we've got another four clients lined up for next week" he showed him a letter that had been sitting on the table; reading it over, West was surprised to see how many 3DM gears were being requested.

"Huh, what's with the demand all of a sudden?" he thought aloud,

"Who knows?" Pascal shrugged as he prepared himself a meager meal of cheese, bread, red onions, boiled eggs and wine: "Something's going down somewhere in the interior we don't know about: that's where those guys were from, and that's where the new clients are from too"

"You don't suppose their buying them to resell at a higher price, do you?"

"Don't know, and I don't care: so long as they pay up what we're asking for" Pascal took a bite of cheese: "We're not greedy; we don't need to ask for anymore than what we need to survive"

"I know that" West nodded, "I'm just curious is all"

"What is it I keep telling you about being curious?" Pascal raised a skeptical eyebrow,

"That you'll end up like the cat" West rolled his eyes, "Don't worry; I'm as eager to go back as you are..." he deadpanned, before changing the subject: "By the way, if we're going to have those gears ready for next week's customers, you're going to need to ask 'your guy' to get a move on and get them here by the weekend so I can clean them up and test them"

"Ah don't worry about it," Pascal waved off as he took a sip of his wine, and sat down at the table, "I got to go see him tomorrow anyway; catch up with what the word on the street is"

"You're not thinking about setting something else up are you?" West asked in concern: "We're busy enough selling the gears as it is"

"Nah it ain't that," Pascal waved off as he gazed out the window, "It's just, I was speaking to him last week and he mentioned something about some new guys moving into the area around the main road between Shiganshina and the village of Liveil"

"What kind of guys?"

"The kind that kidnap lone women off the roads late at night, and sell them to the interior as whores or slaves"

"Oh" West grimaced slightly,

"Yeah; apparently they're the 'slash your throat first and ask questions later' types. Best stick to the western road for while, and only in the daylight... It pays to keep abreast of these things you know?"

"Yeah..." West sighed as he wandered over the back door, opened it, and leaned against the frame, gazing out into the forest: "...Hey, Pascal? Do you have any regrets? About moving out here I mean"

"Huh? ..." Pascal glanced over at him, "Don't tell me you're starting to miss the old day's kid?" he smirked,

"No..." West thought aloud, "It's just... Sometimes, I can't help but feel 'out of place' here. It's just so different, compared to what we had before"

Thinking about it, Pascal sighed, "...I know what you mean kid. I feel like that too, sometimes; I look at those huge trees out there, and I can't help but think, 'So this is what having gotten out of the game feels like'? Don't get me wrong, I'm _never_ going back to the underground. But at the same time, it feels weird, being somewhere you've dreamed of being for so long. You wonder, 'what did I do to earn this kind of luck'? ... Considering how many there were, that were never as lucky as us"

"Yeah..." West sighed offhand as he stepped outside,

"Where're you going?"

"It's a lovely evening; I'm going for a stroll"

"Fine, see you later"

It was a strange feeling indeed.

Feeling out of place: up here in the sunlight, free in the open air, surrounded by the vast beauty of nature, and not having to constantly inhale the stink of human vileness and decay. At the back of his mind, West couldn't help but wonder if maybe it was all too good to be true? That maybe this was all part of some great stroke of karma: having lived the lives they had lived for so long, only to be granted enough luck to get away and live in contentment? He couldn't help but smile, since when did people like he and Pascal get _this_ lucky?

It was a feeling that had haunted him since first leaving wall Sina: that somehow, this life of quiet peace and freedom was going to come crashing down one way or another. And why not? It's the fate of anyone born to the underground: that you are the undesired, the scum of humanity, those who do not deserve a place among the ranks of your fellow man; at least, that's what living in the underground had taught him.

But out here, hardly anyone had even heard of the underground, never mind being aware of the kind of people that dwelt within its gloomy shadows.

It was surreal; living in a place where no one knew of the place you came from. Not that he or Pascal had told anyone, that was a can of worm neither of them was willing to open. But still, the people of wall Maria were nothing like the people of wall Sina: here, everything was different, everything moved to a different beat: and in a way it was refreshing. But at the same time, it felt as if some aspect of the past was going to catch up with them one way or another. Being a criminal and retiring from that life didn't mean you were automatically out of the game: people in that life remember you; some favorably as you served as a means to their own ends: others less so, and were not above wanting revenge for slights and double-crosses you may (or may not) have inflicted upon them.

All this had been at the back of West's mind ever since he and Pascal came here. Having gained their freedom at long last, he had wondered if it could last until the end of their days: unless someone, or fate, decided otherwise. Knowing their luck and how much of it they had had over the course of their careers, he wondered how much time they had left before it would eventually run out: it's the law of averages after all, and very few if any, are seldom lucky to totally get away Scott free.

As he mulled over his vexed thoughts, West wandered further into the forest: not really paying attention to his surroundings as his mind buzzed with uncertainly and uncomfortable feelings. Time melted into a blur, and how long he spent walking was uncertain, as he simply gazed down at the ground, minding the tree roots and rocks as he walked on.

The shrill cry of a hawk in the trees made him jump out of his skin, and shock him back to reality; looking around, West wasn't sure where he was at first, until he remembered, and shook his head in surprise: realizing just how far he'd walked, as the cottage was nowhere in sight. Gazing up at the trees, he realized he was standing in probably the oldest part of the forest, as the giant trees here seemed to stretch all the way up into the sky; their trunks so vast and thick they were practically the size of mansions, and so tall, that they could probably rival the mountains in height.

Standing here, among these majestic giants trees, their bark turned to brushed copper and brass by the golden light of the late afternoon sun, and their pine scent hanging like incense in the hazy afternoon heat, as dusty beams of golden sunlight filtered down through the canopy; West couldn't help but feel he was standing in a place no one had been before. Somewhere totally untouched by human hands: where nature was total wild, free, and unrestrained.

Craning his head all the way back for a better look, he couldn't help but smile at the impressive size of these trees; what must the view be like from the top branches? Hell, he'd probably be able to see right over the top of wall Maria and beyond if he flew all the way up on his 3DM gear. Some of the biggest branches looked like they could easily support the weight of a whole house, and the root systems at the bases formed large cave-like caverns and gullies that stretched for many meters between each tree, with an abundance of plants and fungi growing out of and between them. West made a mental note to remember this place, and to come back here with his 3DM gear another time.

As he looked around, trying to find the pathway that lead him here: something caught his eye, made him stop dead in his tracks, and abruptly pause his train of thought. There, nested in a small deep hollow, with several thick long roots snaking in and around, was a large house-sized rectangular stone structure, covered in countless years-worth of plant decay and growth. What was it? West was totally perplexed: it looked like a building of some kind, and a pretty large one too: over five meters tall, and ten meters long by six meters wide; but it had no doors or windows, it's roof was totally flat with no tiles, and there was no chimney, plus the sides were totally flat with some kind of engravings carved into the stone: there was no path leading in or out of the hollow towards it, and no sign that anyone had ever been near it.

Cautiously climbing down the steep ground for a closer look, West walked right around its base, sure enough, there were no doors or windows; instead, the surface was smooth, with hundred of strange curving symmetrical patterns running in every direction all over the sides, interconnected from one to another, and broken up by a strange kind of writing he'd never seen before. Running his fingers over the symbols and patterns, he felt how smooth they were: no doubt worn down by many countless winters.

Deciding to see if there was anything carved onto the top side, West climbed up a nearby tree that leaned over the top of the structure, and jumped down onto the flat surface. Sure enough, it too was covered in a carved pattern of some kind. Shuffling his feet along to kick off all the dead leaf-litter, twigs, branches and dried moss: the pattern that began to emerge was much more elaborate than the ones on the sides, with a more detailed picture at its center. Finally, with all the debris cleared, West returned to the tree for a better look, and was amazed at what his saw. Spread across the grey stone surface, was the image of a giant bird: wings spread wide with a long trailing tail, surrounded by clouds, stars, and what looked like the crescent moon and the beaming sun: at its feet, were what looked like people, seemingly kneeling down as if in prayer, with their hands outstretched towards the bird. The creature looked to be quiet spectacular: until West noticed its face. Instead of a beak and typical bird's head, it had a female human face, with long flowing hair cascading down its back, and large child-like eyes that seemed to gaze up at him in wonder and innocence.

As he sat there on the crook of the branch, West frowned in confusion as he racked his brain, trying to figure out what the hell this structure was: logic dictates that it must have served a purpose at one time: but what? Why build something so big? And out here in the middle of the forest of all places? Did the people who build it use it for something practical? Or something else entirely? And the carvings: what did they mean? What was that strange written language? And what did it speak of? And what relevance did the carving of the girl-faced bird hold? Why did the artist who craved it, depict people seemingly worship it like a god of some kind?

But then it suddenly struck West: what was _inside_ the structure? There were no doors or windows: and the only structure made of stone with no doors or windows and a flat roof, was a tomb. Is that what this thing was? It was supposed to be a giant tomb? (Or more likely, a mausoleum of some kind, and the entrance was merely covered with earth and roots?) Or, _purposely designed_ to look like a tomb. But this looked nothing like the mausoleums, tombs or graves that he was accustomed to seeing in the church yards and cemeteries, and it looked far older, as if it was from an entirely different age; and created by an entire different people's. If this was a burial site of some kind, who was buried here? Did anyone else know of this place? Probably not, the entire area around the hollow was thickly overgrown, and there were no animal trails anywhere nearby; the only reason he found this place at all was due to pure luck.

Climbing down out of the tree and up the side of the hollow, West gazed back at the strange structure: wondering what on earth it could be, why it was created, and was there really anything inside it? He pondered on whether it might be worth bringing Pascal out here to show him this odd discovery, but then, thinking about it, Pascal wasn't really the curious type. In their former line of work it paid not to show too much of an interest in anything (least you might attract the wrong kind of attention). But this was something totally different: something obviously forgotten, something no one within these walls has probably ever seen before. And it kind of excited him to think he was the only one who probably knew about it.

Seeing how low the sun was in the sky, West decided to head back home, least he might accidentally run into a bear or wolf on its twilight hunt; as he started heading back, trying to remember the way he'd walked to this place, he contemplated on whether to tell Pascal or not, and when to come back for more thorough look.

As West passed through the undergrowth and disappeared out of sight of the giant trees, the birds and animals began to cautiously come out from their hiding places, optimistic in the surety that the human was gone from their presence, and wasn't looking to make a meal out of any of them. But had West stuck around, and searched a little more among the grove of the giant trees; he would have been surprised to find another one of those giant 'tombs' some eight hundred meters or so away; over twice the size of the one he'd found, and sitting out in the open. As the sun's golden light fell upon it, a strange deep rumbling emanated from inside: as if something large and restless was stirring...

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the forest:

"Ariana wait up!" Hazel called out as she tried to keep up with her shorter cousin,

"What?! I'm right here!" Ariana called back for the umpteenth time, as she stopped to let the other six kids catch up: "I'm not going anywhere, so stop freaking out okay?" she added as she started walking again with Hazel and Clay at her back, while her brother's brought up the rear.

"I'm not freaking out, you're just hard to keep track of is all" Hazel corrected, before changing the subject: "...So, anyway, what'd you want to do for fun when we get home?"

"Oh I'm gonna play with Eren and Armin" Ariana smiled casually, "I haven't seem either of them in a long while, so we gotta lotta catching up to do"

Hazel's smile fell away, as a look of concern crossed her face, "...Um? Ariana, are you sure that's really a good-

"-You can't play with them" Rowan stated as he ran ahead of his sister and deliberately blocked her path: "You're never to play with them or _anyone_ outside the family ever again"

Everyone blinked in surprise: "...What?" Ariana frowned up at him, "What'd you mean I can't play with them? You know _damn well_ they're my friends! Seriously, I thought you'd forgotten all about that stupid thing, now move" she tried to push him aside. But Rowan grabbed her arm and forced her back: "It's not about that!" he frowned, growing ire as he stared her down: "Have you forgotten what uncle Evrard told us about the wall cult? About what happened to my real parents!?"

Everyone stared at him in shock: "...That's what this is about?" Ariana breathed in astonishment, "You think Eren and Armin would-

Seething, Ariana threw off her quiver and bow, and stomped up to her taller brother, glaring daggers right up at him: "BULLSHIT!" she screamed up into his face, but Rowan didn't flinch or back down; not this time: "-You seriously think Eren and Armin would do that kinda thing?! _They're my best friends!_ They wouldn't do something so mean and heartless! You take that back and leave them and me alone!"

Then suddenly and without warning: Rowan smacked Ariana across the face with a solid backhand; she stared up at him in shock and horror, the others too were equally shocked at what they'd just seen: "ROWAN!" Hazel exclaimed, "What the hell bro?!" Dale angrily gasped as he and Ash rushed to pick Ariana up: "What the hell did you do that for?!" Clay demanded angrily.

"Because she's a stupid little brat who's too friendly for her own good!-" Rowan fumed as he pushed his brothers out the way, landing Ariana on her behind again, and leaving her helpless and panic-stricken as he bent down and let out his rage on her: "You think the world is kind to people like us?! You think your so-called 'friends' will always be there for you? That they'll keep your secrets and keep you safe until the day you die? WELL THEY WON'T! No one cares about us except our own! Everyone within these walls is only out to get us, to see us all suffer and die, simply because we're different from them! And Eren and Armin are no different! You tell them what we are, who we _really_ are, and they'll be down the church, telling them where to find us!"

"Shut up!" Ariana cried as tears ran down her reddening cheeks: "Rowan shut up! This is stupid!" Clay fumed as he balled his hands into fists.

"NO! She needs to hear this!" Rowan pushed him to the ground: "She needs to know _exactly_ what's going to happen, if the wall cult finds out what we are! What they'll do to us when they drag us out of our beds in the middle of the night, and march us the execution square in the capitol!-"

"-Shut up!" Ariana fumed as she stood back up, and glared up at him,

"How high they'll pile the wood on the bonfire, how tightly they'll tie us to the posts-

"SHUT UP!" She screamed as she stepped closer, clenching her fists tightly with rage.

"HOW LONG THEY'LL LISTEN TO US SCREAM AS THE FLAMES GROW HIGHER!-

"-I SAID SHUT UP!" she screamed as she punched him with everything she had, landing a blow to his nose that caused it to start bleeding; everyone watched in fear and horror as Rowan staggered back. But instead of stopping, he completely lost it, and with an animalistic roar he punched Ariana right in the face, causing her to fall over backwards against a tree: she clutched her face as her nose started to bleed, and her face began to swell up.

"YOU JERK!" Clay finally lost it, and tackled Rowan to the ground, trying to punch him in the chest and face: "Why'd you do that!? Why can't you just-

Clay didn't see the left hook coming as Rowan punched him in the face, and grabbed him as they rolled around on the ground: "You guys! Stop it!" Ash shouted as he and Dale joined the fracas, trying to pry Rowan off Clay, while Hazel tried to step in between them to try and block them from one another, "STOP IT! Stop it right now! this isn't helping!" she tried to shout above the fray, but between Clay and Rowan shouting profanities at one another, and Ash and Dale trying and failing to pull Rowan away, the whole situation quickly devolved into a five-way tug-o-war/punch up.

Meanwhile, as she regained her balance and stood back up, Ariana gently held her sore nose: it wasn't broken, but the sight of the blood made her gasp in shock, and as the pain began to throb in her face; she turned to see her brothers and cousins fighting, completely oblivious to her. But what hurt her the most was that her brother _struck her hard enough to make her bleed_ : sure Rowan was a real hot-head and his temper was difficult to deal with at times: But _this?_ She _never_ expected he would do _this_ to her. He never did that before, and it both scared and hurt her deeply. As a fresh wave of tears came, Ariana began to sob uncontrollably as she ran away, up into the forest, and away from the fight. She didn't want to be here, she didn't want to be anywhere near Rowan, not if he was going to hurt her again; she didn't care where she was going or how far she'd go, she just wanted to get away.

After she vanished into the thick greenery of the undergrowth: the five cousins and siblings continued to fight, totally unaware that their little cousin/sister was now gone: and getting further away.

* * *

A short time later, at the edge of the forest:

"I didn't see or smell them anywhere, did you uncle Tyto?" Jaye asked offhand as he looked up into the tree line, hoping to have caught a glimpse of his cousins.

"Guess they must have picked up the pace and reached the inner gate before us?" Tyto shrugged. As they approached the crossroads, a familiar scent caught Tyto's attention...

"Hello there!" a familiar voice called out: turning to see who it was, Tyto saw the Jaegers as they came wandering up the road with Eren clasping both his parent's hands, while following close behind, Armin's grandfather smiled and waved, while his grandson sat on his shoulders, eagerly pleased to see them.

"Hey there! Fancy running into you guys here!" Falken smiled as they approached. The scent of tea tree oil and lilacs, the Jaegers scent was unmistakable to Tyto: a nose as sharp as his could discern anything or anyone in the pitch black of night: the tea tree oil was a common scent of many doctors, as they used it frequently in their line of work, while lilacs were Carla's favorite flower, and he knew she always kept a large posy of them on the windowsills and table at this time of the year. "We were just out for a long stroll, it's such a beautiful evening we decided not to waste it" Grisha smiled as they stopped by the signpost next to them.

"Well what a coincidence? We just finished our camping trip for the week and are calling it a day, or, what's left of it at least!" Eraman chuckled,

"Tell me about it" Armin's grandfather grinned as he took his grandson off his shoulders and placed him on the ground: "This young whipper-snapper has been begging me all day for some quality time out of the house"

"Only 'cuz its way too sunny to spend indoors grandpa!" Armin tugged at his shirt,

"Yeah! Doing chores on a day like this should be banned!" Eren piped in,

"Indeed" Tyto chuckled as he approached his parents: "Actually, I was rather hoping to run into you two; have you eaten yet?"

"Actually, we were just discussing what to do for dinner" Carla smiled, "It's getting on in the day, and I don't really what to have to light the stove when we get in, it's been too hot today as it is"

"Well? Miriam always throws a hog on the spit on Fridays, so why not join us?" Tyto offered.

"Oh yeah!" Eren and Armin bounced up and down excitedly: "Mrs Willum's roast pig is the best!"

"It's a lovely offer, really, but money's tight at the moment and we really can't afford it" Carla sighed in disappointment,

"Oh don't worry Carla, it's on us: my treat" Tyto assured her.

"Yeah, we get all our drinks and meals for free at Miriam's Inn" Falken added,

"Seriously, with all the work we put in at her place, the ol' goddess would beat us to a pulp if she caught us paying for anything" Evrard grinned.

"It's true" Josepha spoke up nonchalantly, "Mrs Willum threw uncle Evrard head first out the door when she caught him paying for a glass of brandy once"

"Can we go mum?! Please please please pleeeeeese?!" Eren jumped up and down all around her; with a sigh of defeat, Carla smiled, "I guess it's dinner at Miriam's place tonight". "Yes!" Eren punched the air: before suddenly stopping, "Oh wait I nearly forgot! Where's Ariana?"

"She went on ahead with her brothers, Clay and Hazel, they should be waiting for us when we get back" Tyto told him.

"Will she be joining us for dinner?" Armin's eyes lit up in excitement.

"Of course" Tyto nodded

"Hey! Race you guys back!" Ashlyn grinned as she and her brother and cousins took off down the road, "Hey wait! You got a head start!" Eren called after them as he and Armin quickly caught up to them.

"Don't go too far ahead!" Armin's grandfather called after them; "Stay where we can see you!" Carla added before turning back to Tyto: "He's been asking after her all week: wondering when you guys were going to get back from your trip"

"Really? Ariana's been the same, trying to sneak off at every opportunity" he replied as they started walking down the road, with Shiganshina's inner gate coming into view: "She's been so restless to get back, worrying that Eren and Armin might have forgotten her: as if that's likely to happen"

"She's a good influence on those boys," Armin's grandfather smiled, "Don't ask me how or why, but there's something about that girl that seems to bring out their more positive sides; she tempers Eren's restlessness, and brings out Armin's confidence"

"They do sort of 'click' together don't they?" Eraman thought aloud, "Like birds and clouds"

"That's one way of putting it" Grisha couldn't help but smile: as he watched the children weaving in and out of a small copse of hawthorn trees "At least they haven't tried colluding to sneak off again"

"The hunting initiation has taken up a lot of time, what with the snow being so late to melt this year and having to make up for lost time: We've really had to cram a lot in these last few months; and with Gale, Poppy and Belle now working at the Inn, it seems the kids haven't had the time or energy to be getting up to any high-jinx's" Evrard commented,

"Thank goodness" Carla deadpanned, to which her husband couldn't help but chuckle: "I'm serious!" she playfully swatted him over the shoulder.

"I know you are!" Grisha chuckled, "With all the chores you've been setting him, the poor boy's hardly had the time to try and get up to anything"

"And Ariana's going to be waiting for him when we get back" Armin's grandfather pointed out with a cheeky smile.

"Yeah well she's plum outta luck" Evrard grinned, "She's going to have to fetch the drinks, that'll keep her out of trouble"

"Who's fetching the drinks?" Hannes grinned as he came wandering down an adjacent dirt road with two of his comrades close behind: "And who's round is it?" he grinned.

"Hannes" Tyto smiled, "Been doing the rounds?"

"Just finished up and ready to call it a day" the man grinned as he joined them, "Say, I hear Miriam's serving your good lady wife's infamous plum Brandywine at the Stallion this week"

"That would be true" Tyto glanced over at Grisha and Carla with a very sideways glance, they both couldn't help but roll their eyes; trust Hannes to catch wind of one of Freya's fruit brandywines. The man's keenness for alcohol was on par with that of a hound's taste for rabbit. And the fact he constantly smelt like a tavern (even when sober) certainly testified to that.

"Lovely, hey guys! First rounds on me!" he called over to his fellow garrison troops: who both looked equally eager to slack their parched throats.

"I do hope the children don't get too wound up" Carla worried offhand.

"Oh let them have their fun Carla: That's the whole point of childhood; it's a glorious evening with a glorious meal to come, and time well spent among friends. Trust me, it'll be fine" Evrard assured her.

* * *

Meanwhile, back up in the forest:

"-I SAID STOP!" Dale pushed Rowan off Clay, and placed a foot on his chest to stop him getting back up: "You're too tired to fight back anyway!"

Rowan tried to wrestle him off, but he was indeed much too tired to have enough strength left to do much, except just lie there and try to catch his breath: "Screw you Dale!" he panted as he wiped the blood and sweat from his face. Dale removed his foot, and went over to check on Clay and Hazel.

"You guys okay?" Dale asked worryingly as he helped them up, "I'll be fine" Clay sighed as he wiped his bleeding nose with the back of his hand, "I'm good" Hazel assured him as she wiped off the dirt from her clothes, before stomping over to Rowan with a look of sheer anger in her eyes: "Why the hell did you do that Rowan? Why'd you hit Ariana like that?!"

"She's been asking for it," Rowan growled as he sat up, "You heard what your dad told us, _all of us_ : he told us about what _really happened_ to my parents and the rest of my clan, about how they were killed and how we nearly died too. _She knew all that_ , and she still thinks its okay to be friends with the other kids?! How can you be okay with this?!"

"I'm not okay with it!" Hazel shot back, "...But that doesn't mean you have to be a total jerk about it!"

"Yeah well if I don't try to talk some sense into her, she's gonna go blabbing our family secret to everyone on the street!" Rowan fumed as he stood up, and wiped his bleeding nose.

"Ariana won't say anything" Dale placed a hand on Rowan's shoulder, but he merely knocked it away, "Uncle Evrard swore us to secrecy: Ariana swore too, she's knows not to say anything!"

"You know that for sure?!" Rowan got up in his shorter brother's face, "Dale, she thinks everyone she meets is okay, that they'll be her friends just like that! How can we trust her with _anything_ if she's not going to take this seriously?!"

"...You know Rowan..." Dale stared up at him darkly: "...You've changed since uncle Evrard told us about that night; I mean yeah you were a stubborn jerk before; but now? Your _way worse_ , and it's not right"

"I trust you and Ash!" Rowan shot back, "How can you say I don't trust anyone?! I trust you guys all the time!"

"Yeah? Well what about us?!" Clay shot back, "We're your family Rowan! We've known each other since forever! Its okay to trust Ash and Dale, but it's not okay to trust me? Or my sister? Or Jaye, Josefa, Hawk or Ashlyn? Or even your own little sister?!"

-SHE'S NOT MY SISTER!" Rowan exploded as he punched the trunk of the tree he was standing next to: everyone stared at him in shock as he got his breath back, and tears began to stream down his face: "...You heard your dad, she's not my sister, my _real_ sister. And none of you are my real cousins: we're just-, four different clans all living together in the same house, that's all..." he fumed in a broken voice, "...None of it was real: the whole 'we're all one big family' thing Tyto was always going on about? It's isn't real, _none of it was real!_ We're just orphans that were taken in because he was friends with our real parents: that's all... _Our parents our dead_ , because someone ratted them out!"

"Rowan... " Hazel breathed as she stared at him in shock: that hurt her deeply.

"He's our dad, and Ariana's our little sister: so what if we're not true blood, we're still family" Dale pleaded,

"DON'T LIE TO ME!" Rowan snapped, " _We were never family!_ Get that through your thick head! Tyto isn't our dad, Freya isn't our mum, and Ariana isn't our sister!". Clay, Hazel and Dale stared at Rowan in shock: as they saw the anger and sheer rage in his eyes; deep down, something hurt in all of them. But the sadness of the moment was broken by Ash's panicked voice: "WHERE IS SHE?!"

Snapping back to reality: they glanced over at Ash as he jumped out of the undergrowth in a panic: "Ariana! I can't find her anywhere!"

"What?!" Hazel panicked,

"She must have run off while we were fighting" Dale realized; "You idiot! This is all your fault!" Clay pushed Rowan again: "You're gonna help look for her!"

"She probably ran off home" Rowan dismissed, "Quit worrying about her, she ran home, ran up to her room to sulk, told the grown-ups what happened, and they'll ground us for week. Big whoop"

"We don't know that for sure!" Ash frowned in annoyance, "For all we know she could have run off up into the forest and got lost!"

"At this time of the day? Come on! She knows better than to stay out in the forest after dark: and since when has Ariana ever lost her way? She knows all the trails and hidden paths as good as Tyto and Evrard. She went home okay?! Quit worrying about her and let's go!" Rowan argued as he turned to leave.

"Ash is right, we don't know for sure!" Hazel ran over to stop him, "We have to go look for her"

"And we'll have to do it spread out: my nose is full of blood so I can't smell her. Rowan, we can't just leave her out here alone! What if a bear or wolf picks up her scent?!" Clay added in a panic.

Rowan turned to face him, and got up in his face again: "Then that's one less problem I'll have to worry about for the rest of my life! Now come on!"

"...You don't mean that..." Ash stared at him in shock.

"I DON'T CARE!" He snapped, "Now come on! I'm getting sick of all this bullshit!" he stormed off in the direction of the road, leaving the others standing there, horrified, shocked, and worried.

"We can't let him go off on his own" Dale sighed in exhaustion: "Yeah but we can't leave Ariana alone out here either! We don't even know where she is!" Hazel panicked.

"We can't split up it's too dangerous to do that..." Ash frowned: contemplating the situation for a moment, he sighed: "... You know maybe Rowan's right; maybe Ariana did run off home? I mean, she _does_ know this forest real well, and she knows better than to stay out after dark. Maybe we're getting worked up over nothing? Maybe she really is in her room right now?"

Glancing at one another, the three of them were not comfortable with this, but considering Ariana's navigational skills, it's wasn't inconceivable for her to make a beeline for the inner gate from here; and what choice did they have anyway? The forest was a dangerous place at night, even their fathers didn't come out here to hunt after dark, what with the wolves, bears, and human outlaws stalking the place, it was too dangerous a gamble to risk.

Conceding defeat to the circumstances of the situation, Hazel picked up Ariana's quiver and bow, and slung it over her shoulder: the others all picked up their backpacks and weapons, and reluctantly started following after Rowan, keeping him in their line of sight as he continued to stomp through the forest, kicking every dead branch and log that he passed as he continued to fume and vent.

"I just hope your right about this Ash" Clay glanced at him in a serious tone,

"Me too" Ash worried as he glanced over his shoulder, noticing how the shadows amid the trees were beginning to grow darker, and more sinister as the sun began to set.

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere, deep in the forest:

She didn't know how long she'd been running for, or how far she'd gone; all Ariana knew, was that when her legs and feet finally succumbed to exhaustion, and her lungs felt like they were on fire, she was in a part of the forest she had never seen before. The trees here were unfamiliar to her, and the topography of the ground was unknown too; but at least she'd found a small stream in which to cool her tired feet, to get a much needed drink, and wash her still-sore face of the dried blood that had been caked to her lips, chin and neck.

After several minutes of cleaning herself up and getting her breath back, she stood on a rock by the water's edge to get a better look at her surroundings; the sun was now turning bright pink, as the last of its light shone through the trees, lighting up the undergrowth as if it were on fire, while overhead through the silhouetted canopy, the soft hues of twilight painted the sky in deep cobalt and azure blue, while shades of purple, pink and vivid peach lit up the clouds. And to the south west, the evening star shone clear and bright, pristine as a diamond amid the splendor of the coming night.

This was bad, Ariana knew it wasn't safe to be out here alone after dark, and worse, she had no idea where she was; without her bow and arrows, and only her knife for defense, her options were very limited. Gazing up and around, she noticed the ground she had been walking on was inclining upwards. First rule of navigating the forest always dictated that if you don't know where you are, always find the highest point in the forest to get a good view. Maybe there was a point from which she might be able to see the lights of the farmlands in the valleys below the forest? If that's the case, it would be a simple case of finding them, and walking in their direction to get back to the road. Or better yet: find Wall Maria, head for that, and simply follow the wall back home. The slope wasn't steep per se, and through the trees Ariana could see the big bulbous full moon shining bright, so it wasn't like she wasn't going to be in total darkness once the sun was gone.

But still, there were bears and wolves in the Marian forests, and without knowing if she was in the middle of one of their territory's or not, the journey was going to be very dangerous; it would be safer to find somewhere to bed down for the night and wait until morning to go home. But then, what about her family? They'd be worried out of their minds if they knew she was out here alone in the dark.

Thinking about it, Ariana decided this couldn't wait; reaching for her pocket knife and opening it up: she kept the blade ready in one hand, and as quietly as possible, began making her way up the sloping ground; listening to the sounds of the forest, and straining to pick out the tell-tale sounds of any predators stalking nearby.

At the back of her mind, she wondered about Rowan, and what happened back there; part of her worried about what would be waiting for her when she got home: would he still be angry with her? Would they start arguing again? Or worse, would he try to hurt her again? It was a terrifying prospect, and the fact he hardly listened to reason whenever he was in one of his 'moods' never helped; but this time was different, he had _never_ lost it like that before: so filled with rage and out of control, _that wasn't like him_ , and it made her wonder, if maybe he had changed somehow?

But unfortunately, that would have to wait; first things first, survive the forest, and get home in one piece.

* * *

A short while later, Shiganshina, the Black Stallion Inn:

The atmosphere was a pleasant one, laughter and gossip filled the air as everyone sat outside enjoying the warm evening: sipping cider and plum brandywine, while enjoying Miriam's roast pork and apple sauce: Rosemary, Lucille and Gustav had decided to join the fun, and even let Gale, Poppy, Belle, Shyla, Fox and Bemadette have the evening off, so as to go play with the other kids. Bryson and Claude had decided to shut their bookshop up early: and even Breck had managed to get off early from the hospital to join in the summertime revelry. Freya, and her sister's-in law, Bestla, Ran and Skadi had kindly brought along some of their homemade cakes to round the dinner off, and while the wives and spinsters gossiped, the husbands and drinking buddies howled with laughter at each others stories and jokes.

All except Eren and Armin, who simply stood at the bottom of the street, waiting for Ariana to show up: "Hey guys, no sign of them yet?" Tyto asked offhand as he wandered over to them.

"Not yet, I'm starting to get worried Mr Grayson" Eren worried, "You think their okay?"

"I'm starting to get a little concerned myself lad" Tyto frowned as he glanced up at the darkening sky; the sun had already set below the wall, and the evening star was now visible: "... They know better than to be out at this hour"

"Do you think we should go look for them?" Armin asked worryingly,

"Hmmm..." Tyto thought about it for a moment: before he spotted Clay, Hazel, Ash, Rowan and Dale walking along the street towards them, but no Ariana with them: "Ah, there they are; she must have taken one of the alleyway's back to the house" he thought aloud; trust Ariana to always take the long way home. Delighted and relieved, Eren and Armin took off for the Grayson's place, while Tyto returned to his drink at the Inn: "Are they back yet?" Freya asked worryingly.

"Just saw them coming up the street: Ariana must've gone on ahead" Tyto replied as he took a sip of his cider.

"Funny. I didn't see her come out by the Rickman's place as she usually does?" Carla thought aloud as she glanced up the street towards the Grayson's home: she saw Eren and Armin go into the house, but a moment or so later, she saw them exist the house and ran back towards her with worried looks on their faces. "Ariana's not home!" Eren panicked.

Freya and Tyto's attention was instantly grabbed as they listened in, "We just went to see if she got home, but she's not in" Armin panicked.

"Hey..." Ash greeted casually as he and the others approached the grown-up's, "Sorry we're late, is Ariana okay?"

"Ariana?" Eren echoed in alarm, "She's not with you guys?!"

Seeing the look on Eren and Armin's faces, Hazel got a bad feeling begin to well up in her gut: "Wait a sec, _she didn't come home?!_ "

Everyone stopped and stared at the children in alarm; Tyto suddenly noticed Ariana's bow and quiver over Hazel's shoulder, and as he approached them, he picked up the scent of blood on their clothes, and noticed the bruises on Clay and Rowan's faces: "What do you mean 'she didn't come home'?" he demanded with concern in his voice.

Realizing Ariana wasn't here, Clay, Hazel, Ash and Dale all glanced at one another in a panic, while Rowan stared off into space, realizing he was now in a world of trouble.

As the parents demanded an explanation: Hannes sighed in exasperation, and turned to his two comrades: "Better go back to the Garrison and tell them to spare a few guys to organize a search: looks like we're going to be busy out in the woods tonight"

"Ariana's out in the forest?" Belle blinked in surprise, "Granny, what're we gonna do?" she turned to Rosemary.

"We're gonna look for her, that's what" Miriam stated: turning to her brother and the others: "Gustav, go wake up the livery next door and tell them we need to borrow some extra horses: Gale, Poppy Belle, go fetch the spare lanterns and torches down in the basement and go fetch Bren, Mabel and Derek; the rest of you fetch the tack from the stables and get a start on getting our own horses and carts ready"

"Mind if we help?" Bryson offered with his brother and friend at his back, "The more eyes on the ground, the better you'll have a chance of finding her"

"Good point" Miriam nodded,

"We'll help too" Grisha offered, with Carla standing by his side and Eren clinging to her apron strings. "Me too: she must be scared out there in those woods alone" Armin's grandfather offered

"Okay" Miriam acknowledged with a courteous nod: "Go fetch whoever else is willing to help. We'll move out as soon as everyone's ready"

* * *

 **Oh dear :( Well, it all kicks off in the next chapter, YAY! :D I had to split this chapter into chapter three as well, otherwise it would have been waaaaay too long, and the pace wouldn't have flowed right, so check out chapter 3 as I will be uploading as soon as I'm done uploading this chapter. :)**


	4. Chpt 3: Awakened

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Chapter 3: Awakened

Somewhere deep in the Marian forest:

Darkness

Breathing

Heart beating

That's all he was aware of at first.

As the hazy nothingness of darkness left, conscious and awareness began to stir him to life, and bring him back to the waking world.

He took another deep breath, and could taste the staleness of the air, the smell of decayed leaves, moss and earth; and the sensation of cold stone pressed against his back, legs, arms and head.

'What is this?' he thought, as his mind began to wake up, and his senses began to take in his surroundings. He clenched his hands: feeling the stiffness leave as their strength steadily returned; flexing his legs, chest and abdomen, he felt life return to his form, and the heat of his blood warming up his otherwise cold flesh.

'I'm awake?' he thought in total confusion, 'But...what am I doing here? What _is_ this?'

It was then he realized he was lying down flat in a small confined space, almost like a coffin, with many dozens of thick tree roots intertwined around his body, as if forming a protective cocoon around him.

Feeling their aura and their life-force pulsating around him, he closed his eyes again, and reached out to them. The darkness fell away into many soft hues of green, as he felt his spirit leave his body and venture out beyond his confinement to see where he was; through the roots he traversed up the trunks all the way to the branches, where he felt the omnipotent presence of the forest all around him. Its countless lifeforms glistened like morning dew to his ethereal eyes, their auras shining bright as stars, scattered far and wide amid the giant trees: as their energies sang their ancient songs of life and ages past. It warmed his heart and made him smile to hear such sweet songs again; it was so strange though, it felt as if he hadn't heard them in a long time... almost for an age in fact.

...Which was strange, given that he only fell asleep yesterday...or at least, it _felt_ like yesterday?

Gazing down to see where his body was: he shuddered in dread when he saw what was laying at the base of the tree.

'A tomb? ...' he gasped in shock, 'I'M IN A TOMB?!'

Recalling his ethereal form to his body, his eyes snapped open and stared up at the flat stone lid in a panic: the tree roots that clung to his arms and torso shifted and snaked back off his body, as if they had a life of their own. Placing his hands on the lid, he balled them into fists and started punching the lid has hard as he could, with every hit creating a loud resounding BOOOOM!

* * *

At the same time, elsewhere:

BOOOOM!

Pascal grasped the arms of his chair as the whole cottage vibrated: "What the hell?-

BOOOOM!

"What was that?!" West panicked as another loud explosion rocked the building,

Getting up out of their armchairs and glancing around, another loud BOOOOM! Echoed through the forest, this time, followed by what sounded like heavy hailstones striking the roof of the cottage; glancing out the window, they saw it was all the pine cones being shaken from their branches in the trees high above.

"What was that? A cannon?" West stared at his friend in alarm,

"That's one hell of a cannon to make a sound like that!" Pascal breathed as he tried to steady himself,

BOOOOM!

This time, they realized it was coming from somewhere out in the forest, and it wasn't that far away: "...That sounded like it was only a few miles away" West breathed,

BOOOOM!

"Whatever it is, we ain't sticking around to find out!" Pascal stated as he headed for the closet in the corner, and reached in to get the muskets propped up in the corner: "Grab some water and food and head down to the basement: we ain't gonna take any chances!"

* * *

At the same time, elsewhere in the forest:

Ariana glanced up all around in a panic: what the hell was that noise?!

BOOOOM!

It sounded like it was coming from the direction she was heading in: up somewhere beyond the incline.

BOOOOM!

She'd never heard such a sound before in all her life: even the fireworks that were let off as part of the summertime festival were never this loud: but then, this didn't sound like a firework, more like something pounding hard with tremendous force, almost like a punch.

BOOOOM!

Swallowing hard, she tentatively carried on, heading in the direction of the sound...

* * *

Elsewhere:

Light appeared through the crack in the stone: one more punch, and...

BOOOOM!

The lid cracked in half and flew off, landing with a deep THUD! As it hit the earth outside; all at once he felt fresh cool air all around him, and saw moonlight streaming through the canopy of the giant trees as the smells of the forest filled his nose. For a long while he just lay there, basking in the relief of having finally been freed from that awful prison, and letting the forest fill his senses. It felt good to breathe the fresh night air; it smelt like summer: rich with life, greenery, flowers, fruits and nuts, and through the canopy he saw the stars shining bright, their distant auras radiating their spiritual energies down through the sky.

As he gazed up into the night sky, he began to realize there was something off about himself: for starters he was completely naked, ('okay?' he thought offhand: disconcerted, but not particularly alarmed); and for some strange reason his mouth felt particularly odd: flexing his tongue around, he couldn't feel his cheeks, only his teeth.

Raising a hand up to try and feel his mouth, he paused just short of his face when he saw the strange tattoos on his hand and arm, raising the other arm, it too was covered in tattoos: 'Those weren't there before?' he though in confusion as he sat up. Glancing down at his body, his eyes flew open at the sight of the well toned muscles bulging off his frame, also covered in tattoos: 'Those are _definitely not_ mine!' he thought in alarm. Feeling his head, he felt his hair was much thicker, longer, and fell all the way down his back: 'How long have I been asleep?!' he panicked, and as his gaze fell downwards, that's when he saw his crotch, and saw what was there...

Or rather, what _wasn't_ there anymore...

He cursed out loud in shock, but instead of words his voice came out as a bellowing animalistic roar: 'WHAT?! My voice! What happened to my voice?!' he really started to panic as he clutched at his throat: he tried to say something, _anything_ , but nothing coherent came out, just one loud booming roar after another: what was happening?! His lips wouldn't form words properly; and that's when he realized he _couldn't feel_ his lips, or his cheeks for that matter, clasping a hand to his mouth, his stomach dropped when he felt only teeth in place of his lips and cheeks. Feeling his face up and down, his panic turned to horror as he realized his face was monstrously deformed, feeling up to the sides of his head, he was even more dismayed to find his ears were long and pointed, and could flex about and around like any other animal's ears.

'What in all-father's name has happened to me?!'

Feeling dizzy, he tried to stand up, but found himself falling head-over-backside into the earth with a loud THUD! His body felt so heavy, so strange and unlike what he was used to: this made no sense at all, and as he tried to catch his breath, he didn't know what to do. Then, he noticed a stag standing some several meters away, watching him in bemusement: but something wasn't right, the stag looked absolutely _tiny_ , which didn't make any sense at all either. As he slowly got back up, that's when the stag seemed to get even smaller...

No, _he_ was the one getting bigger!

As he stood up, growing more shocked with every inch he stood taller, he finally stood up straight, and gazed down at the stag in a mix of confusion and horror: the stag was over thirteen meters away below him, or was he over thirteen meters up in the air? Gazing down at his body, nothing was different (except for all the muscles); he wasn't flying or floating, _he was standing on the ground_. Holding one hand up to his eye level, and placing the other hand on the top of his head, he reckoned the distance must have been about two meters...

He was over fifteen meters tall.

'...Whoa' he mentally breathed.

Staggering over to the nearest giant tree, he winced as he felt his feet make a loud booming THUD! with every step he took: resting a hand against the tree, he gently sat down amid the roots, crossed his legs, and began concentrating on his breathing...

This was a lot to take in; his mind pulsed with so many questions that he felt his head begin to hurt, he couldn't focus on which one to address first, never mind try to find a way to seek answers; it was too much all in one go, and he felt so powerless and weak. Looking down at his hands, and studying the tattoos, he suddenly remembered where he had seen this pattern before: 'The hand of the ancients...'

Glancing back over at the tomb and the two halves of the broken lid sitting next to it, he noticed the exact same patterns carved into the stone; that _couldn't_ be just coincidence.

Looking around the forest, he realized he'd never seen this place before; that alarmed him deeply, for he knew every forest of the earth: from the tropical rainforests of the equator to the frozen pine forests of the Arctic Circle. Standing back up, he ran both hands up the side of the tree, and summoning his power, reached out to the spirits all around him.

' _Hear me, spirits of the forest...'_ his mind's voice echoed through the energies of the trees: _'I, Javorin, god of wisdom, guidance, nourishment and balance: do hereby invoke your secret names; lera-nea, asseth-mea, naros-fenmea, and ask that you tell me where I am'_

All at once, little by little, he sensed the trees attention's now focused on him; 'Well? My powers are intact, so that's a positive' he thought, allowing a moment of relief to calm his nerves. Sensing the life-force of the forest gather around him, flowing through his being and acknowledging his divine presence, up in the canopy, the branches seemed to glow with a faint pale aura, as the spirits of the trees revealed themselves and drew closer to him.

 _My lord_

 _Long have you been gone_

 _But returned to the world, you have_

To a mortal, it sounded like many voices talking in sync together: but to Javorin, it was a singular consciousness expressed through many voices, all talking as one; a vast collective with a singular will, spread out across the forest, in every plant, insect and animal: vast, ancient, and powerful.

' _Please, can you tell me who you are?'_ he got straight to the point: ' _I know every forest upon this world, yet I do not recall ever meeting you; who are you? And how long have your trees stood here?'_

 _They call us Maria_

'Maria? That sounds like the kind of name a human would bestow' he thought offhand,

 _We are Aang-suvea_

 _Long have we stood here_

 _We have stood through five ages of men_

 _Through the time of plenty and the time of darkness_

 _The time of sorrows_

 _The time of uncertainties_

 _The age of the fall_

' _The age of the fall?'_ Javorin asked: pressing his hand to the trunk of the tree, the spirits showed him the tree's memories: Javorin gasped in shock as they flashed through his mind like lightning.

Blood staining the earth and waters, turning everything red

People screaming, running for their lives, only to be picked up and eaten by-

The thundering sounds of giant footsteps, the screaming of horses and men dyeing together as they fight to the death

Giant humanoid creatures with dead expressions on their faces, lifeless, unfeeling, with dead bodies and blood dripping from their mouths

Javorin pulled his hand away in shock

 _All fell_

 _All died_

 _All became one with the root of our trees_

 _But some survived_

 _Yet they no longer remember_

 _They have forgotten_

 _They fear them_

' _Them? Them who?'_

 _The ones that came_

 _Abominations_

 _The ones that consumed_

 _Not wanted here_

 _The ones that drove them in, and forced them to stay here_

 _They are corruption_

As he sensed their memories and power swirl around him, Javorin realized something was wrong; though he couldn't quite put his finger on it, he decided he'd heard enough, for now. He had his own set of problems to deal with.

' _... Alright, thank you'_ he bowed his head courteously, and the spirits in turn, melted back into the darkness of the forest, vanishing from sight: though their presence could still be felt, as it lingered like smoke in the cool night air.

Leaning against the tree, and gazing over at his tomb: Javorin, for the first time in many lifetimes, felt a very human chill run down his spine; '...How long have I been gone?'

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the forest:

"You're _sure_ this is where you last saw her kid?" Hannes asked Clay as he held the flaming torch up high over his head.

"This is where we had the fight" Clay explained nervously, "We were over by that log, and Ariana fell about here" he gestured to a nearby patch of trampled grass, "By the time we stopped fighting Ariana was gone"

As the assembled search party looked all around, many of them sighed in worry at the prospect of searching the forest. This whole area was vast and wild, only the most experienced hunters would go venturing beyond this point. From here, it was nothing but forest and mountains all the way up to the walled city of Melbeck, on the Eastern-most side of Wall Maria.

"Okay Tyto, you're the master hunter, what'd you think?" Hannes gazed over at the worried father.

Tyto said nothing, as he, Evrard, Falken and Eraman all scanned the undergrowth in minute detail, picking out every little discernible feature, and scrutinizing it carefully; years of experience in reading the signs had taught them what to look for, and before long, Evrard could make out what they were looking for. Bending down and expecting the bushes, he could smell blood, sweat, and Ariana's scent.

"She went up through there" he pointed up the inclining ground.

"Alright, then that's where we'll search" Hannes nodded, glancing over to the assembled garrison troops and Military police: "Okay, I want you guys to fan out and begin looking through the undergrowth, make sure you leave no stone unturned!"

"Yes sir!" they all saluted,

"The rest of you go with them" he addressed everyone else; practically everyone Tyto and Freya knew had come along to help with the search: the Jaegers, Armin's grandpa, The Cooper twin's father, the Willums, Mabel, Bren, Derek, Bryson, Breck, Claude, and the whole family: and since the children couldn't be left home alone, they were left in the care of Rosemary and Lucille, who waited with them by the cart. "Stay in sight of each other's torches, and don't shout out unless you find something got it?"

They all voiced in agreement,

"Okay, Evrard, you got her scent, lead the way" Tyto ordered, and without another word, Evrard took off through the bushes following the scent, while everyone fanned out and formed a line that stretched a good twenty five meters long on either side of the trail.

Heading back the short distance to the carts with his own torch: Clay soon found the rest of his cousins and the other kids: all waiting in anxiousness.

"Well?" a tearful Hazel asked desperately: "Dad's got her scent" Clay tried to sound positive, but in his gut he felt awful; he felt guilty for not taking the time to look for Ariana, and now she was gone, lost somewhere up in that deep labyrinth of a forest.

"Well that's something" Rosemary assured him as he climbed back aboard the cart, "Don't worry, your fathers and uncles are some of the best trackers in all of Maria, if anyone has a chance of finding Ariana, it's them"

"But what if they don't find her?" Hazel sobbed, "I don't want her to die!"

"There there dearie" Lucille cooed as she patted her on the back and pulled her in for a hug, "Let's not think about that right now"

"It's your fault she ran off in the first place!" Clay glared over at Rowan, who simply sat on the back of the cart with his feet hanging over the edge: gazing off into the darkness in silence: "If you hadn't had said those things and punched her in the face she'd be home by now!"

Everyone in the cart bar Hazel, Ash and Dale, gasped in shock as their heads snapped towards Rowan: "You _punched_ Ariana?!" the Cooper twins gasped,

"Is this true?!" Rosemary demanded

"...It's true" Ash admitted nervously, "We did fight, and it-, _really_ got outta hand"

"Rowan said some things he _didn't_ mean" Dale glared over at Rowan: "He lost it and lashed out at Ariana"

Angry, Eren got up and stomped over to Rowan, grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, and glared him right in the eye. Taking Rowan completely by surprise: "How the hell could you do that?! How could you do that to your own sister?! You may be a jerk, but _no way_ do you do that to someone you love!"

Rowan's eyes widened in surprise, and he realized what Eren just said,

"Eren stop that!" Rosemary ordered, pulling him away, and directing him back to his seat: "...Now listen, all of you; I know we're all worried for Ariana, I'm worried too, but that's no excuse to go pointing fingers and losing our heads over who said or did what. There's and time and place for sorting out such problems, but now is not it. Your parents are looking for her right now, so all we can do is wait"

The sound of someone running through the bushes back towards the cart made everyone turn their heads, just in time to see Carla appear, and untie of the saddled horses that was hitched to the thick branch of a tree.

"Mum?! What're you doing back here?!" Eren called out,

"Carla! What's wrong dear?" Rosemary called out to her.

"I just had a thought," Carla replied hurriedly as she mounted the horse, and grasped the reins in her hands as her feet slid into the stirrups: "What if Ariana managed to cut back to one of the main roads? We don't have anyone searching there"

"The main roads?" Rosemary breathed in worry, "But Carla, you know how dangerous those roads are at night. Please let one of the men go with you!"

"We don't have time! I have to make sure she's not there!" Carla frowned as she tapped the horse's flanks with her heels, and took off up the road and around the corner out of sight.

"Oh, I do hope she doesn't run into any trouble" Lucille worried,

Frowning in frustration as he watched his mother take off, Eren jumped out of the cart, snatched the torch from Clay's hand, and proceeded up into the undergrowth: "Eren? Where are you going?!" Clay demanded,

"To look for Ariana!" he called back, "They'll find her quicker if there are more of us out there looking for her!"

"What?! But it's dangerous out there in the dark!" Gale pleaded; "Please Eren! You can't search for her all by yourself!" Ashlyn pleaded as well: "Eren come back here!" Rosemary called out sternly,

"Ariana's my friend! And friends don't leave each other alone in the dark!" Eren called back as he disappeared from sight among the trees. Staring out into the dark as his torchlight grew more distant, Ash sighed as he took his torch and jumped out the cart.

"Where are _you_ going?!" Belle exclaimed,

"He's right" Ash frowned, "The more of us there are out there, the better the chance we have of finding Ariana...Besides, she's my little sister, she's _my_ responsibility, and I failed her: so _please_ , let me do my job as her big brother, and let me go help look for her"

Everyone stared at him for moment, before the rest of the kids climbed out, grabbed the spare torches propped up against the side of the cart, and lit them from the one Ash was holding. Knowing it was now useless to try and talk them out of it, Rosemary and Lucille climbed down, and reluctantly grabbed some torches: "Oh alright, but if you insist on joining the search it will be with adult supervision!" Rosemary sternly wagged her finger.

"HEY EREN WAIT UP!" Belle called out as she grabbed Armin by the sleeve, and dragged him through the bushes as she started running after Eren, with everyone following as best they could.

Only Rowan remained on the cart: on the outside he looked calm, but inside a storm of worry and dread was churning about inside his gut and chest; after what he did, he felt he had no right to help, that this was totally beyond forgiveness. And for the first time in his life, he truly felt the gravity of the situation, and the damage of what he'd done: and it terrified him.

Seeing the dread in his brother's eyes, Ash approached him, and in a calm voice told him honestly: "...I know you didn't mean those things you said"

Rowan said nothing, as he continued to panic in silence,

"...Look, whatever happens: just remember that no matter what anyone tells you or what anyone says about us; your my brother, and I won't leave you no matter what"

Rowan glanced at him, and scowled in a mix of anger and guilt: "...She might be _dead_ because of me! How can you say that?!"

"Because you're my brother, and you're _my_ responsibility too, okay?" Ash placed a hand on his knee. Tears ran down his face, as Rowan began to sob: "But-, why does Eren- how can he-

"Because, he's her best friend, and that's what best friends do" Ash replied as he pulled him down off the cart, and held his hand as he lead him into the tree line, "Now come on, let's go and look for her"

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the forest:

As they sat cross-legged on the floor of their basement with a single candle for light, Pascal and West both clutched their rifles as they listened to the silence beyond the basement door.

"It's been quiet for a while now" West whispered, "Whatever it was might be long gone"

"Maybe?" Pascal frowned skeptically as he stared up at the door, "...Let's go and check it out"

"Okay, I'll take point, you cover my ass" West readied himself as he pushed the butt of the musket into his shoulder, and aimed up at the door with one hand, while he opened the door with his one free hand. Creeping as quietly as possible, they looked around the cottage, out the windows, and out the open back door. It was well and truly dark outside, with only the light of the full moon lighting up the forest floor in silver dappled light: as far as they could see, nothing and no one was out there.

"...I think we're good" West cautiously sighed as he lowered his weapon,

"Yeah, I think so" Pascal nodded,

"That noise" West frowned in bemusement, "What d you think it was?"

"Honestly?" Pascal shrugged, "I have no idea what that-

But then, something made him stop: another noise echoing out from deep in the forest; this time, it was much further away, and well beyond their line of sight.

Thud!-Thud!-Thud!-Thud!-Thud!

It wasn't loud per se, but it was deep and fast: the pace of it almost sounded like feet hitting the ground; like a set of very large heavy feet.

"...Now what? ..." West stared wide-eyed into the darkness.

As they both strained their ears to try and make out what it was, they both realized with horror that it was getting louder, approaching them fast. Without another word the two friends bolted back to the basement, shut the door and blew out the candle, as whatever it was ran past the cottage; the vibrations shook the building to its foundation, making things fall off shelves and rattling the floorboards and windowpanes; and then as swiftly as it came it was gone just as quickly, allowing the silence of the forest to creep back in again.

"Leave it 'till the morning?" West whispered, his heart hammering in his chest with alarm.

"Leave it 'till the morning" Pascal concurred in equal concern.

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the forest

The forest had grown silent again since those loud booms had stopped: as Ariana continued her journey, the air was starting to cool into coldness, and her feet were starting to grow tired again. She wanted to rest so badly, to find somewhere nice and snug and just go to sleep, but she forced herself to push onward, she had to figure out where she was, so as to find a way home.

Stopping to catch her breath, she glanced up at the giant trees, and was astounded to see how big they were; she'd seen giant trees before, but none as big as these. They looked like they went on forever, all the way up into the sky, probably touching the underside of the clouds. Looking around at their roots, she saw how vast and thick they were, snaking their way all over the forest floor: rising and falling, curving around and over rocks and boulders, forming narrow gaps and gully's, and tall empty caves between the trunks and the ground. She had never seen a forest like this before, and the sheer scale of it amazed her to no end. As the moon filtered through the canopy, and lit up the undergrowth in hues of blueish-silver, the whole scene looked like something from a dream; mysterious, ethereal, as if there were magic all around.

For a moment, as she lost herself in the majesty of this place, a small smile tugged at her lips: she knew she couldn't stay here, but she would make it her mission to find this place, and come back here again. If anything to simply to be among these grand and beautiful trees. Letting her gaze drop back to the forest floor, she looked all around, wondering which direction to go next; when suddenly, she noticed something in a clearing nearby. It was a giant stone circle, just like the one not too far from the wall near Shiganshina. The stones had the same markings on them and everything, but these stones were far taller, and wider at their bases. As she approached closer, Ariana suddenly got a strange feeling in her gut; not a bad feeling, but one that made her suddenly aware of her surroundings, as if to be ready to move at any moment. She couldn't put her finger on it, but it almost felt like someone, or _something_ was watching her...

 _This way_

"Huh?" Ariana spun round: but no one was there.

Gazing in the direction behind her, she saw a trail leading through the darkest part of the undergrowth, completely concealed in shadow: it looked ominous and foreboding, the kind of darkness that predators would take advantage of to secure an easy meal. Staring into the pitch black, Ariana knew it had danger written all over it and her gut confirmed it as it told her to stay in the moonlight.

But there was something about it, something about that darkness that was telling her to go through there; it was stupid and dangerous, she knew that, so why this feeling that there was something waiting for her on the other side?

 _Go there_

 _You'll be safe there_

 _He will help you find your way home_

It was weird, surreal almost: like it wasn't her instinct speaking to her, but rather, something else; a force of some kind that was greater than her. It made no sense at all: but with her curiosity now beginning to override her fear, Ariana held her pocket knife tightly with both hands, took a deep breath, and steadily crept towards the darkness, minding every foot fall so as to be as quiet as possible.

* * *

Meanwhile, not too far away:

As he meditated on his predicament: Javorin had managed to regain his composure and calmed himself right down: at the back of his mind he was still worried, but now he was processing his situation and contemplating on his current state, and what to do about it. On the one hand, it seemed his powers were unaffected, which was a relief to say the least: he could feel his elemental powers were intact too, as he could sense the still and ancient earth through his feet, and all around him he could feel the air and its energies as they intertwined with the spiritual auras of the forest.

He wasn't totally helpless: but still, he had no voice, his face was-, well? Something only a mother could love, and he was over fifteen meters high, with the body of a Spartan warrior, and then some. This _had_ to be a curse of some kind, and a pretty powerful one at that; there was no other reason he could think of that would explain such a drastic change in physical form.

While mulling over his troubled thoughts, he suddenly felt a ripple in the earth and air; something was moving fast towards him. Standing up, he focused in the direction it was coming from, and sure enough, he spotted a huge black shadow creep its way towards him between the shadows of the trees. Using his power to get a better look at its energy's, he saw the giant dark aura emanating off it like thick black smoke, with flecks of violet light dancing off it it's humanoid/liquid form. It had the essence of a predator: something that was dangerous and powerful; something that was on the prowl, and it had spotted him.

Readying himself for a fight, the tattoos all over Javorin's body glowed a vivid shade of blue as he summoned the weight of his power: his unnaturally bright blue eyes glowed even more vividly, as he prepared for whatever he was about to face. " **Whatever or whoever you are; know that I am a god, and you will not defeat me so lightly"** he telepathically warned, projecting his will and power towards the entity in a show of defense, as he held up one hand in a gesture to stop.

" **Relax Javorin..."** a sultry feminine voice smiled, as the shadow-creature stood upright, revealing its giant humanoid form in full: **"You of all gods know I would never pick a fight with the Overseer of mankind"**

Javorin's eyes flew open wide in surprise as he instantly recognized the voice: **"...Hecate?..."** he squinted at the entity in confusion.

" **Long time no see dear cousin..."** the shadow replied as it hugged the side of a tree, gazing at him with ominous yet sultry violet glowing eyes, **"Summer of '29, I believe was the last time we met? Quite a party wouldn't you say?"**

" **As I recall, it was more of brawl than a party: you slayed three dragons, ate an entire hoard of demon hogs, and enslaved a possessed minister before exorcising him of his demons"** he frowned **: "But then, I wouldn't expect any less from the gods mightiest"** he deadpanned in slight annoyance; of all his divine kin, it just had to be _her_ to show up at a time like this.

" **Hm"** she smirked playfully, **"You haven't changed a bit; shame I can't say the same for the rest of you. That's one hell of a curse you got hanging over you"**

" **I know"** he sighed **,**

" **But then..."** She added as she transformed into her solid physical form, and slipped out of the darkness with a smug grin on her face, " **Who am I to talk?"**

Javorin stared at her in amazement: she was fifteen meters tall too, and muscular to boot, while still retaining her lean voluptuous figure, but unlike him, her new form was a real sight to behold. Her entire body was covered head to toe in charcoal black and bone white, her legs and arms were completely black, while her torso and face were left white, with the black markings giving her face the appearance of a skull, while on her chest was the crude symbol of the god of death, while the rest of the black markings on her sides and stomach crudely resembled ribs and a spine; on her back was a more elaborate and detailed symmetrical pattern. Though one would never be able to get a good look, as her thick straight black hair cascaded all the way down her back and legs, nearly touching her heels. And unlike Javorin, her cheeks and lips were intact.

" **...Whoa"** was all he could say,

" **Heh, nice to know I haven't lost my touch"** she smirked as she treaded lightly over towards him, **"Even on** _ **you**_ **, dear cousin"** she grinned mischievously as she bummed him playfully against the hip.

" **Yes well, glad to know your taking it in your stride"** he deadpanned,

" **Heh! Have you seen yourself in the mirror lately?"** another voice chuckled from out of the darkness, **"'Taking it in your stride' just took on a whole new definition"**

Javorin glanced past Hecate to see another familiar face appear from the shadows: **"Herne?!"**

" **Nice to see you again too little brother"** Herne grinned as he looked him up and down, **"Eh, at least your curse was kinder to you, look at me, I look like that giant mountain troll I slayed on the Matterhorn back in the last ice age; mind you, he didn't have tusks and a tail..."**

Herne was a far cry from Javorin and Hecate: he stood around seven meter's tall, but his oversized super-muscular arms came all the way down to his knees, while his legs were shorter and his feet were smaller. He looked more animalistic, with long curved boar-like tusks sprouting out from his upper jaw, a long robust tail that was tipped with red fur, and a robust protruding face with a big prominent nose, long tapered ears tipped with red fur, and a long thick mane of bright red ginger hair that ran all the way down his back. Like Javorin he too had a full body of tattoos with an elaborate pattern all over his back, but his skin was much more tanned and bronzed. The only thing that really stood out was the thick abdominal plates on his abdomen; they looked strange, as if they were made from kind of hardened shell or horn. His long arms meant his center of gravity was off, so instead of walking upright like a human, he instead shuffled along on all fours like a gorilla.

" **Whoa..."** he suddenly noticed Javorin's teeth, **"That's some set of chompers you got there"**

" **I know, I can't talk because of them"** Javorin sighed as he patted his face,

" **I don't think it's that, we can't talk either, and we both got lips"** Herne pointed to his mouth,

" **Seriously?"** Javorin blinked in surprise,

" **Must be part of the curse"** Hecate shrugged as she folded her arms, and regarded them both with a very matter-of-factly look: **"I tried using a speaking spell on both of us, but no dice; whatever curse we got lumped with, it's a quality piece of work...Oh and to answer your question as to how I found Shorty here, his tomb was right next to mine"**

" **You were buried too?!"** Javorin exclaimed,

" **Yeah, not every day you get to crawl out of your own grave"** Hecate sighed sarcastically, **"But then, for a goddess in** _ **my**_ **line of divine duty, that's really nothing new"**

" **...Okay; so, what do we do? Because really? I got nothing"** Javorin asked frankly **,**

" **Well, I don't think we're in any immediate danger from this curse (not that I can sense at least)... Right now, I can't help but shake this feeling there might be another one of us out here"**

" **Another god?"** Herne blinked in surprise

" **Yeah..."** Hecate sighed as she glanced back over her shoulder, **"And it feels like they're in the same boat as we are"** she turned back to Javorin, **"I'm going to check it out, you wait here; Herne, why not try out that nose of yours and sniff them out for me?"**

" **Sure, It's not like I had anything else planned for tonight"** he joked as he followed her into the shadows, quickly keeping the pace as she melted into the darkness, and transformed back into her shadow-creature form, swiftly taking off like a fish through water; silent and stealthily. Leaving Javorin alone where he stood.

It was then he suddenly realized: what had happened to all the other gods? Were they okay? Or were they cursed too? A pang of worry welled up inside him as he leaned against the trunk of a nearby tree, and at the back of his mind, he felt his worries begin to multiply.

* * *

At the same time, a short distance away:

Ariana emerged from the undergrowth, and quietly breathed a sigh of relief, having made it through the darkness in one piece; looking around, she saw she was in a new part of the forest where the trees were just as tall and vast as the one's she'd previously seen, but this time there was something different about this place.

Cautiously stepping out of the darkness and into the moonlight, she was careful to mind the uneven ground, as the roots of the giant trees here were even larger, and had thick bramble patches and dead branches littered about. Treading along one of the giant roots, she followed it to its base; when suddenly, the sound of heavy breathing made her freeze...

Whatever animal it was, it was _huge_ , with a big set of lungs that slowly breathed in and out. As she listened more closely, Ariana realized it was right on the other side of the tree, and considering the size of the tree and the fact she could hear such loud heavy breathing: she began sweating bullets as she wondered just how big it really was. Clasping her pocket knife in both hands and readying herself to either run or fight, she silently crept around the base of the tree, slowly taking her time as he could hear she was getting closer: knowing she was now right on top of the giant creature; she glanced down at the ground to try and see its shadow...

But instead of the shadow of a huge bear or colossal boar, there were two tall long shadows: were they smaller trees? Ariana frowned as she stared at the shadows, and nearly gasped aloud when she saw them move; trees don't move like that, especially not the trunks! Then, glancing away from the tree, she saw the rest of the shadow stretching far across the ground.

It wasn't a tree at all; instead, it was the shadow of a man: _a gigantic man!_

Slowly leaning around the truck of the giant tree, Ariana indeed found herself staring up at the back of a HUGE man. Nearly fifteen meters tall at least, with muscles on muscles, leaning against the tree as if deep in thought. Mouth agasp and eyes as wised as saucers, Ariana couldn't believe what she was seeing... 'Is that... _A titan?!_ ...' her mind began to reel in disbelief and shock: and in that one moment, as all of Bryson's stories began to play back over in her mind, she knew right then and there that she was _very serious_ danger.

Holding her breath and never taking her eyes off the behemoth, slowly, Ariana backed up: her body ached all over as she strained her muscles to remain in her control, while trying to hold her breath so he couldn't hear her.

She was totally silent: until a twig snapped under her feet, and the giant snapped his head round and saw her standing there behind him, eyes wide in equal surprise.

Ariana's breath hitched in her chest as she stopped herself from screaming, as she looked up at the giant's face, and noticed the lipless maw with two rows of incisor-like teeth; her body began to scream at her to run. Her and arms legs trembled as her breathing began to quicken: never in her life had she been so scared and overwhelmed, she'd hidden from a bear once before, but this was a titan! She was dead for sure and she knew it!

As they both stared at one another, that moment seemed to stretch out into one long agonizing eternity: as Ariana gazed up at the titan, and he, merely stared down at her, frozen still, and his breath now almost silent.

What was he doing? He was just staring down at her doing nothing; Ariana didn't know what to think, except get out of here and run to find cover somewhere, _fast!_ Hoping not to spook him, or trigger his instinct to pounce on her, Ariana began to back out slowly again: she managed to get a few steps back around the tree, when suddenly, the root beneath her feet gave out, and before she knew it she was falling down into darkness, and as she hit the soft ground knees first, she felt something sharp going straight through her left eye...

Ariana screamed her lungs out as pain ripped through her eye.

* * *

Javorin was so lost in his thoughts; he nearly jumped out his skin when he heard the twig snap behind him.

Spinning round and glancing down at what was behind him, he saw it was-

A girl?

The tiny child stared up at him, eyes wide with fear and breath caught in her chest; her hands were tightly gripped around the hilt of a pocket knife, as if she were about to wield it like a sword: her legs and arms trebled, making her whole tiny frame shake.

She looked quite young, probably around four, five or six years old: her messy Auban-brown hair was tied up in a loose equally-messy pony tail with bangs all around her face, her eyes were deep brown, and she wore a simple dress with trousers and boots underneath, with a sash belt around her waist (a hunter's daughter no doubt).

Using his power to read her aura, he could see the fear coursing through her like a fire out of control: her little heart was beating so hard and fast he could feel it was almost painful for her, and her mind was racing so fast he could hardly make out any coherent lines of thought.

The only thing he could pick out clearly, was that she knew she was in danger, and she only had one chance to try and run: as she noticed his teeth, he felt her fear increase tenfold.

Deep down, Javorin felt his heart ache with sadness; was this, the purpose of the curse? To strike fear into the souls of humans and have them believe he was a monstrous hulking beast? This little child certainly believed it, and without his voice to try and convince her otherwise, he was powerless to do anything. The only safe thing to do was to let her run: least he might scare her even more, or worse, if he might accidentally trip and fall right on top of her; the thought of it made him sick to his stomach. He slowed his breathing, and remained as still as a statue.

Slowly, the child began to back away, creeping around the base of the tree, never taking her eyes off him; she managed to get about ten meters from him, before an old rotted root gave out from under her feet, and with a surprised yelp she fell down into one of the narrow root gullies.

He gasped in horror, was she okay? But his worst fears were only confirmed when a loud shrill scream pierced the night air, as the child started screaming as if it were the end of the world. Quickly, he got down on his knees and glanced down into the small gully: he clasped his hand over his mouth in shock as he saw her laying there with a small dead tree branch skewered right into her left eye, her hands clasped to her head as pain shot throughout her eye socket.

Javorin felt his hands tremble; he was terrified to touch her, for fear of crushing her in his huge muscular hands: but as he saw her whole aura quake and rock in pain and agony, he knew he had to do something, the wound was bleeding badly, and there was a chance she might not survive. Mustering up his courage, and biting down the gut-wrenching dread in his stomach, he carefully reached into the gully, grabbed her around the torso between his finger and thumb, and carefully pulled her out, laying her on his cupped palm.

As she continued to scream and cry, he was able to see the full extent of the wound, and it was bad: the eyeball was beyond all mortal means of repair, as it was completely destroyed by the branch that was pierced right up into her eye socket, and was dangerously close to her brain.

There was only one way to heal a wound this bad, and Javorin knew it was the only way to save her life; holding his free hand to his teeth, he bit down on his knuckle hard, making it bleed, but instead of deep red blood, out of the wound came a thick opaque bright glowing blue liquid that radiated a blue aura. Letting his blood trickle down to the tip of his finger, he carefully lifted his finger right over her head, letting the melon-sized droplets fall onto her wound.

Almost right away, her screaming subsided into a couple of pained moans, before her right eye glazed over and her eyelid grew heavy, her body went totally limp as she flopped back against his palm, seemingly falling into a torpor-like state; staring off into space, until her crying stopped completely, and she just stared up at the sky as if in a trance. The glowing blue blood trickled down the side of her face, and into the wound.

'Thank the all-father' Javorin let out a deep sigh of relief: now to get that branch out; but it was so small and his fingers were so big, there was no way he'd be able to grab it and remove it without causing further injury to the girl. If only he had a pair of tweezers, that would be just the thing to remove it.

Suddenly, the markings on his finger and thumb glowed blue, and a strange blue crystal-like substance formed over the fingertips and elongated into small fine points: turning them into, essentially, a pair of tweezers. 'Whoa, I definitely couldn't do that before' he thought in amazement. Carefully, he grasped the branch between the points of his now crystal 'tweezer-fingers', and slowly and gently, he pried it out of the eye socket, allowing his blood to seep into the wound. The blood began to glow white as its power began to restore the eye to its previous state, all the while the girl remained in a trance-like state, seemingly under heavy sedation. Looking at his fingers, Javorin blinked in surprise as he watched the crystal reabsorb itself back into his fingers.

When the blood had finally completed its task, Javorin gently stroked the girl's face, wiping the blood away, but when he saw her newly-healed eye, he sighed in disappointment: 'Oh dear: looks like I used too much' he thought to himself.

* * *

Ariana didn't know where she was, or if she was even still in the forest anymore: all around her there was white and blue light, and she felt so light, she could have sworn she was floating in mid-air; her head felt like it was swimming in honey, as she felt the pain turn into a blissful sensation of hazy sleep. She felt her eye twitch in its socket, as if something had been gently pulled out. As quickly as the sensation had overwhelmed her and pulled her into the strange dream-like state, she could feel herself returning to reality again, as she felt the cold night air against her skin. Only now, the pain was gone, and she could feel she was laying down in something really warm and soft, flexing her hands to try and feel what it was, she felt it was...skin?

Opening her eyes, she nearly jumped when she saw two huge bright blue eyes staring back down and at her; then she saw that lipless maw, and right away, she remember what it was. Terrified, Ariana was about to try and move, when the giant raised his hand, and gently began stroking the side of her head with his finger: the same way a parent would gently caress their child's face.

As she sat there, allowing this giant monster of a titan to stroke her, Ariana's fear steadily turned into confusion; he wasn't tryin to eat her, or harm her in any way, in fact he was being soft and gentle, handling her as if she were a fragile cherry blossom. And as she gazed up into those big blue eyes of his, she saw just how radiant they were: they were the most vivid shade of blade she had ever seen, they looked almost unnatural as the moonlight lit them up and made them glisten like starlight. But what really allowed her fear to subside, was how friendly and warm his gaze was, how it seemed to hold a deep love that radiated down upon her; those weren't the eyes of a monster or a hungry predator, they were those of a being, like another human; kind, gentle, and peaceful.

Wiping the tears from her face, Ariana sat upright, and that's when she noticed she was sitting in the giant palm of his hand; realizing just how big he was, her eyes grew wide again as she took in the sheer size of him: "...Whoa..." she breathed.

'Whoa indeed...' Javorin couldn't help but smile (at least, smile as much as his lipless maw would allow): relieved that she was okay, and no longer in a panic; little by little he sensed her fear giving way to mix of confusion and curiosity, as she stared up at him, no longer afraid of his appearance.

Carefully standing up, the child looked him up and down, before taking in a nervous breath, and boldly asking him: "...So? Are you a titan?"

'Titan?' Javorin raised an eyebrow in confusion: 'What's a titan?'

* * *

At the same time, elsewhere in the forest:

As she rode further along the road, Carla couldn't help but begin to worry; not only for Ariana's sake, but for her own as well. She knew traveling the forest roads at night was dangerous: but she had to make sure Ariana wasn't here; deep in her gut, she couldn't help but wonder if maybe some human traffickers got to her first?

No, she couldn't think that, she had to remain optimistic, for Freya and Tyto's sake: and for Ariana, who was no doubt lost, and alone.

As she scanned the tree line on either side of the road, a loud sound forced her to stop the horse, and listen closely as she heard something way off in the distance snapping branches and breaking trunks. What on earth was it? It sounded like something knocking trees and bushes aside; a bear maybe? A colossal-sized boar? Those animals could clear whole pathways through the forest. Whatever it was, it sounded like it was a good quarter mile away, and heading in the direction of the river ahead of her.

Suddenly, a deer shot out of the bushes and flew across the road, spooking the horse: as it reared up and screamed in fright, Carla was thrown from the saddle and fell to the paved ground with a bump; the horse took off back the way they'd came, and Carla was left to pick herself up and dust herself off. Considering how some ridding accidents resulted in bad injuries, she thanked her lucky stars she only had a sore backside and arm.

But the rustling in the bushes nearby made her freeze, and her stomach dropped as she saw four mean appear our of the darkness: wearing hessian sacks over their heads with eye holes cut out, and brandishing ropes, knives, and large machetes. For a long moment they just stood there staring at her, while she stared back in fear: hoping and praying these men were not what she thought they were...

Alas, her fears were confirmed when one of the men spoke to one of his partners: "What'd you think? Might she be worth something?"

"She's still got some youth and colour in her cheeks" The other man replied in a cold tone: "We might be able to sell her at a discounted rate: after all, not all those old pervs like 'em very young: some prefer a whore who's old enough to handle a man just right"

Hearing that, Carla turned and ran with everything she had, but she barely made it ten meters before one of the men tackled her to the ground, and flipped her on her stomach: tightly grabbing her hands and tying them up behind her back, while another man quickly gagged her with a cloth, before grabbing her legs and holding them tightly while the third man tied her up by the ankles.

As tears began to run down her cheeks, Carla's mind ran a thousand miles a minute as she thought of her husband and child: Grisha, Eren: she was being kidnapped by human traffickers, alone and helpless with no one to come to her aid, and no one would know what happened to her. She was never going to see her family or home ever again, and the realization broke her heart.

Panicked and desperate, she violently tried to wriggle and shake free of her bonds: but the first man knelt down, and grabbing her by the back of her shirt, pressed his knife to her throat; "...Now..." he spoke with no emotion as he stared down at her with a dead look in his eyes, "You're gonna be as quiet as a mouse, or I'll open up that pretty neck of yours and let the wolves have ya, understand?"

She reluctantly nodded: "Good, now I don't want any fuss or any trouble from you" he turned to the man nearest to him: "Take her back to the wagon, and let's get outta here" he ordered. But as the man grabbed her painfully by her hair and started dragging her down the road, his buddy elbowed him, "Hey! Watch the merchandise! She may not be premium but something's better than nothing!"

"Here, let us do it" the first man stated as he hooked his arms under her armpits, while the second man grabbed her feet, and together they lifted her up and carried her down the road towards a wagon that was parked up by the tree line.

But before they reached the wagon, a loud crashing could be heard fast approaching: "What is that? A boar?" one man thought aloud, "Nah, that's a bear" his buddy shrugged; "Do bears really get that big out here?" the third man piped in.

Whatever ever it was, was now really picking up the pace as trees and bushes could be heard breaking and crashing as they were pushed aside and uprooted. The men all stopped to listen, their guts telling them something serious was up, as they suddenly realized it was neither a bear nor a boar, and it was heading right for them. But before any of them had the chance to run for cover: the tree line opposite the wagon exploded with torn branches, leafs, twigs and small trees flying out all over the road, and something huge ran at the men with a deep angry hiss.

As the men tried to shield their faces, Carla was dropped and left lying on her stomach face down; the horses panicked and took off with the driver just barely holding on for dear life, while the men took off running for dear life into the forest on the opposite side of the road, not wishing to stay and see what had just emerged from the forest.

Still bound and gagged, Carla began to panic as she heard the sound of heavy breathing, and deep heavy footsteps circle around her; she's daren't move, for fear of provoking whatever it was to attack. But as she listened to the sound of its breath inhaling and exhaling, there was strange deep trilling sound with every breath it took, and series of bird-like squawks and chirps, as it loomed over her.

What on earth was it?

Carla flinched when it placed one of its huge feet right up alongside her face; but instead of a bear's paw or a boar's cloven hoof, she saw a giant bird's foot, long and grey with scaly flesh, complete with three long toes tipped with small sharp claws.

Chancing a glimpse at the giant creature, Carla slowly looked up over her shoulder, only to be met with a giant bird-like beast over seven meters tall. The moon was directly behind it, so she could only see the profile of its body, as the rest was obscured by dark shadow: but what she could make out was its huge folded up wings, glistening white feathers, and pair of bright pale blue, very human looking eyes staring down at her with curiosity.

Suddenly, the creature bent over and dipped its head right down, until its face was right above her. And that's when Carla saw, it didn't have a typical bird's head; instead, it had a female human face, white as snow, and covered in strange black markings running over its forehead, eyes and cheeks; fair and youthful, almost like that of a teenager. Carla gasped in horror, it was so huge, it was nothing she had ever seen before, and worse, was it checking her over to see if she was an easy meal?

But to her surprise, the creature noticed her bonds, and as gently as possible, it parted it's lips, grabbed the rope between its teeth while pushing her hands out the way with the tip of its tongue, and started gnawing at the rope, cutting through it and freeing her hands: it then moved down to her feet and gnawed the rope binding them too: the second she heard the rope snap Carla was up on her feet and running with all her strength back the way she came, throwing off the gag as she didn't look back.

But then, she suddenly realized the creature wasn't following her,

Stopping in the middle of the road, she suddenly realized it had freed her, and it hadn't tried to eat her; turning back, she saw it just standing there, gazing at her with a look of surprise and confusion, as if wondering if it had done something wrong.

Suddenly, the creature let out a low warbling trill, as if calling to her to come back. With her gut telling her to stay alert, Carla slowly approached the creature; it bobbed its head up and down as it kept its eyes fixed on her, much like a bird does, as it too slowly approached her with an excitable gleam in its radiant eyes. As it came up close to her, it bent down to have a closer look as her, and Carla could see, it actually looked happy to see her, as it gave out series of chirps and trilling warbles, similar to those of a song thrush.

Carla wasn't too sure what to think: on the one hand it was evident that this creature wasn't going to eat her, but at the same time, she was still on edge with worry and confusion; looking at its face, she wondered if it could talk.

"...Who are you?" she nervously asked,

The creature gazed at her, and smiled, letting out another series of chirps and warbles; it didn't speak her language, but it obviously understood her. 'Okay, well? It's something' Carla mentally shrugged.

"I'm Carla" she pointed to herself: "Do _you_ have a name?"

Again, the creature merely replied with more bird calls: obviously this was its language, which made sense given that it was part bird.

"Well..." she conceited defeat, as it was evident that the language barrier wasn't going to be broken, "...Thank you, for saving my life"

The creature nodded in delight, as if acknowledging that it did something good; when suddenly, its smile dropped and it stood upright, staring into the forest intently, as if something had caught its attention.

"...What is it?" Carla asked worryingly,

The creature looked down at her with an apologetic look: its wings drooped down as it reluctantly headed back into the tree line; looking back over its shoulder, it saw her standing there looking up at it in confusion, and it let out a more saddened string of trilling warbles, as if apologizing for leaving so soon. All Carla could do was watch as it retreated back into the forest, its long tail feathers trailing behind it, as it vanished into the darkness: and before long, she was alone on the road again.

Holding her hand to her head as she breathed a deep sigh, Carla's head was spinning; did that really just happen? She didn't know what to think, but looking down at the ground and seeing the chewed rope, she knew it hadn't been a panic-induced hallucination (if such a thing were even possible?). But, what was that creature? Why did it save her? What was it doing here, where had it come from? ...or _flown_ from for that matter?

The distant sound of angry voices snapped Carla back to reality, as she could hear the human traffickers returning to the road through the undergrowth. Without another thought she booked it up the road, making her way back to the search party; all the while, the encounter played over in her mind.

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere deep in the forest:

"So? If you don't eat people, what do you do?" the girl asked curiously,

The last few minutes had been a real head scratcher for Javorin as he continued to hold the tiny girl in his palm, listening as she asked his some truly perplexing questions: 'Are you a titan?', 'Do you eat people?' (What?!) 'How did you get up over the wall?' (Wall? What wall?), and 'if so, how did you slip past the Garrison and Scouts?'

None of this made any sense, and on top of the confusion he was already dealing with, this only added more vexation to the situation. It was clear things had changed in the time he was gone, but just _how much_ had it all changed? He needed some basic answers: a starting point from which to reference, and he thought of a way to get them. Holding his one free hand up to her, Javorin's tattoo's glowed as he summoned a sleeping spell: _'Sleep'_ he told her body and aura, and just like a candle being blow out, she plopped down in his hand, completely out of it.

Making the sign of a memory charm with his hand, Javorin summoned a basic mind reading spell, something that would allow him to see this child's world, and see what he was missing; breathing deep as his tattoos continued to glow, he focused on her aura, and called it to answer him: _'Let that which is known to you, also, be known to me'_

All at once, his mind was filled with sights, sounds, smells and all other kinds of sensations; memories laced with wonder, innocence, curiosity, imagination, comfort, familiarity, family, and friends: the memories of _her world_ , seen through her eyes. But while to her they were good and happy memories of her life and the lives of the family and friends all around her, Javorin was starkly alarmed by what he saw: and a handful of memories in particular stood out to him the most.

A giant wall keeping everyone inside: with no one being allowed to venture outside.

A picture in a book of a thing called a 'titan', a giant humanoid-type creature that apparently ate people for the fun of it.

Bryson: a man who was once part of 'the scouts', telling stories of his time in the military, going out beyond the wall and killing these 'titans' in an effort to save humanity (What?)

Shiganshina, her home city, surrounded on all sides by the giant wall, with only a gate standing between the citizens and the titans outside.

The stone circle deep in the Marian forest: covered in markings he hadn't seen for a few ages.

The Wall Cult, people who worshiped the three walls (three walls?!), saying they were gifted to mankind by the 'divine architect, and were the goddesses called Sina, Rose, and Maria (so that's where the name Maria came from?); they were bad people: if they caught you trying to climb the walls, they would brand you a heretic, and burn you at the steak.

All interest and talk pertaining to the world beyond the walls is forbidden under penalty of death: no acceptations, and any who dare to defy the rule of the Royal government, will be punished forthwith without mercy or considerations.

Javorin held his head in shock: how long had he really been gone?! How much time had passed?! _What was this place?!_ What was this world he had woken up to?!

But he didn't have time to worry, as another set of memory's emerged:

 _Because she's a stupid little brat who's too friendly for her own good!-_

The sight of blood bleeding from her nose, and being punched in the face made him wince as he experienced the altercation between her and her brother: before she run away, up into the forest, and just kept going and going, until she found him.

'Ah, so that's how you ended up all the way out here...' he thought as he gazed down at her, letting the spell's magic ware off and letting her sleep soundly: 'For one so young, you sure traveled a long way. Your parents must be fraught with worry by now...' Gazing up at the trees, he pressed his free hand to the nearest trunk, and through the vast interconnected systems of roots that was spread out for miles and miles in every direction, he searched through their energies, looking for any humans that were within the forest tonight. There was a goodly number, many living on the edge of the forest in small houses and cottages, while a certain number (vagabonds and criminals no doubt) were moving around near the roads; he picked up Hecate and Herne's energies, and the energies of a third god following them close by, one he'd never sensed before: it must be the one Hecate sensed earlier. Going further, he soon sensed a collective of worry, concern, and sadness.

 _Ariana!_

 _Ariana where are you!_

A whole search party was out scouring the forest, calling her name and searching every nook and cranny, and two auras in particular stood out: her parents, as their sadness and worry emanated outwards, as if searching for their lost baby.

'Well, we better let them find you then' Javorin thought as he let go of the tree, and held her close to his chest; looking back at the tomb, he figured it might be good idea to not let them find this place, and at the same time it might be wise if they didn't see him, least it would open up a whole other can of worms he'd rather avoid all together. But also, it wouldn't be wise to take too long, least Herne, Hecate and the forth god might come back only to find him gone; but the humans were too far away for him to simply walk there and back again, and he couldn't run without every footfall sounding like a miniature earthquake.

There was only one way to get her to within range of the search party without letting them see him, traverse the long distance to them, and still make it back before the others might reappear: it was a gamble though, considering Hecate's domain was the darkness of night, and she could sense anyone and anything moving through it.

Well? It couldn't be helped: this child needed to get back to her family, and he couldn't wait around; glancing down at her, he breathed a sigh of doubt as he gazed at her left eye: 'Nothing I can do about that now, what's done is done...' he shook his head in regret, hoping deep down that no complications might arise from his mistake. Holding her close, he summoned his elemental power, tattoos glowing blue as the wind began to whip up all around him: he focused on the direction in which the humans were, and in the blink of an eye, his whole physical form vanished from sight as he transformed into a gust of wind, and blew through the trees at break-neck speed; all the while the sleeping girl flew through the air in his invisible hands, clutched tight and snug to his chest, making sure she didn't fall, as he carried her towards the search party.

* * *

Meanwhile, not too far away:

Eren looked back as the rest of the search party was fanned out through the trees, calling out Ariana's name while looking behind every rock, log, tree, bush and fern cluster, glancing down into every hollow, and inspecting every tree that had low-hanging branches which could easily be climbed.

Looking forward, he proceeded up over the next rise, and down into a shallow hollow: "ARIANA!" he called out, but no answer came back.

Then, he heard the sound of the wind blowing through the trees, and suddenly, a strong gust blew through the hollow: throwing up all the leaf litter, blowing the flame of his torch out, and nearly knocking him off his feet while forcing him to shield his face with his arms. Then as quickly as the gust came, the wind completely dropped and the forest was still and silent once again; leaving Eren very perplexed: What the hell was that?" he thought aloud, "...It's almost like the forest sneezed"

He was about to proceed onward, when suddenly, he saw something lying on the ground at the top of the hollow amid a patch of ferns: cautiously approaching, he saw it was a girl lying on her side with her back to him; the pattern on her belt-sash instantly told him who it was.

"ARIANA!" Eren cried as he rushed to her side, dropping to his knees and grabbing her shoulders, he shook her awake: "-Ariana! Ariana wake up! Are you okay?! Talk to me!" he pleaded desperately.

With a groggy moan, Ariana rubbed her face, and as she peeped her right eye open, she glanced up at Eren and smiled: "Hi Eren, where'd you come from?"

"What kind of question is that?!" he exclaimed, "I've been looking all over the forest for you! Do you have any idea how worried we've all been?!"

"Wha?-" Ariana stared at him in bemusement as she rubbed her left eye: "What're you talking about? I was just-..." She paused as she tried to remember what happened: why did she fall asleep like that? One second she was standing in the palm of a giant friendly titan, the next she was-...here? Looking around up at the trees, she realized she was in a part of the forest she passed through earlier in the evening; but, why was she back here? _How_ did she get back here? This didn't make any sense, and what was Eren doing here?

"... What happened?" Was all she could say, utterly perplexed as to what happened before she fell asleep.

Eren stared at her in wide-eyed confusion: "Wait-, you mean don't remember?"

"Remember what?" she stared at him as she continued to rub her left eye

Suddenly, the awkward moment was abruptly broken when Hannes came running up to them, took one look at Ariana, and called back over his shoulder: "EREN'S FOUND HER GUYS! SHE'S OVER HERE!"

"Mrs Hannes?" Ariana stared up at the Garrison troop in confusion: "What's going on?"

"Great Maria kid!-" he laid a hand on her shoulder in worry, "Do you have any idea long we've been out here looking for you?!"

"Huh?" She stared up at him dumbfounded: "I don't understand?"

Realizing she hadn't a clue what he was talking about, Hannes sighed in exasperation, and lifted her up onto her feet, "Never mind, the important thing is your okay"

"Ariana!-" her mother called out as she and Tyto came barrelling through the undergrowth towards them; followed closely by Bryson, Claude and Armin.

"Mum!" Ariana immediately perked up, and held out her arms as her mother scooped her up and hugged her tightly: "Oh my little magpie! I was worried we'd lost you!" she sobbed as Tyto hugged them both: "Please, don't ever run off like that again" he chocked as tears ran down his face.

"I'm okay dad, really" Ariana smiled as she hugged her mum. Craning her head up over her shoulder.

"Well thank Sina you're alright," Claude smiled as he stepped around Freya's side to address Ariana face to face: "But next time you run off, just-

Claude paused and his smile dropped as he stared at Ariana: "...Umm?" he adjusted his glasses, wondering if it was a trick of the light, "I might be mistaken, but, aren't _both_ your eyes supposed to be brown?"

Wondering what he was talking about, Hannes stepped around, and went wide-eyed as he stared at Ariana: "Whoa kid, what happened to your eye?"

"What?-" Freya pulled Ariana away and stared at her face: both she and Tyto gasped when they saw her left eye, "Oh my-, Ariana, what happened?!"

"What?" Ariana only stared back at them in confusion: where were they talking about?

"Bryson, go fetch your brother and Grisha right now!" Tyto ordered the former scout: he took one look at Ariana, and blinked in surprise at what he saw; without hesitation he took off through the undergrowth back towards the rest of the search party.

"What's wrong with my eye mum?" Ariana held her hand to her left eye,

"I-..." Freya wasn't sure how to describe it, neither was Tyto, as they both stared at each other in confusion: "I don't know darling"

"I have to say, that is a fairly unique-, um? 'Development' of sorts" Claude commented as he wiped his glassed on his handkerchief, before positioning them back on his face: "How on earth did _that_ come about?"

"Your guess is as good as anyone's Claude" Tyto sighed as Freya placed Ariana back on the ground, and Eren and Armin got a look at her eye.

"Wow..." Eren breathed in amazement: "Ariana! Your left eye's turned blue!" Armin smiled in astonishment.

* * *

Meanwhile:

"GRISHA!" Bryson called out

"Bryson?!" Grisha replied, as he, Breck, Gustav, Miriam, Mabel and the Willum sisters all turned to see him come to a halt: "What's wrong? Did they find her?"

"Yeah, we found her-" he huffed as he tried to catch his breath, as a wave of sighs of relief rippled among the others, Bryson held his hands up to get their attention: "-Listen!...she alive and okay, but Grisha, Breck, she-" he tried to find the right words to describe what he saw.

"What is it 'Bry?" Breck grabbed his shoulders: "Is Ariana okay? Is she injured?!"

"No she's not injured, she-" Bryson sighed in exasperated frustration, as he beckoned his brother to follow him: "...You best see it for yourselves, come on" he led the way with Grisha and the others flowing close behind.

Down by the road Carla appeared from around the corner, exhausted from her long run back and rattled by the trauma of nearly being kidnapped; as she leaned against a nearby tree to try and catch her breath, she was totally oblivious to the fact no one was here. But she wasn't concerned with that, as she tried to calm her dizzying thoughts and regain her composure; looking down at the marks on her wrists where her hands were bound earlier, she started wracking her brain, trying to think of what to tell everyone. Grisha would worry to no end if she told him about the human traffickers, and how they nearly succeeded in kidnapping her... But, how would he react if she told him about how she was saved?

A giant human-faced bird-creature saving her from human traffickers? It sounded too ludicrous, not even remotely believable in the least; but then, that is what happened: regardless of how ridiculous it sounded, she was there; she saw it all happened, and she knew she wasn't going mad.

Wandering over to the cart, Carla sat down on the grassy verge next to the horses, took a deep breath, and started thinking about a suitable cover story to explain the marks on her wrists, why she looked disheveled, and how she got away from her kidnappers: she _hated_ having to lie to anyone, not least her own husband and son, it didn't sit well with her at all, under any circumstances.

But then, this wasn't just _any_ ordinary circumstance: this was well and truly exceptional, and truly exceptional circumstances required truly exceptional measures to meet them head on.

As she sat there mentally going through her list of plausible options: she was totally unaware of the fifteen meter high giant watching her from the darkness of the forest: his radiant blue eyes gazing down upon her as they almost seemed to glow in the dark.

'Hmm...' Javorin thought to himself, '...Interesting'

And as silently as he came and stood there, he was gone again: leaving no trail or scent; the forest was totally silent, save for the rustling of the leafs as a sudden soft wind blew through the trees.

* * *

 **So, here's the second half of what would have been chapter 2: And wow, what a night for everyone :)**

 **Oh & BTW: since the gods can't speak verbally on account of being turned into titans (and thus possessing no vocal cords of course), their telepathy-speach will be highlighted in bold type face, so as it stands out as different from regular human speech: it just makes writing the dialogue easier okay? :)**

 **Do let me know what you think by R &R, thank you! :)**


	5. Chpt 4: Secrets & Mysteries

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Chapter 4: Secrets & Mysteries

The next morning, Shiganshina, the Jaeger residence:

"Well? ..." Grisha turned to his two colleagues, "What do you think?"

The two older gentlemen gazed down at Ariana, somewhat at a loss what to think: "... I have to say Grisha, I'm totally stumped: I've never seen _anything_ like this before" one of the gentlemen sighed as he scratched his head.

"I too must confess" the second doctor sighed, "I've never seen anything _even remotely_ similar"

"I've just finished going through every piece of medical text I could find on the human eye" Breck added as he placed one of his medical books down on the table: "There's nothing that explains this, or what might cause something like this to occur"

Turning back to Ariana, Grisha knelt down, and addressed her: "Ariana: _you're absolutely sure_ , you don't remember what happened before you fell asleep in the forest?"

Last night was... _different_ , to say the least.

As Ariana thought back to the events of last night, she wasn't too sure what to think: the only thing she knew for sure was that one minute her eye was in pain, and the next she woke up in the palm of a fifteen-meter tall blue-eyed titan, able to see just fine. She remembered talking to him, and then darkness came and took her again, and the next thing she knew she was being woken up by Eren, who, along with her family, friends and everyone else she knew, had been searching the forest looking for her.

Did any of that really happen? Was the titan even real? The memory of last night's events felt more like the memory of a dream, rather than real life; but one thing was real. The fact that her left eye, instead of a deep shade of brown, was now a vivid shade of bright sky blue; there were many people in this world that had bright blue eyes, but _this?_ This was totally unnatural for a human eye, and when the sun hit it at just the right angle, it almost seemed to light up and glisten.

When they saw her eye in the torchlight, Grisha and Break were as amazed as they were perplexed: they didn't know what had caused this sudden change, or if there might be any other side effects present: to be on the safe side Grisha asked Tyto and Freya if Ariana could sleep over at his home, so as to monitor her throughout the night (as well as let her get a good night's sleep), while Breck went to the city hospital's library, and started combing through every pertinent medical text to try and find an explanation. The rest of the night passed by uneventfully, and no other symptoms transpired; during his search, Breck told another two of his colleagues about the 'strange condition' so as to have a couple of second opinions: not quite believing him, Breck brought them back to the Jaeger home so as they could see for themselves. And sure enough, they too were stumped by this oddity.

Ariana shook her head: "It's just like I said Dr Jaeger: after all that walking I got tired so I found a place to rest for a while; and then when I woke up, Eren's there telling me he's been looking all over for me. I don't even remember falling asleep" She explained innocently.

"...Okay" Grisha nodded as he stood back up, while Ariana's parents watched on in concern; "Well doctor? What do you think?" Tyto asked as Ariana fidgeted about on his lap.

"To be honest Tyto I don't really know what to make of it?" Grisha sighed as he took off his glasses and wiped them with a clean handkerchief: "This is totally unprecedented"

"But, don't your eyes change colour when you're young anyway?" Freya asked offhand, "Ariana's eyes were blue when she was born, and Hawk and Ashlyn's were grayish before they turned brown too"

"Yes, but a baby's eyes can take up to six months or even three years to change colour: this happened in the span of a _much shorter_ time period. And we don't know what triggered it" Grisha explained as he put his glasses back on.

"What concerns me is that colour," Breck bent down for a closer look: "Hold still Ariana..." he frowned as he carefully held her head, and gently peeled back her eyelid for a closer look at the eye: "It's so _unnatural_ ; I've never seen this in any other animal never mind another human; and the way it shines when the light catches it? ..." he frowned as he turned her head so the morning sun shone on her eye: the iris lit up and sparkled as if it were a cut blue topaz, glistening every vivid shade of blue imaginable: " ...That's totally bizarre" he sighed as he let go of her and stood back up.

"It's strange for sure, but I don't think there's any immediate concern at present" the first doctor pointed out.

"Indeed" the second doctor bent over for a closer look: "There's no injury to the eye itself or the surrounding tissues, there's no sign of infection present, and Ariana's sight is completely unaffected... I don't think there's any need to go to the hospital at this point"

"I agree" Grisha nodded, "There's really not much we can do except be mindful of it, and if any other symptoms or conditions arise, just come back and we'll see to it"

"You'll keep an 'eye' on it, right dad?" Eren chipped in with a cheesy grin.

"Ah yes" Grisha couldn't help but smile, "Exactly".

"Mum can we go out and play now? This is _boring_ " Ariana whined.

"Okay, but stay in the street..." Freya stated as Ariana and Eren flew out the door, and ran over to Armin and the other kids outside; she then turned to Carla, who had been watching the examination from the other side of the table: "...And how are you holding up dear?" she asked worryingly, gazing down at the bruises on her wrists.

"Oh I'll survive" Carla sighed with a weak smile, as she rubbed her wrists, "It's my own fault really, I should've asked someone to come with me: but in the stir of the moment I just-, went on instinct"

"You should really consider yourself lucky" Breck commented as he packed up his medical bag, "It's not every day you're saved from human traffickers by a bear"

Carla's story about how she got those bruises on her wrists had gone unquestioned, much to her relief: though she still didn't feel comfortable about it, it was a safer alternative to telling the whole truth, and telling everyone about the real creature that saved her.

She explained how she had gone down the road and was thrown from the saddle when a deer spooked the horse, and then right after getting back up, was pounced upon by a gang of men that bound and gagged her (which was true), and how, when they were carrying her to their wagon, a bear came charging out of the bushes and attacked one of the men, and in the fight to try and fend it off their buddy, the other men dropped her and she managed to wriggle free from her bonds, legging it back the way she came.

Everyone found her sitting on the verge by the side of the cart after getting Ariana back: and when they saw the state of her cloths and the look in her eyes, they knew something bad had happened; seeing the forming bruises on her wrists and ankles, Grisha nearly panicked when she told him about the men: but after calming him down, and Gustav letting him have a swig of brandy from his hip flask, Carla assured him she was okay. Eren had been just as worried too; though, he was much more relieved than his father: and after a long night of dreamless sleep, he woke up unconcerned and just happy to know she was there.

"You know?" Tyto stroked his beard in thought: "It's really not surprising"

"It's not?" Carla blinked in surprise.

"Oh no: that section of road you described last night? The one near the Marian river? There's an old bear den about a quarter mile up from the left-side verge near the bridge; and I know for a fact there's a sow with her cubs in there at the moment. It could be that she smelt they were too close for her liking and decided to see them off. Sows are very defensive of their young and they _will_ attack if they feel threatened"

"In this case it worked to your advantage; quite a stroke of luck I'd say..." the first doctor smiled as he checked the time on his pocket watch, "Well, I've got to be getting back to the hospital: illnesses to cure, injuries to treat. Let me know if anything comes of that eye eh? Well? Cheerio," he waved goodbye as he stepped out the door.

"I really got to be getting started on my rounds too" the second doctor nodded as he too saw himself out: "But, next time I write to the academy in Mitras, I'll ask if anyone can shed any light on our 'mystery changing eye colour'. See you later Grisha, Breck"

"'Bye" Breck waved as he picked up his bag and took his book, "And you take it easy Carla, alright?"

"Alright" she smiled in relief,

"We really ought to be going too: there's a ton of chores to get through before the day's out," Tyto sighed as he and Freya stepped through the front door, and outside to where Hannes, Bryson, Claude, Gustav, Bren and Derek were waiting: "Thanks for everything Grisha, Breck. After all the trouble we put you to last night, at least allow us to make you dinner sometime"

"That's really not necessary" Grisha respectfully declined as he grabbed his hat and medical bag, "I'm just glad everything turned out okay and Ariana's safe; you know where to find me if anything crops up, okay?"

"Sure thing" Tyto smiled,

"Alright..." he nodded, before turning back to Carla, and placing a kiss on her cheek, "See you later darling, and take care"

"Of course" she smiled as he walked off up the street, "Bye darling" she waved, before turning back to the neighbors: "Well thank you for your concern, I'll be fine, really"

"You're sure?" Freya asked concernedly, "I can make up some bear repellent anytime you know?"

"That's okay, really" she waved off politely, "Honestly, I just want to rest, and do something to take my mind off last night"

"But of course" Tyto nodded as he and the others started walking down the street, "You know where to find us if you need anything" he waved good bye,

"Always" Carla smiled as she close the door, "Bye"

"I better go and see to those grocery orders" Freya sighed as she placed a kiss on Tyto's cheek before taking off back to their home, "See you later!"

As they watched the children playing nearby, the men all stopped by the Inn, and watched Ariana with mixed thoughts: "So I take it the ankle-biter ain't got anything terminal?" Gustav grunted. "Nothing that warrant's a trip to the hospital, and since she can still see okay there's nothing we can do; if it's not broke, don't fix it I guess?" Tyto shrugged as he folded his arms.

"But still," Breck sighed as he frowned in bemusement, placing his bag down by his side and folding his arms: "There's no explanation as to how her eye spontaneously changed colour like that; and what she described doing beforehand didn't make any sense either: not remembering that you fell asleep? It sounded more like she fainted"

"But, what could have caused that?" Bren asked offhand,

"Your guess is as good as mine Bren, there's a whole plethora of things that can cause someone to faint"

"But what would cause someone to faint and change their eye colour during the time their unconscious?" Claude chipped in, "As men of science, we can't rule anything out: but at the same time we have to be open to the possibility that we might be looking at a completely new condition that medical science has not yet documented," he pointed out eagerly: "Such fascinating times we live in, eh gentlemen?"

"Oh yeah, absolutely riveting" Hannes yawned as he stretched his arms up over his head, "Well, sorry to have to leave so soon gents, but I got a ton of paperwork waiting for me back at the Garrison: last night's escapade has put the MP's on alert"

"Oh yes, those roughians," Claude remembered, "Any luck on determining their identities and whereabouts?"

"Are you _kidding?_ " Hannes stared at Claude in slight bemusement, "Guys like those are a copper piece a dozen here in the outterlands: This ain't the interior Claude"

"Ah yes" she sheepishly remembered, "More remote and more forest to hide in: I always seem to forget just how big Maria is"

"Well in any case: a couple of my guys and some of the MP's went up there to check out the road earlier this morning: they said _something_ _happened_ up there alright; I don't know how big that bear was, but it tore a pathway straight through the trees: one of the guys said it looked like a titan had ripped through the whole area"

"Seriously?" Bryson deadpanned as he folded his arms,

"Hey, I'm just saying what he told me, I ain't been up there..." Hannes sighed as he rubbed his brow, "But these human traffickers? They _are_ a real problem: every time the MP's put one gang out of business, another moves right in and picks up where the previous lot left off; I swear it's like they multiply like rats or something" he sighed, before walking off down to the main street, "... Well, catch you later guys"

Bren then changed the subject: "...If it's not too personal, can I ask: what was that 'altercation' between Ariana and Rowan all about?" he glanced over at Tyto. "Yeah," Derek frowned in curiosity, "Hazel, Clay, Ash and Dale looked pretty distraught when they got back last night; they mentioned something about Rowan and the wall cult, and how they're going to kill them. Is everything okay?"

Tyto was quiet, as he carefully scanned the faces of his friends with an unreadable poker face; he glanced over at Gustav, who merely stared back at him with a knowing look: he had a good idea what he was going to say next, and casually shrugged as if to say: Hey, it's your call. Breathing a deep sigh, Tyto decided to go with his gut instinct: "...Can you guys keep a secret? ..." he asked frankly.

That got everyone's attention: glancing at one another, the men realized something serious was at hand here; all except Gustav who remained uninterested; "...What's this about?" Bryson asked cautiously: wondering where this was going.

"...Meet me in the cellar, tonight; I have something to confide in you" Tyto gestured to the Inn, "And if Miriam asks, just tell her it's a game of poker between good friends" he simply replied, before heading inside with Gustav, leaving them standing outside the Inn, wondering what was going on.

"Unless your here to drink don't be loitering around my doorstep!" Miriam sternly snapped from behind the bar inside.

Following Gustav around to the rear side of the inn, the old man stopped: looked all around; and when he was sure no one was eavesdropping, he looked Tyto square in the eye, and leveled with him: "...You sure you can trust them?"

"It's a gamble, I know" Tyto replied honestly: "But I'm already gambling my life, _and_ that of my family just by living here Gustav; _and_ they're my friends. Considering the time, trouble and danger I put them to in helping me look for my daughter last night, I have no right to deny them an explanation"

"But what if they're not as trustworthy as you think you are?" Gustav frowned skeptically: "What if they figure there's something in it for them by ratting you out?"

"You and I both know that's not true," Tyto sighed, knowing Gustav was bluffing, "I know why you ask that question and I understand where your coming from; but if anyone's a good judge of character, it's Miriam: and if she picked up anything about them that told her they weren't worth her time, then I know they wouldn't have been worth _my_ time either"

Gustav couldn't help but smile, "Eh, ya ain't wrong there: that ol' witch can pick up a bad bone from over a mile away..." he regarded him with another serious look, "...Look Tyto, _I'm_ okay with knowing your 'family secret': Miriam, Rosemary and Lucille too; but that don't mean everyone else might be comfortable knowing about it. Are you sure you want to bring them in on this?"

"Everyone has secrets Gustav" Tyto stated, "No matter how mundane or boring our lives might get, there're always going to be those few things we don't want others to know about; the question is, for _what reasons_?"

As Gustav pondered on Tyto's words, around the front of the Inn, out in the street, Ariana was suddenly the center of attention as her cousins and friends were checking out her left eye. "Wow..." the Cooper twins breathed simultaneously as they gazed at her eye in wonder: "It's so _blue_ "

"It's like, the _bluest blue_ I've ever seen!" Belle Smiled, "And blue's my favorite colour!"

"So, you just went to sleep and you woke up with it looking like that?" Jaye raised an eyebrow; "Uh ?Kinda?" Ariana shrugged casually, "Meh, good enough for me" Josepha waved off with a shrug.

"So? ..." Ariana sheepishly changed the subject, "You guys really spent the whole night looking for me?"

"Well duh?" Hawk deadpanned, "Uncle Tyto and Aunt Freya were freaking out over it when they realized you didn't come back; the rest of the family too when Clay told them what happened"

"And then Aunt Miriam got everyone else together and we all came to help" Gale filled in,

"My mum nearly got kidnapped by criminals and was saved by a bear!" Eren exclaimed, before adding "But that's not your fault Ariana, so don't worry about it okay?"

"Hey that reminds me," Armin suddenly remembered, "Is Hazel okay? She looked really upset last night when she realized you weren't home"

"Umm? ..." Ariana dropped her gaze, still feeling uncomfortable about the fallout from last night's events, "...She's still up in her room" She pointed to the top-most window at the front of her house, "She's still really upset about not trying find me after breaking up that fight"

"What was the fight about anyway?" Eren asked curiously,

Ariana paused a moment: she wanted to tell him the truth about why Rowan flew off the handle like that, but catching a glimpse of her cousins giving her a stern shake of the head told her to think better of it: "...It's-, kinda complicated: I'm not really allowed to talk about it okay?"

"...Okay" Eren dropped his gaze in disappointment.

"But-" Ariana didn't want him to feel dejected, "It's nothing to do with us, its grown-up stuff, you know?"

"Okay" he smiled, before suddenly remembering: "Hey, where'd Rowan get to anyway? I'd like to crack his skull for what he did to you last night!" he scowled with a clenched fist.

None of the cousins said anything, as they awkwardly glanced at one another.

Up on the roof of the Grayson home, Rowan sat by the chimney stacks with his knees tucked beneath his chin, and his arms wrapped around his legs; staring out across the rooftops at wall Maria, watching the birds fly over the wall, and wishing he could join them. To just spread his arms out, have them turn into wings, and take up off into the blue sky; souring far away from all this.

To say he got a stern chewing out for punching his little sister was an understatement, and that wasn't even the half of it: the fact he lost it so badly and lashed out really worried his parents; but then, it wasn't like they weren't aware of the reason why he said the things he said.

It had haunted him at the back of his mind for some time now: wrestling with it every night before going to sleep, and having his dreams invaded by the idea of having lived a lie. Not an evil or a bad lie, but a lie never the less. He thought back to that night on the roof top six months ago, and what Ariana said about how differences are part of what makes the world work; part of him realized the irony in it: here he was, terrified of the idea of being different in a way that meant he had to die as far as the wall cult were concerned; and on the other hand, part of him was angry that he couldn't think of a way to change his circumstances. To find a way to be free, to live the life of an ordinary person and just be another faceless individual in the crowd; _he hated this_ , he _seethed_ at the idea of being something to be feared and hated, to be tied to a steak and burnt alive: he hated having to live under a false name, and to not tell anyone of the things he and his family did behind closed doors; he hated not being allowed to be honest, and just tell his friends the truth.

He hated everything about himself, and as he watched the birds fly away, he loathed them for their freedom.

As he heard his brothers climb out of their bedroom window and up onto the roof, he hugged his legs tighter and buried his face between his knees and his chest: not wanting to let them see how upset he was; for him, it was weakness, allowing others to see you at your worst, to see you brought so low. And with his mind still reeling from the events of last night, he was in no mood to talk to anyone, not even his own brothers.

Ash and Dale didn't say anything: they merely climbed along tiles to the opposite side of the chimney stacks, allowing him to keep his personal space, and sat down behind him, gazing out over the rooftops towards the city's inner gate.

"...We're not here to chew you out if that's what you were thinking" Ash stated frankly, "After last night, I think you get it"

Rowan didn't reply,

Getting straight to the point, Dale heaved a heavy sigh: "...You _do_ know you're gonna have to apologize to Ariana sooner or later, right? You can't hide up here forever bro"

Still no reply

"...What I want to know is" Ash thought aloud, "Why didn't you say anything?"

Rowan raised his head up, but didn't reply as he listened,

"Why didn't you talk to us about how you were feeling? About what uncle Evrard told us, and about our real parents; why couldn't you just _talk_ to us?"

"...I didn't think I had to..." Rowan replied frankly: though he was calm, his voice was laced with tired bitterness: "...I thought you guys felt the same as me"

"...To be honest?" Dale sighed, "I _don't really know_ how to feel about it? I mean yeah they died in a horrible way by some really horrible people. But-, _I don't remember them_ , I don't remember their names or their faces, I don't know _anything_ about them... How can you miss someone, if you didn't know them to begin with?"

Rowan snapped his head round and stared at Dale in astonishment; he hadn't considered that before.

"Look" Ash chipped in, "Dad lied but being our real dad, I get that, but how is that a bad thing? He's _always been there_ for us, and so has mum; uncle Evrard, uncle Falken and uncle Eraman, and aunt Bestla, aunt Skadi and ant Ran: and Clay, Hazel, Josefa, Jaye, Ashlyn and Hawk, and Ariana as well. So what if we're not blood? I don't think that counts, it never has, if it did I don't think we'd be here" he turned round to meet Rowan's gaze, "So tell me; how is this life, with 'these people' so terrible?"

Rowan didn't reply, he didn't know how: seeing the look on his face, Dale decided they'd made their point, and as he stood up, he simply added: "...Look, just don't leave it too long with Ariana okay? She won't be mad at you forever"

"Catch you later bro" Ash sighed as he got up, and followed Dale back to the bedroom window, leaving Rowan alone on the roof.

Gazing up at the sky, Rowan knew he had screwed up, and it was inevitable that he'd have to make amends sooner or later; but how? He was never good at making up for anything; one after another he'd lose his temper over something, go away to vent, and when he had calmed down enough he'd say he was sorry. And that had always seemed to be the pattern of his life, but this time it was different, how could he make up for _this?_

Down on the ground floor of the house, sitting at the table staring down into the cup of tea that was steadily growing cold, Evrard sat alone: contemplating his own mistakes, and weighing up the damage they had done. "There's no use in lamenting over it now..." Freya sighed as she folded her arms, gazing at him as she stepped into the room, "What's done is done: we can't take it back"

"I know... " he sighed as he took a sip of his tea, "And it was wrong of me to be so rash"

"So why did you do it?!" Freya sternly gazed at him as she approached his side, "You _knew_ we were going to tell the children about the Crow clan when the time was ready: and we _specifically_ said, as their adoptive parents, _we'd_ be the ones to do it! So why the hell did you go behind our backs and tell them, when we told you not to?"

Heaving a heavy sigh, Evrard met her gaze: "Look, you remember back in January when Ariana, Eren, Armin and the Willum girls tried climbing wall again for the umpteenth time?"

"Yes?"

"Well?" he sheepishly scratched the back of his neck: "... After we got back with the kids, Bryson pulled us aside and told us about what _really_ happened on their latest 'adventure'. Apparently the kids were spotted trying to climb the wall, and it _really_ pissed the cult off this time, so much so that they ordered the Garrison to conduct spot-checks on the main roads leading into the city, _looking for_ _them so they could arrest them!_ Hannes covered for them of course and later that night I asked him about it, and he confirmed it...And that's when it struck me: what if you left it too late to tell them the truth? What if you didn't tell them about the wall cult sooner? And why we have to avoid grabbing their attention at all costs. Never mind the fact why we have to hide our true heritage..." he gestured to the door that led down to the basement: "I just-, I was _worried_ that the children didn't fully appreciate the danger the cult poses, and how careless talk could easily cost us our lives"

Freya started at him, somewhat taken aback at first, before pressing him: "...Does Miriam know as well?

"She asked Hannes about it the next day: she was going to put the girls to work in the guest house as punishment for running off anyway, but after hearing about how they came close to being arrested, I think she made her mind up to keep them on a short leash" Evrard replied offhand as he downed the last of his tea.

Freya pondered on her brother's short-sighted decision; she couldn't fault Evrard for his concerns, she knew, as a father he tried to do right by his wife and children, as well as the rest of the 'extended' family. But his own stubbornness and surety made him his own worst enemy at times, and he didn't have the knack for thinking about the long-term, and how the consequences of one decision could reverberate over time; and come back to haunt him. Letting her frustration go, she softly told him: "...There's was a reason _why_ we didn't want Rowan to know what happened just yet...He takes everything so personally; and we _knew_ he wasn't ready for the truth about his real parents: not until he was of an age he'd be able to deal with it with maturity and a little more wisdom under his belt"

"I miscalculated..." Evrard propped his hand on his elbow, "When I told him, I thought he was taking it well...At least, I _thought_ he was dealing with it, and these last few months I just thought he was coming to terms with it, you know? Grieving quietly in his own way and making his peace with it..."he sighed in deep regret, "...But that wasn't the case was it? If I'd known he was bottling it all up and seething about it, _I would've done something_ I swear-"

"I know you would," Freya sighed in her own regret, "But you know Rowan as well as I do: _you know_ he doesn't know how to handle his feelings well. He's like a bird trying to fly, he's flapping his wings but not beating them the right way to get off the ground. And now, for the first time in his life he is truly aware of the hurt he's inflicted on Ariana, and he's _terrified_ he'll make it worse by not finding the right words to say 'I'm sorry'"

Evrard glanced up at his sister: and with an honest look in his eyes, he told her, "...I'm sorry too...I know it doesn't make up for what happened, but I'm sorry I misjudged this decision, and I'll make it up to you however I can"

Freya couldn't help but smile as she reached out her hand to his, and as their fingers intertwined, she patted the back of his hand and gazed down at him understandingly, the way only a sister could: "...Next time? Just talk to me first, okay?"

"Okay..." he kissed the back of her hand, "Just-, _promise me_ , if we're going to decide on telling the children anything else that may be pertinent to ensuring they survive this walled world, just let me know so I don't land my foot in it again, alright?"

"Deal" she nodded, "Now come on," she beckoned him up out of the chair, and pointed to the kitchen: "The potatoes aren't going to peel themselves: get to it"

* * *

Meanwhile, deep in the Marian forest:

As the giant trees loomed over the forest, shrouding everything below in their shadows: the three gods were gathered around Javorin's tomb; Herne and Javorin stood to one side while Hecate crouched down, carefully inspecting the engravings: running her clawed fingers along each pattern and hieroglyph, determining their form, function and magic's.

" **Well?"** Herne asked offhand, **"Anything?"**

" **These** _ **are**_ **concealment charms"** Hecate replied offhand as she stood back up, and took a step backwards to look at the tomb in full: " **And quite a few different ones; someone went to a lot of trouble to ensure we weren't found by** _ **anyone"**_

" **But how long ago was that? Their magics have long since worn off, and there's barely any trace of their original power left"** Herne gestured to the engravings.

" **So we're looking at** _ **hundreds**_ **of years gone"** Javorin sighed, **"Not tens as I had originally assumed"**

" **No"** Hecate sighed in a frank tone as she folded her arms, **"It doesn't look that way"**

" **Okay"** Herne tried to keep the mood positive, **"So we've been asleep for a few, maybe several hundred years, it's not the end of the world"**

" **But what world** _ **is**_ **this?"** Hecate deadpanned, " **The ambient Manna is 'off' somehow, like something bad happened on a grand scale, and it's left a scar on the energies of this place"**

" **You felt that too?"** Javorin glanced at her, **"I couldn't put my finger on it at first, but now that I think about it, that's** _ **exactly**_ **what it feels like; the Manna has since recovered and reachieved a level of balance over the last few centuries, but still..."**

" **Something's out of place..."** Hecate finished **:** letting out a sharp 'Tsh!' between her lips, that sounded like steam escaping a giant kettle, before changing the subject: **"...By the way, that child you 'encountered' last night: are you sure her memories were legitimate?"**

" **As legitimate as only a child's mind can be at that age,"** Javorin nodded. He had told them about his 'encounter' with the human child last night, and explained how he put her to sleep so as to peek a glimpse at her memories, in order to see what that state of the world was; the rest, he decided he'd keep to himself...for now. **"It wasn't a vast lifetime's worth of experience, but I believe what I gleaned will serve as a suitable starting point"**

" **Um?"** Herne grabbed their attention, **"Before we start, our 'guest' has just woken up? We should see to her first..."** he pointed over to a large bower some twelve meters behind them. Sat in the thick undergrowth, nestled in a giant patch of ferns, the forth god (or goddess rather) that Hecate sensed last night, stared up at them in a mix of confusion and worry: afraid to stand out as she tried to make herself look smaller by pressing herself into the greenery.

" **I got this..."** Javorin smiled as he approached her, and knelt down at the edge of the ferns: "Good morning" he greeted her with a friendly smile, **"I know this goes without saying, but how're you feeling this morning?"**

" **...Weird..."** was all she could squeak in a young teenager-like voice, **"And these plants weren't here last night"**

" **No, I grew them for you so you'd have somewhere more comfortable to sleep"** Javorin explained gently **, "After all, you're body isn't exactly designed for laying down in the 'conventional' manner"**

The new acquaintance was quite unique, even compared to Herne: she was seven meters tall, and was part bird part humanoid; with a fair beautiful face, neck and shoulders, and a chest that was covered in soft fluffy feathers, making it look like she was wearing a giant cowl. She had long slender hips, thighs and calves, but the rest of her was mostly avian: with long digigrade legs from the ankles down, ending in a pair of grey dove-like feet with three toes and short sharp claws, two wings that were so large that the tips of her primary feathers touched the ground, and a long flowing tail that stretched over ten meters behind her. But her head and back sported the most impressive plumage: with a head of long wavy hair-like feathers that fell all the way down her back, and two massive flank plumes sprouting from the backs of her shoulders, trailing all the way down to her tail. Her entire form from skin to feathers was the purest shade of white imaginable, like freshly fallen snow upon a mountain top, with a dazzling rainbow pallet of iridescent colours shining in the dappled morning sun; and pale ice blue eyes that glistened like spring water. She had no extensive tattoos that covered her entire body, except for her face and neck, which were more simplistic compared to the elaborate patterns the others had.

" **I wouldn't know. I've never 'slept' before"** she replied nervously, before suddenly realizing: **"-Wait, is that what that was? When I shut my eyes and I just-, there was** _ **darkness**_ **, and the next thing I know the sun's out and its morning, and I'm here...Huh...That's weird"**

" **Weird?"** Hecate echoed in confusion, **"You mean you've never 'slept' before?"**

" **Well it's not like I ever needed to?"** she sheepishly replied, half wondering if she was saying the right things **"I mean, I never actually** _ **tried**_ **it, or, rather, I never got the chance"**

" **I take it this is your first time assuming a corporeal form?"** Javorin asked curiously.

" **A what?"** she stared at him weirdly,

" **A body"** Herne corrected, **"This the first time you've ever had a body?"**

" **Uh I guess?"** She glanced at him, wondering what he was talking about, **"I mean, I never needed one for where I was before"**

" **Before?"** Javorin squinted, **"Where did you live?"**

" **Everywhere across the skies of the world!"** she perked up **"Although, I mostly liked to blow through the lower atmosphere, you see so much more of the ground that way"**

Javorin wasn't sure what meant by that at first, until he suddenly realized: **"Ah, you must be one of the Tempus gods"**

" **That's it!"** She nodded in excitement, **"I used to create all kinds of weather systems, but my specialty was always rainbows; I have a real knack for those"** she added with an air of smugness.

" **Great, if we need to water the plants we'll give you a chant"** Hecate deadpanned.

" **Huh?"**

" **Oh don't mind her, she's just not keen on any other gods stealing her elemental spotlight"** Herne grinned,

" **Oh, you're a water goddess?"**

" **Close,"** Hecate regarded her with a poker face, **"I'm more of a 'night' goddess: if the emblem of Sourock wasn't a clue?"** she gestured to the black symbol on her chest, which seemed to resemble a skull with pointed moths wings: the symbol of the god of death,

" **Oh, okay"** she nodded naively: not quite understanding what she was implying by that.

" **So, what's your name kid?"** Herne approached a little closer,

" **Elysia: sister of the Tempus gods, cloud herder, rain caller, and child of the western winds"** she smiled, **"And your Herne, right?"**

" **Yep, and you've already met Hecate, obviously"**

" **Obviously"** Hecate deadpanned under her telepathic breath,

" **And I'm Javorin"** the blue-eyed god smiled as he stood back up, **"Now, you managed to walk all the way here from your tomb last night, which is impressive given that this is your first time in a physical form; think you're up for stretching your legs again?"**

" **I think so?"** Elysia frowned as she tried to stand up, but she didn't correct her balance quick enough and ended up falling tail-over-head, head-first into the ground; with a frustrated chirp, she blew some stray feathers out of her face, **"...Nope, I'm not"**

" **Here, let me help..."** Javorin chuckled as he helped her back up, though it wasn't easy with so many feathers making it hard to support her properly; after getting back up on her feet, and correcting her balance to account for her center of gravity, she was walking around one of the giant trees with ease. **"...There you go,"** he smiled.

" **Great, the brat knows how to walk, now let's go already"** Hecate sighed sarcastically as she started walking off out of the grove of giant trees: **"I want to see what this 'wall' is"** she called back.

" **Did I make her mad?"** Elysia asked innocently, not sure what to think of the older goddess's attitude.

" **Nah your okay kid, she's just like that with some gods; she's 'particular' that way"** Herne assured her as he took off after Hecate on all fours,

" **Come on, why don't tell me more about yourself?"** Javorin gestured for her to follow him,

As Elysia started chatting about the weather and how she used to create everything from squalls to hurricanes, Hecate stifled an annoyed sigh and 'Tch'; folding her arms and trying to ignore, what to her was giddy incessant prattling: she kept her eyes forward and pretended she wasn't there.

" **You don't do kids, do you?"** Herne smirked as he kept pace with her, **"Not even the divine ones"**

" **Ugh!-"** she grimaced, **"Their worse than demon spawn! Constant incessant prattling non-stop, screaming at all hours of the day and night, making a mess wherever they go, and sassing you to no end! Why humans or our kin were ever allowed to breed, I'll never know!"**

" **Heh, well then it's a good thing Javorin got that kid back to her folks eh?"** Herne smirked, **"And, you do know he** _ **loves**_ **kid's right? Being the overseer of mankind, it's inevitable he's gonna want to stop and help one or two along the way; it's the nature of his divine duty after all"**

" **Don't remind me"** She grimaced, **"If I smell any of those mortal brats I swear I'm going to-**

" **Hey hey, watch that mind of yours: you** _ **are**_ **in the presence of the overseer of mankind..."** Herne teased her, thumbing over his back at Javorin, who was staring into the back of Hecate's head with a reprimanding glare.

" **Besides, Elysia's okay, sure she's a little green round the wingtips: weren't we all at one point or another?"** he added offhand,

" **That** **was** _ **a long**_ **time ago,"** Hecate huffed in annoyance, **"Thank the all-father...** " she added under her breath.

The four gods walked on through the forest, their footsteps growing lighter and less noisy as they used the long trek to readjust their weight and stances, until they were able to walk without shaking the trees and only creating a soft muffled thud that didn't carry far or echo through the forest. And just as well, as Javorin could sense through the earth that they were within range of the edge of the forest, and he could feel the footfalls of human feet and animal hooves.

But there was something else he could feel too. With every step he took his energies rippled outward and bounced off the ambient energies of everything around him, both on top of and below the earth; the same way a bat used its ultrasonic squeaks to locate and catch moths: Javorin had an omnidirectional picture of the world, allowing him to 'see' over vast and wide distances, without having to use his eyes all the time. And for the last ten minutes or so, he had been feeling the 'echo' of something vast up ahead; not a mountain, but something unnaturally flat and dense: it was undoubtedly man made, it felt like a giant wall of some kind: could this be the wall he saw in the girl's memory?

His musings were soon answered when they came to the very edge of the forest, and there, towering over fifty meters high, was a vast pale chalk-coloured wall. Stretching from one end of the horizon to the other: the vast structure appeared to be solidly built, with thick bulkheads supporting it every forty meters or so. The four gods stood there in silence for a moment, as they took in the sight of this imposing yet impressive wall.

" **Well, I have to say"** Herne thought aloud as he scratched his head, " **I know the humans have built some pretty impressive things in their time, but this** _ **really**_ **takes the golden apple"**

" **It's-, big..."** was all Elysia could say, not too sure what to make of it; **"Think of all the updrafts that thing would create: not good for making a consistent breeze"**

" **We're not interested in flying kites, brat,"** Hecate stated in a flat monotone as she approached the base of the wall: **"So, there are suppose be these 'titans' on the other side of this thing?"**

" **According to the child's memory: but it's only through word of mouth, she never actually saw one"** Javorin corrected,

" **Okay, then lets fly up over this thing and see what we can find"** Hecate shrugged as she summoned her power, and in the blink of an eye, her massive form shrank down rapidly into a raven with violet-purple eyes.

" **Eh, alright I guess?"** Herne smirked as he too summoned his power and shrank down into a sky lark,

Javorin was about to summon his preferred animal form, when he saw Elysia was now looking very nervous: **"its okay,"** he assured her, **"You've seen birds in flight, right?"**

" **Uh, Yeah?"** she swallowed hard,

" **Just picture one in your mind, focus on its energies, and concentrate your power into shifting into its form"** he explained in an encouraging tone.

" **B-but!-, I-I-I don't know how to fly!"** she stammered, backing away nervously,

" **WHAT?!"** Hecate exclaimed in disbelief, turning back into her giant form, and stomping over to the smaller goddess, glaring her in the eyes as she began backpedaling into the trees: **"** _ **You**_ **, a weather goddess who's spent her whole immortal life** _ **literally**_ **with her head in the clouds,** _ **and you don't know how to fly?!"**_

" **I-I was a gust of wind in the sky! An** _ **elemental spirit**_ **for all intents and purposes!"** Elysia squeaked in fear: **"I-I-I never needed wings to get around so I don't know how to use them!"**

Laying a hand on her shoulder, Javorin gently pulled Hecate away, and knelled down next to the terrified goddess, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder: **"It's no problem, really; we'll just cast an invisibility charm over you, and come back and find you when we're done, okay?"**

" **O-okay"** Elysia nodded, somewhat relieved Javorin wasn't mad.

" **Alright..."** Javorin stood back up, made the sign of an invisibility charm with his left hand, and held the other up over Elysia's head: _'Let that which is seen by all mortal senses, be gone from sight and sound and smell:_

To a human, Elysia would have completely vanished from sight, but to the gods she was still half visible: recognizable, but now semi-transparent, with tiny flecks of blueish-white light hovering around her as part of the charm's aura. " **Find somewhere up among the trees and wait there for us, we'll be back for you when we're done"** Javorin told her.

" **Okay..."** Elysia sighed as she started walking back up into the forest, **"See you guys later"**

Without another word, Hecate turned back into a Raven, while Javorin assumed the form of a hawk, and together, the three gods took off up into the sky, and soared over the wall: **"How in the all-father's name does a weather goddess not assume a winged form at** _ **some point**_ **in her life?!"** Hecate huffed as she ruffled her feathers in agitation, **"-And you can forget about asking me to give her flying lessons! A goddess, even a** _ **brat-goddess**_ **, should know how to use a damn pair of wings!"**

" **I wasn't going to ask you anyway"** Javorin deadpanned, **"We'll worry about flying lessons when we get back; for now, let's see what we can find out here..."**

Beyond the wall, the landscape stretched far and wide into flat open prairie land, broken up by sparse copses of pine trees, and flanked by rolling mountains that stretched from the western to the southern horizon; aside from the songs of sky larks and pine thrushes, and the occasional wailing 'skee' of the buzzards circling high overhead, the whole landscape was eerily quiet.

As they passed over a small cluster of pines, they soon spotted something that got their attention: **"...What is that? ..."** Herne blinked in surprise: **"Don't know, but it looks like an oversized human"** Javorin replied offhand, equally surprised.

Circling around over the creature, it did, indeed, look exactly like a human; except it was over eight meters tall, had no visible genitalia, had a protruding pot belly with unnaturally skinny limbs, and seemed to be lumbering along with an awkward gate, slightly uncoordinated, as if it were very drunk. But what really caught the god's attention was the expression on its face; its lips were contorted into a rictus grin with its eyes wide open, as if it had been frozen in the middle of laughing; but more disconcertingly, its eyes looked dead, devoid of emotion despite its creepy smile, and seemingly staring straight down into the uncanny valley.

" **Okay, that's definitely new..."** Hecate frowned as she stooped down, and transformed back to her original form: the other two followed suit, and having heard them land with three consecutive thuds, the lumbering creature stopped and stared at them. Although none of them admitted it, having it stare at them with that unnerving smile, gave them a great feeling of unease and discomfort.

Summoning their power to see its aura and surrounding energies, the gods were taken aback by what they sensed: the creature's life-energies were nothing like that of any other living animal or being: they were totally distorted, warped, and unnatural. They were many in number too, so much so that it was almost impossible to tell where one ended and another began; as the energies unnaturally warped one over the other, folding in on each other, only to reappear and repeat their pattern of unusual cycles, while at the same time giving off some kind of faint discharge that floated up into the sky like smoke, in the form of trailing embers.

" **...Whatever it is, it's nothing of the natural world"** Javorin frowned in concern,

" _ **You think?!**_ **"** Hecate scowled at the creature in disgust, **"** _ **Look at it!**_ **It's got chaos magics running everywhere throughout its form, this is** _ **nothing**_ **of nature or the spirits"**

" **So it was created artificially,"** Herne huffed in exasperation as he facepalmed: **"** _ **I swear**_ **, if this is some kind of homunculus or a failed attempt to create a golem, I'm gonna-**

" **It's a not a homunculus or a golem,"** Hecate cut him off, **"This is nothing like either of those: whatever it is, the magics used to create it were powerful, but crudely put together: whoever did this only had a basic understanding of what they were doing. It's sloppy and reckless"**

" **Could it have originally been a human? And could its soul still be intact? If so, there could be a way to reverse the magics power"** Javorin suggested as the creature turned around and continued on its way, slowly staggering away,

" **The fact it looks human suggests it probably was at one point"** Hecate shrugged, **"But since we're here looking for answer's, let's find out"**

In a blur of movement, Hecate charged the creature from behind, and with a solid low sweeping kick, knocked its legs out from under it, letting it fall onto its back: Javorin and Herne then quickly grasped it by the arms and kept it restrained, while Hecate stood over it and held up both hands in front of her. Summoning her power, her hands radiated a purple aura as a complex circle of runes and strange hieroglyphs appeared out of thin air, and started rotating around her hands; her eyes began to glow a vivid shade of violet, as she gazed past the tangle of uncoordinated magics, and looked deep into the center of the creature's being.

" **Well?"** Herne grunted as he held the creature in place: it didn't make much of an attempt to free itself as it just sat there, lazily wriggling about like a dying fish out of water, not putting up much of a fight; **"What can you see?"**

Hecate didn't reply as she stared down at the creature for a long moment, carefully inspecting it all over: until finally, her eyes became emotionless, and her face was void of any expression. Javorin knew that look, and he knew it was never good news. It was the face that told him there was no hope to be found, and that there was nothing they could do: seeing her expression and getting the hint, Herne sighed in disappointment. They both let go of the creature's arms, and let it awkwardly get back up onto its rickety feet.

Hecate lowered her arms and the circle of glyphs dissipated like cigarette smoke on the breeze: she then held up her right arm, and her hand gave off an opaque black aura that consumed the creature, burning it with violet-purple flames and turning it into ash in a matter of seconds; its energies becoming unraveled as they became absorbed by all the ambient energies of the earth and air.

" **Whatever that thing was, there's** _ **no way**_ **any god in their right mind would allow a human to create something like that, and allow it to exist"** Hecate frowned as she watched the last of its ashes get blown away on the wind, **"...And to answer your question; It's hard to say:** _ **if**_ **it was human at one point? Whoever it was has long since passed from the mortal plain...All that was left was the empty shell, and the magics animating it"**. Turning to Javorin, she noticed the troubled look in his eyes: **"...What?"**

" **...When that girl saw me in the forest, she thought I was one of these things: and that I was going to eat her"** he frowned,

" **So? What human** _ **doesn't**_ **think a giant's going to eat them? The Jotunn certainly kept everyone on their toes back in the day"** Herne shrugged,

" **No, she had been** _ **taught**_ **by her elders that these titans** _ **specifically**_ _ **eat humans**_ **, and** _ **only**_ **humans: but they have no digestive system and they eventually regurgitate their victims after a while; they just, eat them because they want to (as strange and crazy as that sounds). This knowledge is an established fact to her and her people... or at least, that's what they** _ **believe...**_ **"** Javorin explained; looking around the landscape, he was dismayed to sense more of the creatures in the far off distance, nowhere near within visual range: but those weird distorted energies of theirs stood out against the skyline like the smoke of several large bonfires.

Looking back, he saw the wall was a good few miles behind them: as he gazed at the seemingly endless structure, he suddenly noticed that part of it formed an elongated horseshoe-shaped crescent that jutted out by a few miles, with what looked like a large gate set into the wall at its furthest point. There were dozens of the 'titans' lumbering around near it, some were just lazily clawing and pawing at the base, while the rest simply stared up at it aimlessly, as if waiting for something or someone to come over the top. **"What's that?"** Herne thought aloud as he too noticed the additional structure. **"Let's go and see..."** Javorin replied as he turned back into his hawk form, and took off with Hecate and Herne following suit.

Flying high over the top of the horseshoe-shaped wall, the gods saw it was connected to the rest of the wall with another gate set into the 'inner' wall, and all along the top were large cannons mounted on wheels that ran along a system of tracks. Down below, spread out into every square inch of the space inside, was a vast sprawling town (or city?). The architecture of the buildings was one they hadn't seen for a good number of centuries: post-medieval/pre-Tudor maybe? It was defiantly pre-renaissance, with a distinct Bavarian style (from what they remembered of the human's changing trends and regional cultures); in any case, it was defiantly not what they remembered being around, when they were last awake.

" **Wow!"** Herne grinned offhand, **"At least we know we're somewhere in the middle of the European kingdoms"**

" **I say we split up and check it out"** Hecate suggested,

" **Agreed"** Javorin nodded, **"We'll reconvene later: in the meantime, see what you both can learn"**

" **Sure thing!"** Herne grinned as he stooped down to check out a bakery,

" **No sightseeing!"** Hecate called out, **"The same goes for you too,"** she glanced at Javorin skeptically, **"I know they're humans, but try not to get too lost in your 'work'?"** she deadpanned.

" **Hey, don't sneak off to find some shade either: dusk is a long way off, and it's not even lunchtime yet"** he smirked, **"Catch you later..."** he added before stooping down, aiming for a market square below, leaving Hecate alone to her own devices: **"...Great..."** she deadpanned, glancing around at the teeming urban-scape below and wondering where to start first: **"...Wonder if they got any decent shrines around here? I could really go for an offering of wine round about now"**

* * *

Meanwhile, out in the forest:

Having walked a way up into the forest, Elysia had found a wide clearing in which to wait for the others to return: she figured, with them having assumed bird forms, that they'd be able to spot her more easily from above through the hole in the canopy. Having found a soft patch of grass in which to sit down and rest, she gazed up at the blue morning sky and the birds circling overhead, glanced down at her drooped wings, and sighed with a mournful string of chirps: **"...This doesn't make any sense"** she thought aloud, **"What's the difference between flying and being part of the wind? I never needed wings before, so why do I have them now?"**

And that's when it suddenly struck her **: "Wait a minute,** _ **why do I even have a body**_ **at all?!"** she stared off into space, as her face began to reflect her growing perplexity: **"I never had a body before, so why do I have one now?! Why did I need to take a physical form in the first place? What did I need to do that meant I had to be on the ground?"**

But as she racked her thoughts, trying to remember why, she suddenly came to an alarming realization: **"...** _ **I don't remember**_ **..."** and as her train of thoughts began spiraling down the line of lost memory, something else occurred to her: **"...But, I don't remember what happened to me before I ended up in that tomb either"**

Gazing down at her body and wings, Elysia couldn't make sense out of her memory loss: it felt weird, but horrible at the same time, as if a huge gaping hole had suddenly appeared from nowhere in the middle of her immortal life, and had taken out a large chunk of her being with it. She felt helpless, lost, unsure what to do, or how to get what she lost back. But then she suddenly realized: what did she have to begin with? She was a weather goddess, and like the weather itself she never wanted for anything or aspired to be anything, she merely went wherever the wind blew, creating whatever weather she and the other Tempus gods wanted: totally on a whim, and yet keeping within the laws of her divine kin to maintain and keep balance within the natural order of the world. It was a very basic existence really: totally devoid of the trapping of mortality and civilization; totally free from all cares, complications, worries and doubts.

But now, she had worries and doubts: and it didn't feel nice at all.

But then, she suddenly recalled the incident that transpired last night: after waking up to find herself trapped within a stone box of some kind (a tomb, Hecate would later tell her), she panicked and broke out; she then ran, which was a new experience too, she never had legs before so how did she know how to use them? Or how to keep her balance? Or, how to _breathe_ for that matter? In any case it didn't matter at that point in time, she just wanted to get away from that horrible dark place, and found herself running through a forest. Again, a very weird and new experience, as she had only ever blown through forests as a breeze, never had she trampled grass and plants, or accidentally pushed over trees (except for when she was helping to summon a hurricane). She actually felt earth beneath her feet and the coolness of the night air on her face, and it nearly freaked her out.

But then, she heard something up ahead, and stopped running; gazing out through the dense undergrowth, she saw there was a wide brick road, the kind humans used to travel on: and there in the middle of it, a gang of four men had attacked a woman and tied her up. She knew from previously watching human's way up in the sky, that this was not a good thing: the woman was in some kind of trouble, and they were going to do something bad to her.

Without thinking, she charged the men: shouting at them to go away, and sure enough, as she burst out of the undergrowth they fled in fear. Seeing they had abandoned the woman, she wasn't sure what to do to free her, and that's when she felt the sharp hard things in her mouth (teeth: she reminded herself): carefully as she could, she gripped the woman's wrists between her lips, and chewed through the ropes, before doing the same for her ankles.

But the second she was free the woman was up like a bolt of lightning and running away, terrified of her. But-, what happened? What did she do wrong? _She just saved her life_ , she wasn't going to hurt her; in desperation she was about to call out to the woman, telling her to stop; when suddenly the woman stopped in the middle of the road and just stood there for a moment, before slowly turning around, and staring at her.

She called out to her, telling her she meant no harm; apparently the woman understood this, as she cautiously approached her, and when she was close enough she bent down to have a closer look at her. She'd never been this close to a human before, never mind having saved one from certain danger; the woman gazed up at her, and spoke:

 _Who are you?_

 _I'm Elysia, What's your name?_

 _I'm Carla, do you have a name?_

 _I already told you my name, it's Elysia: I'm a Tempus goddess; you probably never heard of me, we don't come down here to the ground very often. So, it's okay if you don't know me._

 _Well...Thank you, for saving my life_

 _That's okay: I never saved a human from anything before so this kinda new for me I guess?_

It was then she heard Hecate's voice drifting on the wind, echoing through her mind, telling her to come to her,

 _What is it?_

 _I-...I'm sorry, I gotta go: someone's calling for me...It was nice meeting you, Carla._

Carla

That was the first human name she'd ever heard: and in a way it filled her with a sense of accomplishment to know she'd met her first ever human face to face, and did something to _actually help_ her. Before, she would have simply passed her by on the breeze, not stopping to do anything but blow through her hair and clothes, and rustle the leaves on her way back up into the sky. But last night, she did something no weather god or goddess had ever done before...

Maybe being in a physical body wouldn't be such a bad thing after all?

Looking up at the sky and sensing the wind blow over the canopy: Elysia frowned in determination; wings were meant for flying, and she was going to learn how to use her's. The other gods all had their powers intact, so why shouldn't her's be intact too? She'd seen countless birds souring on her warm thermals, gliding into her headwinds and speeding along on her tail winds: if they could use the winds to help them fly, then so could she...

Standing up and pacing over to the middle of the clearing, Elysia stretched out her wings: they were so big and so broad, right away she felt the breeze rustle through them and she felt every individual feather move; **"Whoa..."** she smiled in amazement, she could _actually feel_ the wind, this was so different, and it felt incredible; all over her body she felt the air all around her. Gazing up into the hole in the canopy, she wanted to be up there among the clouds, she wanted to join the birds, and as she started to flap her wings she felt just how strong and powerful they were, and how much of a downdraft they were creating. She could do this, _she knew she could_ : if she could save a human all by herself, then she could _fly_ all by herself.

" **Hey you winds!"** she called up to the sky, **"Take me up with up!"**

And without warning, a sudden powerful downdraft of air shot down through the canopy, and scooped Elysia up like a giant invisible hand; making her tumble uncontrollably. Feeling the wind between her feathers, and feeling the way the wind slipped over her wings and tail, she started flapping hard to try and keep the lift; but it was such hard work! The wind was so powerful, and it was straining against her so much: but as she saw the ground approaching fast, she panicked and called out desperately: **"HEY! I'M ELYSIA! I'M ONE OF THE TEMPUS GODS! DON'T YOU RECOGNIZE YOUR OWN GODDESS?! QUIT BEING OUTTA CONTROL AND OBEY ME!"**

As suddenly as she had been blown up and discarded like a dead leaf on the breeze, the wind suddenly smoothed out, and whipped itself beneath her; holding her wings out straight to maintain lift and keeping her tail level to maintain control of her direction, Elysia managed to correct herself just in time, as she sailed down to the ground, nearly running head-long into a giant tree, and ending up tail-over-head in a fern patch. Quickly getting back up and spitting out a mouthful of ferns, she returned to the clearing, and gazing up at the sky, frowned in determination yet again: **"...We've got a lot of work to do"** she huffed stubbornly. Stretching out her wings and fanning her tail again, she got ready to call the winds back down.

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the forest:

Last night's events had left West somewhat on edge, as he carefully treaded through the undergrowth with his musket in hand, and his ODM gear strapped on. The strange noises he and Pascal heard out in the forest had long since stopped, but that didn't stop them feeling as though they were vulnerable. Against Pascal's advice, West had decided to go and check the forest out, making sure to arm himself with a musket, knife, ODM gear and a few smoke capsules in case he needed some cover to make a speedy exit.

Remembering the way to the strange 'tomb' he found in the grove of giant trees yesterday, he decided to make a quick stop there along the way: he just couldn't help but be curious. Walking through the giant trees, he soon found the hollow the tomb was standing in.

But when he cleared the ridge and gazed down into the hollow, the sight before him nearly made him jump back in shock.

The 'tomb' had been opened: its lid had been broken into three pieces and was lying discarded around the base, while its right side was cracked with a chuck seemingly knocked out of place and lying discarded next to the other pieces. Looking at the damage, it appeared to have been broken it from the inside, as if something had forced its way out; cautiously approaching it, West saw that, indeed, it had been hollow inside; but when he came closer and peered inside, his jaw fell and his eyes virtually popped out of his head when he saw what was scattered around the bottom of the 'tomb'.

Giant feathers: dozens and dozens of giant white feathers, many of them several meters long and as broad as a door or cart bottom: pure white as snow and shining with every iridescent colour imaginable. Picking up a three meter feather in one hand, West couldn't believe what he was looking at as he ran his fingers over it, just to make sure it was real and that he wasn't dreaming or hallucinating. What kind of bird had feathers _this_ big?! How big was it? And where had it come from?

That was when it hit West like a punch in the face: the state of the tomb, and the fact it had been broken from the inside; could only mean, that _something_ forced its way out.

With a knot of dread beginning to form in his stomach, West decided to listen to his instincts and get out of there: in case the giant 'mystery bird' decided to come back. But as he studied the feather in his hand, part of him debated whether or not to show it to Pascal. Without evidence to back him up, the discovery of the tomb and its occupant would simply be the ramblings of an ex-con (who was well versed in telling tall tales to begin with). With proof in hand, Pascal at the very least would have no choice but to believe him; and for good reason, what was there to say this giant avian creature wasn't a predator? One that stalked the skies like any other hawk or falcon, and swooped down on unsuspecting prey; prey like humans? The thought of it made a wave of fear go right through him, and without further hesitation West made a dash for the cottage: the giant feather still tightly gripped in his hand.

* * *

Later that day, Shiganshina, early evening:

"So, you _really_ don't remember anything that happened before I found you?" Eren asked Ariana as he watched the sun set over the top of wall Maria,

"All I remember was walking through the trees, getting tired and sitting down to take a rest" Ariana shrugged, "After that, I hear you calling my name, and I wake up with you at my side...There's not really anything else Eren"

"Okay" Eren sighed, "It just sounds so weird is all"

"I know..." Ariana sighed,

The day had come and gone uneventfully, albeit Ariana had been confined to playing only in the street, and to not wander far from the house. She didn't argue: hearing the concern in her mother's voice this morning, and still wondering to herself if whether last night's events really happened the way she remembered them, she decided to keep her sense of adventure on the back-burner for today, and instead had spent the day with her cousins and friends; either playing or helping with the odd chore here and there. Now, it was evening and the sun was setting, dipping down past Wall Maria, and letting the shadows of twilight claim Shiganshina: while the sky was lit up in hues of orange and pink; and Ariana, Eren and Armin were perched on the roof of Ariana's home, watching the birds sour high overhead, still illuminated in the fading light of day.

"...You've been quiet all day Ariana," Armin pointed out, as he clung to the chimney stack, half-scared of being up this high from the ground, "Is everything okay?"

Thinking about it, Ariana admitted: "Mum talked to me about what happened last night; she wants me to make up Rowan..." she then frowned bitterly, "But _I don't want to make up!_ He hurt me, and I'm supposed to be okay with that?! _Like hell I am!_ " she exclaimed angrily, "He does this _every time_ he gets angry, he loses it with me or someone else, and after cooling off, he comes back and says he's sorry. Well not this time: he's gotta learn that he went _too far_ , and that saying sorry is not enough this time"

"Good" Eren nodded with approval, "A thug like him has gotta learn his lesson, you can't just do stuff like that just because you get mad"

"That's what _I_ told my mum, but she told me to listen to him and to give him a chance: but I told her, _what's the point?!_ Rowan never listens when he gets mad, so why should _I_ listen to him? I don't want to listen to _anything_ he has to say ever again! _I hate him!_ " she fumed,

"Um?" Armin sheepishly interrupted, "What did Ash and Dale say?"

Ariana was quiet for a moment, as she thought about what her brother's had done to today: "...They tried talking to him, but I don't know if he listened to them or not; I don't know and I don't care..." she frowned as she pulled her legs up and hugged her knees, staring up at the sky: "I don't want Rowan to be my big brother anymore" she frowned.

* * *

At the same time, not too far away:

" **...Well? I have no words"** Herne grimaced as he ruffled his feathers, **"...No words to describe this...This is beyond bad, beyond terrible, it's-"**

" **The second circle of hell?"** Hecate scowled,

" **Eh, I wouldn't go** _ **that**_ **far..."** Herne sighed in dismay: **"Although to be honest, it feels more like we've gone back in time..."**

This day had been weird to say the least: and not in a good way.

After flying back over the wall and deciding to check out this vast city, which turned out to be called Shiganshina, the three gods had spent the majority of the day flying from place to place, listening and observing the day-to-day routines and rituals of the people. From bustling market squares to quiet shop fronts, from the well-preened uptown houses and their rich residents to the poor and downtrodden of the slums. The gods had been just about everywhere within this city; and what they had seen, had horrified and appalled them to no end.

This whole place was more reminiscent of the dark ages, compared to the world they knew before.

Theirs was a world of many people's from many cultures all across the globe, all different and varying in their ways, creeds and customs, and yet by and large, all abiding a natural contentment for each other, and the world in which they lived. It was an age of harmony, peace and enlightenment: when philosophy and the arts played an integral part in the understanding and progression of human culture; challenging new and old ideas, and what defined humanity's morals and immoral principles. It was also a time of great technological innovation: when humanity was making tremendous strides in the fields of science, broadening their own understanding of their world and thus broadening their own comprehension of how and why everything works the way it does; while at the same time maintaining a certain respect for the magical arts and their roll in the equilibrium of the world.

All the while, the gods and their divine kin watched over it all. From the time humanity first crawled down from the trees and took its first upright steps across the African grasslands; they had watched the trials and tribulations of this strange yet fascinating being play out across many ages. And all the while, they were always there to offer council and guidance: every human, from the richest to the poorest, the powerful and the weak alike, all came to seek their eternal wisdom and to find understanding in their own existence, among many other things. And over the ages mankind continued to progress and move forward, they bore witness to the incredible achievements of this remarkable species; their resourcefulness, ingenuity, determination and curiosity knew no bounds, and it showed in the amazing (and sometimes horrifying) feats they were capable of pulling off.

But this?

This felt more like an entirely different world altogether, or a bad dream that felt like a cosmic joke: This world was of a time long ago, back when humanity was still finding its way and did not possess the moral compass it had before hundreds of years later: back when greed, corruption, vanity and ignorance could easily poison the human heart, and turn good people cruel.

Today, the gods had seen more than their fair share of medieval reversion: ignorance and fear fueled by lack of reason, religious arrogance backed by the absence of logic, and heartless cruelty where compassion and understanding should be. Now, that wasn't to say every human within the city was worth damning, most of the populous were by and large moral by nature, and were good people in general: but without an evolved morality to offer guidance, the populous were for the most part, blissfully ignorant of all that transpired around them, and simply learned to 'get along' with the cruel nature of this world: it was every human for themselves, and it seemed to have been that way for a long time now.

For Herne and Hecate, it had been an eye opening experience that came with mixed feelings: but for Javorin, it was so much worse. As the Overseer of mankind, it made his heart break to see his charges had fallen so low, and lost so much of their former selves. Quietly and without saying a word, he cried: glistening silver tears running down his feathery cheeks, as he sensed the auras of the city all around him. A race of people who lived their lives with pride and utter surety, safe in the believe that theirs was the only life they had ever known, or could ever want to know; and yet, their fear and cruelty simmered beneath the surface like a poisonous witches brew: festering in the misery of the weak, and rejoicing in the brute mindless strength of the strong. He reminisced on how long it had taken them to get to the point they would have gazed at another race, and regarded them as their brothers and sisters: now, the potential for that wasn't even there anymore.

And even worse, no one remembered them, or any of the other gods for that matter: there were no shrines to honor their names or deeds, no followers to offer prayers, blessings or aid to their duties; even their names didn't exist in this new backwards world. They were totally forgotten, erased from memory; and it cut deeply through all of them.

As his silver tears continued to spill from his radiant blue eyes, Javorin felt Herne put his wing around him (or as much as a sky lark could put its wing around a hawk), in an attempt to try and offer what little comfort he could give. Hecate for her part, simply said nothing and just watched the sunset; today had left her feeling bitter and harsh at the state of things, and she knew her abrasive attitude would be of no good, so she kept her ebony beak shut, and just continued to simmer in her own frustration.

" **...I'm-...so sorry brother"** was all Herne found he could say, **"...This-...I don't know what to say?"**

" **...its okay brother"** Javorin hugged him back with is wing,

" **No..."** Hecate seethed bitterly, **"This is** _ **not**_ **okay, this is** _ **no**_ **t the humanity we remember: this is not the race of beings we spent so long and hard guiding and counseling to ensure they didn't bring about their own destruction, or that of the world. We did not sacrifice practically half our own immortal lives, to see them reduced to vermin!"**

" **But** _ **what happened**_ **to allow this to occur?"** Herne thought aloud: **"Whatever it was, we weren't here to stop it"**

Javorin gazed down at him in shock, suddenly realizing: **"...Is that why we were locked away in those tombs?"** he thought aloud in dread, **"Someone or something wanted us gone, so as to do-,** _ **this?!**_ **"**

Snapping out of her anger, Hecate stared at them both for a moment: as the wheels in her head started to turn, and she contemplated Herne's line logic: **"...You might have a point"** she offered offhand in a dark tone, **"Maybe not all** _ **this**_ **per se: but when you consider how many curses and evil magics we forbade from being summoned; it's not impossible to think that somewhere, someone thought we were becoming too much of a nuisance, and decided to make us 'disappear' so as to be left to their own devices..."** her eyes then began to glow purple with ire,while purple flames began to lick off her black feathers as her temper began to rise: **"...It takes** _ **a lot of gall**_ **to curse a god like** _ **this**_ **: and** _ **I swear**_ **, if I ever find the one who did this to us?** _ **I will damn them to a fate far worse than death**_ **"**

" **Okay, easy! We're trying to go unnoticed remember?!"** Herne held a wing up in front of her; Hecate calmed herself, and the purple flames disappeared and her eyes returned to normal. Breathing a deep calming breathe, she mentally reprimanded herself for nearly losing it like that. **"...Okay, we've seen a lot today; but nothing that's offered any clues as to how this all happened: nothing that's given us any real starting point from which go from. I say, we reach out to the ancient ones, and ask them for a little help. At this point, we really have nothing to lose"** Herne suggested.

" **...That's not a bad idea actually"** Javorin nodded as he wiped his tears away with his wing, and with a deep cleansing breath, pushed his sorrows to the back of his mind: **"Shall I recite the incantation?"**

" **Sure"** Hecate shrugged, **"But they better give a good sign"**

" **Okay, gather round..."** Javorin stepped in front of Herne and Hecate, and spreading their wings out, the three gods formed a triangle: summoning their power to align their aura's with each other: the gods then gazed up at the sky, and focused on the evening star; radiating their combined powers upwards, reaching out to the world beyond this mortal plain of existence.

" _Great all-father, blessed all-mother, we beseech thee: we ask that you offer us guidance, in this, our hour of need. Please, show us the way to that which will yield the knowledge we seek: to guide us along the path that is hidden from us, so that we may find truth"_

For a moment nothing happened, and then: a feeling of calm came over the gods, and the evening star seemed to shine brighter for a second or two; they felt a sense of presence, as if an omnipotent force had brushed itself against them, making itself known only to them,

 _The cellar_

They then felt compelled to move in a singular direction: to where and what for they didn't know: but they knew not to question the wisdom of their 'elders', and together they took off, heading west across the city. Soon, they came to a large neighborhood perched on the side of a low hill near the inner gate, with a wide street running right up and over it: at the bottom of the hill on the left side of the street, there was a large Inn and guesthouse with a forge next door, and a small livery at the back. Next door to the Inn was a large house (probably part of the Inn at one point long ago), and sitting on the roof next to the chimney were three small children: two boys and a girl. Javorin recognized the girl right away: 'You?' he blinked in surprise, keeping his thoughts to himself: 'how are you going to help us?'

Javorin stooped down with Herne and Hecate following close behind, and perched on the corner of the roof, a few meters away from the children: they glanced over at them curiously, while the birds simply stared back at them.

"Huh?" the young blond boy stared at them weirdly.

"A raven, a sky lark and a hawk all perched together?" the girl stared at them as she rubbed her left eye, "That's really weird"

"Weird birds" The brunette boy agreed,

" **Something's up"** Hecate frowned: **"The incantation led us here, but I don't sense these kids are the ones to help us. So what are we looking for?"**

" **Down there..."** Herne looked over the edge of the roof; following his gaze downwards, they watched a tall red bearded gentlemen step out of the house, and make his way over to the Inn, **"I think he's the one we're meant to follow: I sense the incantations magics pointing towards him"**

" **Come on, let's see where he goes"** Hecate flew off the roof, and swooped down to perch on the Inn's hanging sign above the door. Javorin glanced back at the girl for a moment, before following Herne off the roof. They watched the gentleman enter the Inn, and flying down to perch on the window ledge, they saw him speaking to an old woman behind the bar: she served him a tankard of ale, and they stood there chatting about something. Getting the feeling that this fellow wasn't their man, Javorin stepped back and glanced around, until he suddenly spotted a small window underneath a long wooden bench beneath the window ledge, with a small candlelight glowing from the room inside. It had to have been the Inn's basement; 'The cellar' he suddenly realized.

" **Hey, look"** he directed their gaze as he flapped down to the ground, and approached the window, **"I think this is it?"**

The window was slightly open ajar, and as Hecate and Herne joined Javorin at his side under the bench, they heard voices drifting out from inside; peering in through the window, the three gods saw seven men seated around a table, with a few candles to offer light and tankards of ale and mead in hand, surrounded by large stacks of piled up barrels on one side of the room, and a large wine rack covering the entire wall on the other side of the room, stocked with wines, whiskeys, brandies, and all other manner of liquor. And as the largest of the gentlemen talked, the others all listened in a mix of fascination and surprise.

"So? You guys are Celts?" Derek blinked in surprise as he took a swig of his mead.

"Believe it kid," Gustav took a large gulp of his ale, "How'd you think Tyto and the rest of his lot are such good hunters?"

"We've heard of the Celts" Breck confessed, glancing over at his brother, who was equally taken aback: "But, I thought they were all wiped out decades ago?"

"You and everyone else within these walls" Tyto explained, "And that's the way we prefer to keep it, least the wall cult might come looking for us"

"But, _what are_ the Celts?" Bren asked curiously as he lit another candle, and placed it in the middle of the table

"Before the titans appeared and started eating humanity to the brink of extinction: there were many different breeds of people that lived all over the outside world, like the Asians that came from the east. Well, the Celts originally came from the west, and when humanity retreated behind the walls, they came in with everyone else: the Asians too. But people didn't take kindly to these different breeds living amongst them: and so the royal family ordered the Asians and Celts to be wiped out, so as to create 'peace' within the walls; the Asians tried to fight back but it didn't go well for them, the Celts however went into hiding, and have called the Marian forests home ever since" Gustav explained.

"I've heard it rumored that the Celts were originally a nomadic hunting peoples" Claude offered, "Traveling from place to place, following the herds and the cycle of the seasons: but when they retreated behind the walls and went into hiding, many opted for migrating at night, and seldom ever ventured out near villages and towns, for fear of being easily picked out"

"That's how it was back in my grandfather's day" Tyto replied, taking a sip of his cider: "But since then we learnt to adapt to this walled world by hiding in plain sight under false names and hiding our heritage from everyone else. Some of the clans still choose to live in the deepest parts of the forests where few seldom ever go: whether they are still alive is anyone's guess, it's too dangerous to go looking for them"

"So...You and your family are the last of these 'Celts?'" Derek blinked in surprise, "I mean-, _wow_ : an entirely different kind of human living within the walls? That's something"

Bren smacked his brother up the side of the head, "For Maria's sake Derek! You make it sound like he's a weird kind of animal or something!"

"Its okay" Tyto waved off, "The idea of an entirely different culture living amongst the populous is a little hard for some to fathom: but I assure you, we are here, and have been around for a very long time"

"Honored and humbled that we are that you have confided this secret in all of us" Bryson stated: "I don't quite understand how this ties in with what happened last night?"

Taking a deep breath, and another sip of his cider, Tyto explained: "...Ash, Rowan and Dale, as you all know are our adopted sons: we've told you that their family were killed by 'an unknown gang of men' and that we took them in when Ash turned three. What I told you _was_ true, but I didn't tell you _all_ the details... Ash, Rowan and Dale are the last of the Crow Clan, one of the southern clans whose base camp was located a few miles past the tree line of the Eastern forests: not long after Dale was born the whole clan was attacked one night. The attackers killed every man, woman and child in the camp, no one was spared, except for one hunter managed who to get away with the babies in his arms; Evrard, Falken, Eraman and myself were out hunting that night, and by pure luck we ran into him; after quickly explaining what happened to the clan: we took the children and stole away into the forest, while the hunter lured his pursuers away, sacrificing himself so that we could get away unnoticed..."

"That's horrible" Bren stared at him wide-eyed: "But, who killed them?"

"You didn't know who they were?" Derek pressed him,

"On the contrary" Tyto further explained, "We knew _exactly_ who they were: they were the ones the royal family had commanded to wipe us out not long after we retreated behind the walls with the rest of mankind. They have remained in the shadows of humanity for the last hundred years, and are the reason we still hide in the deepest reaches of the Marian forests...I called them an 'unknown gang of men', because as far as the rest of humanity is concerned, they don't know they exist: the number of people who're actually aware of their existence are probably very few, and have in all likeliness, been sworn to secrecy to never reveal them. In any case, they are the Wall Cults greatest secret: and the most dangerous of their followers"

The men all glanced at one another in concern, "But, who are they?" Claude pressed,

"We Celts call them the dark riders: others call them the faceless ones, many in wall Rose call them the night hunters, and in some parts they go by the name of shadow reapers. Call them whatever you want, but they are all one and the same. The wall cult call them their 'Disciples': and they are the strength and might behind the wall cult's power. Basically, their own privet army that was formed with the intention of wiping out both the Celts and the Asians, and over time they started wiping out anyone else that posed a threat to the peace within the walls, as well anyone with a serious grudge against the cult"

"I've heard of the shadow reapers," Breck frowned, "It's one of the oldest superstitions around: many people out in the remotest parts of wall Maria have spoken of seeing strange people dressed all in black and riding black steeds deep in the forests on moonless nights, usually at a distance...At first I thought it was just country folk superstitions: ghosts and fairies and the like; but the way some people talk about them? It's as if their terrified a pack of wolves will come to attack in the dead of night: such conviction in their belief and surety of what they knew, it made me wonder if maybe there was something to it? ...Though, I thought it was something more along the lines of a gang of criminals"

"You'll forgive me if I don't _quite_ take you at your word Tyto" Bryson added skeptically, "In all my years in the military I never once heard any scuttlebutt from the MP's of any 'dark riders' or 'shadow reapers'; the MP's may be corrupt but most of them are not stupid, they'd have _seen or heard_ something"

Knowing he had a point: Tyto sighed, "Look, I'm not forcing you guys to take my word for it; with no physical proof to offer I know there's not much I can do to make a good argument here. All _I_ know, all I can offer, is that Ash, Rowan and Dale's family are not here because of them: and there aren't any graves to go and pay our respects to... My family, my people have lived in fear of the Disciples for the last hundred years: we cannot leave the forests because of them, and even though everyone is convinced we are gone from the world, they _still_ continue to hunt us as though we were vermin...Every year that passes we grow smaller in number, and our culture washes away like melt-water in the rivers; sometimes, I can't help but think the gods are laughing at us...Think of me whatever you will Bryson, but I'm telling you: the Disciples _are_ real, and if you ask the wall cult about them and mention them by name; they _will_ come for you..."

"But if you've been hiding from them all this time, how do you know so much about them Tyto?" Claude pressed him,

"Before we retreated behind these walls, we Celts were known as the people of the secret places; we traveled where very few had ventured before, and when my clan first arrived within the Marian forests we soon learned of all the secret places that no one knew about. From these secret places, we would observe the rest of humanity from a distance, learning the ways of this walled world and learning to hide in plain sight, and along the way, we observed the wall cult and its Disciples. From their secret nocturnal hunts and gatherings we learned their strategies and skills: we learned how to avoid them and how to throw them off our trails. And on the rare occasion, some of them would talk of things they were not meant talk about beyond the walls of their churches and sanctuaries: such as the fact, that the reason no one knows about them is because they leave no one alive to tell of them; anyone who sees them even by accident, is cut down and killed on the spot, and they always take the bodies so to not leave any evidence of their presence. Some night-time disappearances of people out on the roads at night are often the result of a run-in with the Disciples, and not human traffickers as many have been led to believe... What we Celts know of the wall cult we keep _only_ to ourselves, and pass down to our children orally: but I'm sharing this with all of you for two reasons; one, because each and every one of you are good men with good hearts that I have come to call my friends, and I don't want to see anything happen to any of you. And secondly, because it is part of the reason for what happened last night, and why we put you to such trouble,"

"Ariana and Rowan's 'altercation?'" Bryson raised an eyebrow,

Taking another sip of his cider, Tyto explained, "... Back in January, after you told us about Ariana, Eren, Armin and the Willum sister's latest attempt to climb the wall: Evrard took it upon himself to tell the children the truth about the Crow clan, and how it was the wall cult that killed them. We had intended to tell the children the truth eventually, but when they reached an age they'd be able to handle it properly. Needless to say we didn't approve of Evrard's decision, but at the time the children seemed to handle it okay, and we decided not to push the subject, least it might upset them... What we _didn't_ know however was that Rowan took it badly: he'd been secretly angry over it for months, and last night it-, all finally _blew up_ , and Ariana was on the receiving end of his temper"

"Oh..." Bren to another swig of his drink, "I guess he didn't feel like he had anyone to talk to huh?"

"Rowan's not one to talk," Gustav huffed as he poured himself another glass of wine, "That boy? He keeps his feelings locked away and just leave's them to fester: believes its weakness to show your feelings to everyone else. And to say he can never find the right words to talk with in the first place is an understatement"

"Rowan's never been comfortable with sharing his feelings with anyone; part of me wonders, and _dreads_ , if he remembers seeing his parents die that night: and that somehow, some part of that horror scarred him on a deep level, and refuses to let him move on" Tyto sighed, "I don't want to push him into anything he's not comfortable with, for fear I might make things worse; which doesn't make disciplining him easy, and after what happened last night I'm _seriously worried_ he might be approaching a line, that once crossed, he won't be able to come back from"

"Well? He's only five years old, I mean, it's not like he's turning into a hardened heartless soul already?" Derek offered, "Look, I know what happened last night was serious, and I'm sorry that it happened to you Tyto; but, their just kids, won't they move on a forget about all this by next week?"

"That's what I told him," Gustav frowned, "Their just kids, they'll bounce back from this: but no, there's no telling Mr worrisome here"

"I know I sound like I'm blowing it out of proportion," Tyto sighed as he ran his fingers through his long hair: "But Rowan is thoroughly convinced the wall cult are looking for us, and are out to get us any way possible. He thinks Ariana's going to spill the beans on us to the other neighborhood kids, then they'll go tell the cult, and they'll come to get us... It may sound farfetched, and it's highly unlikely the cults going to come looking for us in the middle of a major district, but secrecy is the _only thing_ keeping us alive, and Rowan is now painfully aware of that fact"

"But I don't understand: why does the wall cult have out of you? Why go to such lengths to wipe out an entire peoples?" Bren asked in bemusement,

Finishing the last of his cider and pouring himself another cup, Tyto went on to explain: "...I don't understand it all completely, and part of me wonders what is really truth and what is not; But my father and grandfather told it like this...When mankind first escaped the titans and hid behind the three walls, the first king to rule this new kingdom wanted to create an everlasting peace that would last forever, but to do that, everyone had to be one and the same: that way, there would be no conflict arising from any differences between the various peoples. It sounds impossible, but _apparently_ he found a way... He gathered everyone within the walls to the newly built capitol, and there, before the remnants of humanity, the king stole everyone's memory of the outside world, and the lives they had there before the titans came. No one remembered what lay beyond the walls, nor was anyone encouraged _to want_ to remember: but for some unknown reason, both the Asians and the Celts were unaffected by this 'memory theft' and to the king this was a serious problem. He tried to gain their loyalty and silence by offering them positions of nobility within his court, but they refused, and as a result the first king exiled them from society and had them hunted down; a task he entrusted to the wall cult, who charged their most loyal followers with the job, making them into the Disciples"

Everyone but Bryson stared at Tyto for a moment, half wondering if he had lost his marbles, or if this was one of his jokes.

"The king, _stole everyone's memory_ of the outside world?" Bren couldn't help but smirk, "Uh yeah, I can _totally_ believe that"

"Eh pull the other one Tyto" Gustav waved off as he swigged his wine,

"It doesn't stop there," Tyto added, undeterred by their skepticism and holding their attention: "... My grandfather went on to tell me, when his father and his grandfather retreated into the forests of wall Maria, along with all the other clans to escape the Disciples, they traveled far and deep into the wilderness; as I explained before, they went into places no one in the walls had found yet; they discovered many secret and hidden places, many of which became their new homes, but _one place_ in particular, was far more than just a hidden glen or a valley"

He reached down to his calf, and unstrapped the hunting knife from his boot, laying it on the table before them, "According to them and many of the other elders, the clans stumbled upon a hidden land: one that could only be found beyond a great stone gate at the foot of a single solitary mountain at the very heart of the Marian forests; once on the other side, they found a vast green and lush land that was surrounded on all sides by mountains with a huge deep lake at its center; in this lake there was an island where the tallest and mightiest of all the trees in the world stood: it was said to be so tall and its branches reached so far up into the sky, that it was said they led to other worlds up beyond the stars and the clouds. On the eastern side of this lake, the tallest of the mountains stood apart from all the others: at the foot of the mountain there was a massive gate that was only accessible by boat, that lead deep into the heart of the mountain. And there, they found a city that had long been abandoned and forgotten; it was said to have contained _all_ the knowledge of mankind, and everything you could ever wish to know about the world beyond the walls; essentially, it was the city of humanity's lost memories, a place you could stay for the rest of your life learning _everything_ about the world, and never live to know all there was...Suffice to say it was quite a discovery: but my grandfather and the elders, fearing the wall cult might find this hidden land and destroy the city of lost memories, decided to leave and seal the gate: making sure they left no trace they were ever there. But in order to find it again, they created a secret map that lay hidden in plain sight" he drew the knife from its hilt, and placed it in the middle of the table.

The knife was a large typical clip point hunter's knife, long and broad with a handle made from a stag's antler: except the blade had an intricate swirling pointed symbol of some kind, running along both cheeks on each side engraved into the metal, and filled in with a black enamel. Everyone glanced down at the knife in a mix of curiosity and bemusement; they had never seen a symbol like that before, nothing even remotely similar had ever been seen anywhere.

"What is that?" Claude frowned as he picked up the blade, and carefully inspected the design.

"Part of the map" Tyto gestured to the knife, "It was broken up into many pieces, and each piece was entrusted to the leader of each clan: over time, with the wall cult still hunting us, many of the clans decided to pool their pieces together and hide them in safe places around the forests, while others, like myself, kept them with us at all times. From my grandfather to my father, and from my father to me, and eventually my children: this fragment of that map will be passed down and remain hidden; until the day we decide to return to the hidden land, and use the map to find our way there again"

"Wow" Derek breathed,

"This is really part of a map?" Claude breathed in astonishment, "Quite a cleaver way to hide it too, having it on the side of a hunting knife"

"Quite a story I must say" Breck thought aloud as he scratched his head, "Definitely a good bedtime story: a secret land hidden somewhere in the wilderness of the Marian forests, wherein lie's a city with all the lost memories of mankind; I can definitely see how the wall cult and royal government would get riled up about something like that"

"Yeah but come on" Bren sighed in disbelief, "No offense Tyto, but that's all it is, a story; and unless you actually went there and brought some part of it back as proof. I'm afraid I just don't buy it, and that fairy tale of the first king 'stealing' everyone's memories of the outside world? I'm sorry but that's just-, _not possible_ "

"...Actually," Bryson gazed over at Bren, "I think Tyto's story might be true on some level"

Silence

"... Wait, what?" Bren squinted at him in disbelief,

"Really?" Tyto blinked in surprise: of all the things for a reasoned and rational man like Bryson to say, he hadn't expected that.

"Oh yes!-" Claude smiled with eager delight as he handed the blade back to Tyto, "The memory loss theory! Oh you must listen to him it's a _truly fascinating_ idea!"

Clearing his throat, everyone paid close attention as Bryson explained: "...For a number of years now, _I believe_ that the Royal government knows far more about the titans then they've been letting on: _and I think_ , they have _deliberately_ been withholding information from the military, and humanity at large for ulterior reasons. Let me start from the beginning... As you all know, after I was discharged from the Scouts I went to work at Penman and Sons publishing house in the capitol, where I first met Claude; well one day, we received a commission from the Royal government to publish revised versions of the standard issue history books, for all the schools in the three walls: part of my job was to proof read the books to ensure they came out okay...And as I got reading these books, I couldn't help but notice something-, rather _odd..._ There were multiple inconsistencies and discrepancies describing the timeline of events following humanity's retreat into the walls: and further contradictions in how all knowledge of the outside world was 'completely' destroyed. None of it made any sense and it troubled me for a good long while: until one day it suddenly occurred to me; even if all documented knowledge of the outside world had been destroyed, there would still have been an _oral history_ passed down from one generation to the next, which would be near-impossible for anyone to control. Facts can easily be disguised as fables with their original message still remaining intact (albeit thinly disguised). But the fact there is no oral history of the outside world, suggests _only one thing_ , and it's the _only_ logical conclusion given the facts at hand. That somehow, _humanity's memories were altered_ : I don't know how and I don't know what by, but it's the _only thing_ that explains why no one remembers the outside world... "

"Well? ..." Gustav scratched his head, "Crazy as it sounds, when you put it like that, it does kind of make sense" he stubbornly admitted.

"I know," Breck sighed as he took a sip of his mead, "It took me a while to get my head around it, but when I did: _boy_ did I have a few sleepless nights. And in a way, it still bothers to think that could, _in all likelihood_ be true"

"Okay? ..." Bren propped his head on his elbow, and sheepishly admitted: "That-, is actually an interesting theory: scary, but interesting"

"... I don't think it's just the lost memories the Royal government are covering up" Derek blurted out: now it was everyone's turn to blink in surprise at him: "I think the walls themselves are part of the mystery"

"Really?" Claude frowned, "How?"

Reaching for his satchel between his feet, Derek pulled out a small journal and a small wooden box: opening it and peering inside, everyone saw three small pieces of, what looked like stone from a brick, each the same pale chalk-white colour and sparkled slightly as Derek laid the box in the middle of the table. The inside of the box was separated into three sections, each with the names Sina, Rose, and Maria scratched into the lid above, with each piece sitting in its own section.

"As you all know, my job as an architect has taken me to various places within each of the three walls: and, while busy overseeing each commission, I became rather engrossed in a 'sideline hobby' of sorts..." Derek explained, trying to keep his nerve as he explained: "Each of these, is a sample of walls Sina, Rose and Maria"

"WHAT!" Bren exclaimed in alarm, while everyone around the table stared at him in shock,

"Samples of the walls?!" Bren fumed, "Do you have _any idea_ what would happen if the wall cult caught you chipping away at them?! They'd burn you at the steak for sure!"

"Keep your voice down!" Gustav reprimanded,

"Trust me I'm well aware of the risks, and _believe me_ , these were _not_ easy to acquire" Derek tried to assure his brother, "But it was worth the risk, because I believe they would prove my theory correct"

"Your theory?!" Bren exclaimed, "When were you thinking of telling me this?!"

"I'm telling you now" Derek stated matter-of-factly, "And I didn't tell you before because I knew this is _exactly_ how you'd react"

"*Ahem!*" Breck drew Derek's attention, "If you'd care to not leave us on tender hooks?"

"Oh yeah, right..." Derek got back to the subject at hand, and opened his journal to a page that had various architectural design sketches of the walls, complete with mathematical calculations scribbled all over the pages, and various notes squeezed in between:

"Ever since I was young, the walls had always fascinated me on some level: so big and vast they were, I couldn't put my finger on it but there was something about them that just seemed, 'strange', if that makes any sense? ...Anyway, when I went to study architecture at the university in Mitras, and I learned about calculating sizes and dimensions in bricklaying: I began thinking about the walls, and how they might have been built; the further along I got in my studies and the more I learned about the basics of building tall secure structures that stay upright, I began to realize something was very wrong... According to the history books, the walls were constructed a hundred years ago to keep the titans out: okay, but _how?_ The books don't specify the construction techniques or the stone used to build them with: and it also struck me, _how the hell_ did humanity keep the titans at bay while building _one_ wall? Never mind three! This was _way too big_ _and profound_ to leave alone: _I had to know the truth_... So every time I traveled between the interior and the outterlands, I would secretly sneak away to take measurements of the wall and collect samples from each of the bricks: and what I found was _staggering_ to say the least. According to my calculations (if their correct), taking into account the size of the bricks, how many were laid per square meter, plus the width, diameter and length of the walls: as well as current building techniques and transportation of the bricks; I estimate, that Wall Sina would have taken approximately three hundred and eight years to build and complete; Wall Rose would have taken just over eight hundred and twenty two years to complete, and wall Maria (brace yourselves) would have taken approximately, _one thousand, three hundred and seventy six years_ to build and complete... Now you tell me, how did we keep the titans at bay in all that time? And then there's this..."

Derek pointed to the samples inside the box: "As an architect, I know each and every type of stone there is: what it's used for best and where it comes from, and this 'substance' is _not_ stone at all: I don't know what it is or what it's made out of, but I can say with absolute certainty, that it _didn't_ come out of the ground. And even the walls themselves don't look or 'behave' like an aging wall should; there's no brick joints or traces of peeling, and mosses and lichens don't gown on them, hell, even _wall creepers_ refuse to go anywhere near them for food or a suitable nesting site...All these points raise some _very serious questions_ : questions, we wouldn't be allowed to ask, least we'd be thrown into jail, or made to 'disappear': all we are told to believe, is that a hundred years ago these walls just appeared from nowhere, seemingly blessed to us by the 'divine architect and his three goddesses' as a bulwark against the titans... I'm sorry, hidden lands and altered memories are one thing, but _this?_ " Derek tapped his journal with a finger, " _This is proof something is going on in the royal government_ , there is _something_ they know they're not telling us: and for whatever reason it is, their keeping the truth from humanity... I know this will never reach the public's ears, at least, not in _my_ life time; but _I will be damned_ if _anyone_ forces me to accept the government's 'truth' as fact" he stated in a serious tone.

Bren stared at his brother of a moment, before bursting out into laughter: "...Great Sina, I thought you were crazy before!"

"Yeah, I thought Claude was the crazy one here" Bryson deadpanned, before turning serious as he gazed at the pages in the journal: "...But you've really done your work on this, haven't you?"

"I never leave anything to chance, and I never skip on the details" Derek stated.

"This could really prove the walls are not what history claimed them to be?" Breck thought aloud.

"Hey, I don't know what created the walls in such a short time span, or if they _were even_ built to keep the titans out in the first place"

Silence

"...All I know..." Derek added frankly, "Is that there is _muc_ h we don't know about, much that could probably serve a great strategic value in helping mankind to beat back the titans; but for some reason, those who seem to know the answers, are not telling us the truth"

"...It certainly looks that way" Claude sighed grimly,

"But the question is, why?" Tyto pointed out, "What could be so detrimental to the government and the wall cult, that they'd risk the very survival of humanity to keep their secrets from getting out?"

"Power; that's what" Gustav frowned, "At the end of the day, when all is said and done: power is the one thing _everyone_ acknowledges and respects, and he who holds the fears of the world, holds humanity itself by the throat..." he gruffly stated before he took a swig of wine, while everyone listened: "The only reason no one challenges the government for answers is because they know consequences will be dire; the reason no conflict against the military has broken out, is because they maintain the peace within the walls through fear and intimidation: and by keeping everyone stupid and ignorant"

"...Where is this coming from Gustav?" Derek blinked in surprise,

"Experience lad," Gustav took another swig of his drink, "It's no secret the MP's are corrupt through and through, but the royal government is far worse. Its members are comprised of the king, the high cardinal of the wall cult, and several of the most powerful nobles in all the three walls: and the _one thing_ on their minds is keeping the rest of us riff-raff within _our own_ walls, so they can keep their fancy homes, gardens, wealth and privileges. Anything else? They _couldn't give a shit_ about; _I guarantee you_ , if walls Maria and Rose were to ever fall to the titans, they'd seal all the gates around Wall Sina and leave us all to die. _They'd let humanity go extinct in a heartbeat_ , so they can keep their way of life, and keep lording over everyone who's left"

"That's a bit dark isn't it?" Tyto grimaced, "I mean, don't get me wrong I know the government is never reliable, and the nobles are a pretty obnoxious bunch (from what I've heard): but letting all of humanity die out just to keep their wealth and power? That just seems a bit too extreme, even for them"

"You wanna put that to the test lad? ..." Gustav leaned across the table, and gave Tyto the hairy eyeball, "When you've lived with privilege all your life, the idea of sharing anything with anyone seems like oppression: when you've had everything you could ever want handed to you on a silver platter, having to work your hands to the bone just to scrape something to eat seems like slavery; and when you've grown up never being told 'no' to anything you've ever done or wanted, suddenly the idea of people reining you in for your useless frivolities and demands, seems like tyranny ... _Believe me_ , I see these kinds of people come and go in and out the guest house every other week: coming here to the lands where their luxury goods are grown and made to buy them up; we here in Shiganshina supply them with their tea, coffee, tobacco, fruits, sugar, silk, spices and more, and do we get a decent pay for our hard work and efforts? _No_ , we don't: as far as those rich fat bastards in the interior are concerned, we're just slaves who are our own masters and have to be paid for our troubles, or else we'd stop trading and keep everything we produce to ourselves: that's _the only reason_ we get any acknowledgement at all from them; if it wasn't for the farmers, Shiganshina would just be another downtrodden criminal-infested shithole like the underground district beneath Mitras"

"Uh, had bad dealings with the nobility eh?" Claude smiled sheepishly,

"Not the nobility per se" Gustav clarified, "One or two rich merchants might come into the bar thinking Mabel and Bemadette are whores for sale, and they quickly learn otherwise," He downed the last of his wine, and poured another glass: "...No lad, my gripe is with the Government and the Bureau of Internal Affairs..." He then got up, wandered over to the far corner of the room, pulled up a floor board that wasn't nailed down, and took out a small notebook: he then returned to the table, and opened the book up: "...Back in the day, when I worked in Industrial city, I used to make ODM gear for the military: each and every unit I built was all from scratch, from extracting and melting down the iron bamboo, to test-running the final finished product: I tell ya, I can _still_ put an ODM gear unit together in my sleep. Anyway, one day I was going over some design blueprints when I suddenly realized the gear could be modified: after tinkering about with a spare unit I got a hold of, I found that the modifications would not only enable the gear's user to go _faster_ , but actually enable the gas to last longer, by as much as over _twenty percent_..." He showed them the designs in the notebook.

Leaning in for a closer look, Bryson stared at the sketches in surprise: "You reduce the size of the outgoing valve in the device, while increasing the length of the gas flow siphon in the pistons?"

"Surprisingly simple eh?" Gustav grinned, "And cost-wise it would hardly break the bank; _how the hell_ no one discovered it sooner was beyond me, but it would be a _major game-changer_ for the military. Scouts would be able to outrun and escape the titan's quicker, while at the same time being able to go up to _five times longer_ before needing to change their gas cylinders. Naturally, I shared this revelation with my boss, and asked to approach the Bureau of Internal Affairs for approval to have the mods implemented..." Gustav then paused a moment; his expression grew darker, as he carried on in a more slightly bitter tone: "...But ...He looked at the blueprints I drew up, took one look at me, and told me to get rid of them: naturally I was pissed off, what the hell was he thinking? I was about to rip him a new one, when I suddenly saw the look in his eyes; and for first time in my life, I actually saw _fear_ in him...He explained to me: about seven years before I came to work there, there was an ODM gear builder who _also_ had a thing for tinkering about; he stumbled upon the exact same modifications I did, almost down to the exact same numbers. Delighted with this, my boss approved his idea and let him go before the Bureau. He never came back to work the next day: weeks passed, but still he heard nothing from the guy. Wondering what was up he decided to pay him a visit at his house: but when he got there, he found the place completely abandoned. One of the neighbours filled him in: apparently, the day after he visited the Bureau, a whole load'a MP's showed up his place and arrested him and his wife, clapped them in irons and carted them off...A month later, he got visited at the factory by some guys from the Bureau, who came to tell him that if any of his workers approached him with any new mods for any of the military equipment, he was to report them right away to the MP's...Realizing what happened to the other guy, he lied and said he'd comply: and he told me to just walk away and pretend we never had this conversation; he didn't want to see me disappear too..."

Everyone stared at Gustav in wide-eyed shock, not least Bryson, who was more incensed than anything else: "Are you serious?!" he exclaimed, gazing down at the drawings in the book, and back up at the old man: "An important modification like _this_ , and they sweep it under the rug?! What the hell-, _why?!_ " he fumed,

"I asked myself the exact same thing," Gustav frowned as he downed another mouthful of wine: "For _weeks_ I was outraged and pissed off at the idea that something like this could happen, that it'd get you in trouble with the government, _how insane was that?!_ I wanted answers but I didn't know who I could go to? Then one day, purely by luck, I got talking to one of my boss's buddies on the factory floor and happened to mention my mods by accident... He goes all quiet, looks me in the eye, drag's me into one of the storage rooms: and there he told me _everything_ ; he knew about the other guy who came before me, and knew _why_ he'd been arrested. Apparently, the MP's and the Bureau of Internal Affairs keeps a strict secret watch on all the goings on in Industrial city and the military: what technology is being used and who is permitted to use it; and if anyone further afield is up to anything they shouldn't be doing. They have authority from the Royal Government to arrest and detain _anyone_ who creates 'unlawful and unsanctioned technologies' without permission from the MP's or the Bureau. Basically, anything (like the mods for the ODM gear for example) that can enhance the performance of anyone's job or aid the military in a major way, is seen as possible risk to the well-being of the peace within the walls: on the off chance that technology can be used to create a means of escaping the walls or even destroying them"

"So? If anyone tries to create any new inventions they're arrested and thrown in jail?" Bren blinked in surprise,

"Pretty much, though, I never knew what happened to the other guy: but I think it's a safe bet he _somewhere_ six feet under" Gustav sighed,

"But, _why?!_ " Bryson exclaimed in dismay, "Trying to escape the walls is one thing: but if there's a technology that could help the Scouts fight the titans and gain the upper hand, _surely_ the government would permit the military use of such an invention?"

"I don't know anything about that, I didn't ask," Gustav replied, "But what _I did ask, is why?_ Why hold humanity back from moving forward with progress and innovation? Why the need to keep us subdued and stagnant in our current technological means? And the answer he told me was simple. _Power and rule through fear_ : without a means to safely explore the outside world and bypass the titans all together, mankind is restricted to staying behind the walls, and the walls themselves remain a powerful idea for the security of humanity. No one wants to go to the outside world if there is no guarantee of being able to stay alive, so everyone stays here where their safety is guaranteed; and without the choice of being able to do more or move more freely, everyone doesn't know any better. People are easier to control when you know what scares them: they'll do whatever you tell them to, because they believe they have no other choice. This is how the Government has ruled the populous for the last hundred years: by reaffirming the idea that the walls are the _only_ option we have for our survival; and you know what? _It works_. And with the wall cult as their attack dogs no one dares to stand up to them"

Calming down, Bryson gazed back at the drawings in the book, and passed a deep sigh, "...So, what did you do?"

"...What _could_ I do? ..." Gustav took a sip of his wine, "I went back to work and carried on as if nothing had ever happened, I didn't throw the mods away though, I've kept them this whole time: maybe outta sentimental reasons or maybe because, on the remote off chance they might be needed one day? I don't know: it just didn't seem right to abandon a good idea...I stayed on in Industrial city up until several years ago, when I finally retired and came back home to help my sisters with the inn. I hid that book down there beneath the floor, and it didn't come out again until tonight...Because like Tyto, I don't wanna see anything happen to you guys either, so don't go asking questions to the wrong people, okay?"

Claude passed a deep sigh as he wiped his glasses on his handkerchief: "...It's a real travesty when you think about it: the idea of keeping humanity contained for the sake of peace. Well? Peace is all well and good, but at what price? I don't believe peace should have to come at the price of our freedom, even if the titans are out there beyond the walls, we _cannot_ let our fears dictate our fate"

"That's all well and good saying stuff like that" Bren pointed out, "But who would stand up to the government? You?"

"Oh good heavens no, not me Bren, I don't have the constitution for being the warrior-type; I'll leave the heroics to Bryson" he smirked, to which Bryson couldn't help but smile: while Claude continued, "...No, like you Gustav, I _too_ believe humanity has become stagnated by the royal government's need to keep us all in the dark and festering in our own anxieties: but, from what I know of life growing up and living in the interior of wall Sina, I can tell you that people from the higher end of the caste system are seldom willing to change for any reason other than to protect their own interests. Don't get me wrong, there are some with good intentions, but sadly they are a very tiny minority that is overwhelmingly shadowed by their more 'selfish-minded' contemporaries... I remember quite well, there were _so many_ people who came from humble beginnings, who through hard work, dedication, commitment and fortitude had managed to carve out a niche for themselves in the echelons of wall Sina's society. But, the caste system is too narrow and too particular for such people to be allowed to succeed: oh you may live among the upper classes with your own wealth and status, but it's _always_ painfully obvious: _you would never become one of them_...That always used to make me so angry: I thought it was never fair; these people worked hard to earn their wealth and privilege, but no matter what they did they were still treated as though they were common beggars. It was half the reason I moved here, among other things...No, to truly take on the government and have any chance of winning, would require someone of _exceptional_ intelligence and talent: someone with the fortitude and will to want to fight and see it through to the end, wherever it may lead; and who has the welfare of humanity as their goal, but is able to do it all without losing their own humanity in the process"

"I don't know Claude?" Tyto stroked his beard in contemplation: "Some people have good intentions in mind, and at their core they _are_ good people: but when they go down the path of trying to achieve their goals, they can end up doing more harm than good. I'm not saying it's impossible, but if someone's going to take a stand against the government, whoever it is, will have to be prepared to pay close attention to what's going on around them, and be ready to change and adapt in a heartbeat"

"Not to mention the government wouldn't go down easy" Gustav chipped in: "The odds would be _overwhelmingly_ stacked against you: and the fight itself would be riddled with pitfalls and traps left right and center. To take on people as powerful and ruthless as them, you gotta be willing to be _equally_ ruthless: and _that would mean having to sacrifice your humanity_. Qualities like honor, etiquette and fairness don't count for _shit_ when your life is on the line; there's no etiquette when you're hunting a colossal-sized boar and he's staring you down getting ready to charge and cut you up with his tusks. There's no fairness when you're staring down the jaws of a titan and are mere inches away from certain death. And there is _no honor_ in letting yourself be killed just so someone else can live by their own selfish ignorant principles. If you wanna live you gotta _fight_ , but if you wanna win, you gotta lay it all out on the battleground, and fight with _everything_ you got. Because when all is said and done and life and death hang in the balance, it's the one thing we all boil down to, and the _only_ way to ensure our survival"

"...That's, quite a speech," Bryson couldn't help but smile, "With that attitude you'd make a great Scout"

"Kinda old for that now ain't I?" Gustav grumbled as he took another swig of wine: "Besides, what do I know? I'm just some ol' fart who beats out molten metal for a living: the world's past me and I ain't got anything more to offer. Just like the rest of us in this _god-forsaken_ walled world... If there's one I do right before I buy the farm, it's that I make sure my grand-nieces are prepared to endure the cruelty this world has to offer: that they stride out into the world with their heads held high, emboldened, confident, and smart enough to know how to survive"

"You don't mean that, surely?" Derek pleaded, "Yeah Gustav, you've got plenty offer: people trust and respect you, you got a lifetime's worth of knowledge, and you're a really smart engineer"

"Ah save yer sweet nothings for Mabel," Gustav waved off, "I don't need it: besides, with Bemadette as my new apprentice, at least my skills ain't going to waste" looking down at the notebook and closing it, Gustav ran a hand up along the spine as he contemplated: "...Maybe I'll show her how to put an ODM gear together?"

"She'd be good at something like that" Breck smiled, "Goodness knows that girl has a real talent for being able to fix virtually anything"

"Hey, I nearly forgot to ask" Bren suddenly realized, "How did _you guys_ first meet? And when did you find out Tyto and his family were Celts?"

"Pretty simple really," Gustav shrugged, "Some years back I was out in the forest going up to one of the villages on the western outskirts of the farmlands, when a bear chased me off the road and up into the trees. I thought I was done for when Tyto here showed up, with Evrard, Eraman and Falken, and chased the damn thing off. After thanking them I was just about to leave, when suddenly that knife fell outta his satchel and I saw the symbol on the blade; I'd heard about the Celts long before meeting Tyto, and knew that they used to use a strange set of symbols to write with. Needless to say, the cat was outta the bag"

"Realizing we didn't have any viable lies to pass it off: we told Gustav the truth," Tyto explained: "It wasn't something we were comfortable confiding in him about, but, he said he wouldn't tell a soul, and we had no choice but to take him at his word. Though as luck would have it, our meeting turned out to be a bit of a blessing...You see: this happened a few months after the Crow clan was killed, and in response to the tragedy, all the remaining clans in the southern forests: the Ravens, the Red Boars, the Black Hawks and mine the Grey Owls, decided to come together and move to a safer location. But we didn't know where to go, and the wall cult knew we would only move to somewhere else in the forest, somewhere they could possible lay a trap to ensnare us. So after much talk and deliberation we made the bold decision to move into one of the major districts and hide among the people: but we had no money to buy homes with, the forest provided everything we needed to survive so we had no need of it up until that point. But Gustav offered us a deal"

"Back then, we'd just finished turning the old coach house into a regular house, and decided to put it up for rent to earn some extra coin: It was plenty big enough for all four clans to live together and still have room to spare for the kids; after explaining things to Miriam we cut a deal, we'd let Tyto and his lot move in for free, on the condition that they help out around the Inn and forge with whatever chores needed doing, in lieu of paying coin for rent"

"It was a gamble: but hey, it worked out for the best, and we've been here ever since" Tyto smiled at Gustav,

"Eh, it doesn't hurt to have the pantry constantly stocked with game and fruit brandywines" the old man shrugged, "Plus, you lot are okay" he added as he downed another glug of wine.

"Which is basically Willum speak for 'you're my best friend'" Derek teased,

"Hey, you use the F-word around me like that and I'll tan yer hide and wear it as a dress coat" Gustav grumbled in annoyance. Everyone knew he didn't mean it; that was just the way he was.

"...Heh, It's funny," Bryson couldn't help but smile, albeit weakly, "All of us here, sharing these secrets of ours; innovative, bold, and thought-provoking: and yet all with the purpose of trying to keep a dying culture alive, trying to find out the truth, and trying to make a positive change in the lives of our fellow humans. We could _all_ end up being branded as traitors and heretics if anyone found out what we knew, and either be burnt at the stake or be hanged in the royal square before the king and the public...How did it get to the point where trying to do any _real good_ in this world suddenly became so wrong? To want reason, sense, logic and compassion to triumph, is not acceptable? ...Sometimes, I can't help but wonder whether our days might be numbered: and whether it's the titans that are _really_ the true threat to humanity?"

"...Hmmm..." Tyto sighed offhand,

Everyone sat in quiet contemplation for a long moment, before Bren changed the subject: "...Hey Tyto?"

"Hm?"

"...Do you think, one day, you and the rest of the Celts will come together, piece together that map, and go find that hidden land, and the city of humanity's lost memories? ...See if its real?"

Tyto was quiet for a long moment, before explaining frankly: "...I _really_ don't know Bren; I don't know if such a place even exists, never mind it actually lying _somewhere_ within wall Maria; I don't know _how on earth_ that can even be possible? Maybe my grandfather and father _did_ find such a place? But it was somewhere out beyond the walls, and the solitary mountain they spoke of? Maybe it was just wall Maria all along, and the mountain was meant to serve a euphemism of some kind? Either way, I don't know how many of us are left or how many of the pieces are still intact and safe? It might be that one day, the ravens will call us to gather, and we will piece the map back together, and we will leave this walled world behind forever leaving the rest of humanity to its own devices; but, I _really can't_ see that happening"

"Why not?" Bryson pressed him, "If it means you and your people have a chance to gain your freedom, you shouldn't pass it up"

"Yeah, I mean: you guys might _actually_ have a chance of escaping the walls, and if you're really good at hiding like you always are, you could slip by the titans _completely_ unnoticed"

"Not to mention you'd be rid of the wall cult for good," Gustav pointed out gruffly, "You wouldn't have to live in fear ever again, nor suffer the prejudice or arrogance of other human beings in general. So what if humanity eventually ends up going down the drain through its own short-sightedness and stupidity? At least _a few_ good humans will have earned the right to make it to freedom; so why can't you see you and your lot leaving? What's stopping you? It's not like you were considered part of humanity to begin with as far as the first king was concerned...Why would you want to stay in this cruel world?"

"...Because? ..." Tyto thought about it: "... _This is our world_...For better or worse, we are _all_ human, each and every one of us: and we are _all a part_ of this world; good and evil alike. It is neither cruel nor kind, it simply is what it has _always_ been, and will be forever... _Home_ : no matter how far we go or whether we stay where we are, _we are all that we have_ : we rely on each other to survive. And in the end when everything is gone and we have nothing left, all we'll have is each other; many threads make one weave, and that is how the tapestry of our world stays strong...We Celts are a part of that tapestry, just as all of you are too, and every living thing in this world: we _all_ have a thread in the great tapestry of life, and we are woven together in ways that are beyond our understanding...We wouldn't leave, because we _know_ what it means to be scared, and there's no way we would let _anyone_ suffer that same fear: would it mean risking death for us? Quiet possibly, but how could we call ourselves human, if we left the rest of humanity to suffer?"

No one spoke for a long while, as they contemplated Tyto's words; silently wondering, how someone like him could still hold compassion for humanity, given all that had happened to them? But then, were _they_ really any different? Could they save someone who's evil from facing certain death, out of simple human compassion? Does letting someone who's hurt you live make you weak? Naive? Or would it prove you are beyond being petty and vengeful? Whatever the case, something about those words struck a chord deep in all of them; and in a way, it allowed them to believe that not all humanity was worth giving up on: that if people like Tyto could look past humanity's weaker flaws and still have the potential for good. Then maybe being a part of this world really wasn't as dark and hopeless as it appeared to be?

"Hey guys?" Derek smiled as he raised his tankard, "Why don't we make a promise to look out for each other? And anyone else who needs help? To keep each others secrets safe no matter how crazy or outlandish they seem, and just be there for one another through thick and thin"

Smiling, Bryson raised his tankard: "... To the Traitors and the heretics" he toasted,

"To the traitors and heretics" everyone laughed, clacking their tankards and one wine glass together, and swigging down the last of their drinks.

"...What the hell?" Breck frowned as something caught his eye through the tiny window on the other side of the room: "...Is that-, a raven, a sky lark and hawk?"

Looking over at the window, everyone was surprised to see, a raven, a sky lark, and indeed a hawk, gazing at them intently through the glass. But before anyone could say anything, the three birds took off like a shot.

"Huh, that's something you don't see every day" Tyto frowned in bemusement,

* * *

Meanwhile, in the Jaeger household:

As she sat in her favorite chair, gazing out of the window up at the coming night sky: Carla heaved another heavy sigh.

The events from last night hadn't stopped replaying over and over again in her mind: and more than anything else, the creature that saved her, had refused to leave her curiosity alone. All day long she'd been thinking long and hard about what to do: many options and possible scenarios had been contemplated, and weighing up the risks involved with taking any action had been thought through. But it had now reached the point her curiosity was to much, and she just couldn't leave it alone.

It was decided: tomorrow morning, she would head back into the forest, and try to find the human-faced bird creature.

Eren would be spending the day with Armin and his grandfather, and Grisha would be out of town all day too, and as far as they would both be aware, she was going to one of the neighboring villages out in the farmlands to get some rare wild mushrooms.

She'd have the whole day to herself

* * *

All across the Shiganshina, the city was settling down for the night: the stars were now out in the deep azure sky, and the moon was rising up over the distant mountains. Not a single bird could be seen anywhere in the twilight sky...

Except for a Raven, a sky lark and a hawk: flying together, as they headed towards the Marian forests.

* * *

 **A/N: Sorry the chapter's a tad bit long. But hey, there was a lot of stuff to squeeze in :) stay tuned for the next chapter, for there's going to be some god-titan fluff as our girls run into their rescuers once again; it's gonna be sweet all round ;) Hope you enjoyed, and don't forget to R &R before clicking off! Bye!**


	6. Chpt 5: Hello Again

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Chapter 5: Hello Again

The following morning, deep in the Marian forests:

The sun shone through the greenery of the canopy lighting up the forest floor with dusty beams of golden light: everywhere the forest was at peace, the birds were singing and the animals were going about their usual habits: all around the summer announced its arrival with the blossoming of flowers and the baring of the first fruits and nuts of the year. It promised to be a plentiful season this year; and as the wind idly blew through the trees with hardly any strength, one could be lead to believe that this was a little corner of some tranquil paradise.

However, deep in one of the oldest parts of the forest where the giant trees grew to titanic proportions: the feeling was anything but peaceful.

After a restless night's sleep: Javorin, Hecate and Herne had reconvened in the grove of giant trees, going over what they heard in the cellar of the Inn last night: and what to make of the 'sensitive' information the seven men spoke amongst each other. As they traded opinions and hypotheses, Hecate reclined in the dark gloom of a root cave, trying to keep out of the sun's light, while Herne sat curled up on a large protruding root like a dog curled up by a fireplace, as he enjoyed the warmth of the morning light: and Javorin, simply stood in the clearing between the cave and the root with his arms folded.

" **Okay..."** Herne frowned as he folded his arms: **"So it's safe to guess the human world has grown a lot smaller in the time we've been gone"**

" **And from the sounds of it, I think it's also safe to say both the titans and the walls played an important part: most of which apparently has been lost"** Javorin concurred,

" **What that one guy said, about humanity's memories being stolen? There's got to be some sort of dark magics involved for sure. But what kind would be powerful enough to erase the collective memories of hundreds, thousands, even** _ **millions**_ **of humans all at once? And wielded by one human alone?"** Herne asked Hecate offhand,

" **It's hard to say..."** Hecate frowned as she racked her brain: **"Magics of that level of power haven't existed in the world for many thousands of years: not since-..."** She paused in dubiousness, not wishing to say it aloud.

" **Hmmm..."** Javorin frowned in equal doubt; he had a good idea what she was referring to: "... **It's not likely: but we** _ **can't**_ **rule out the possibility that someone might have found a way to resurrect those magics; but until we come across any evidence to support it, I suggest we put a pin in it to consider another time"**

" **Agreed"** Hecate nodded, before changing the subject: **"...But this 'wall cult' they mentioned, as well as this 'royal government': It would seem democracy is non-existent within this 'walled' world... Being burnt at the steak for touching the walls, as well as asking 'inappropriate' questions? These people are being quietly subjugated and the vast majority of them is either too afraid or completely oblivious...No wonder those men had to keep that meeting secret"**

" **And since when were the Celts ever considered** _ **vermin?!**_ **"** Herne scowled in ire: **"Some of my most loyal and respective followers were Celts: they understood and respected the ways of the wild, and the balance of predator and prey. Theirs was a peaceful and gentle culture that wanted for nothing but a simple existence living in harmony with the spirits and nature. Now they hide within these forests like shadows? Afraid of this 'wall cult' who condemns them to death?!"** he fumed, his face contorted into a look of hurt: **"...How could the old alliances the humans had for each other be forgotten like this? Why, of all the memories was** _ **that**_ **one erased?! What kind of peace did this 'first king' have in mind? That making everyone the same was supposed to work? If what they said is true, then both the Asian and Celtic ethnicities have been virtually wiped out through a hundred years of genocide! All that work of teaching fairness and equality among the different cultures,** _ **gone! Forever!"**_ he fumed for a moment; before calming himself down, and rubbing one of his giant hands over his face in exasperation: **"...This world...Whatever it's turned into, whatever it's been through in the time we've been gone...We've got** _ **a lot**_ **of work to do, to try and make things right again"**

" **Yeah no shit Shorty"** Hecate frowned sarcastically, **"We may be gods, but it's going to take** _ **a lot more**_ **than just our miracles to get things back on track: and it's inevitable the humans are going to have to work their 'lil asses off to regained what they've lost. Even if what those guys spoke about became known to the rest of their people, that** _ **won't**_ **be enough to undo whatever the hell's been done to turn this whole place upside down. And call it a hunch, but I'm willing to bet those 'titans' are in the middle of all this somehow"**

" **It certainly sounded that way"** Javorin placed his hands on his hips, as he stared down at the roots of the trees: **"The one thread that ran through that conversation as a constant: was that a hundred years ago the titans appeared, started 'eating' everyone, which drove humanity to seek sanctuary behind these walls. Which, according to the history books, were apparently 'bestowed' unto them as a bulwark; an act of mercy by this 'divine architect and his three goddesses"**

" **Someone posing as a false god you think?"** Herne raised an eyebrow, **"It wouldn't be the first time some cocky little wizard was looking for a following of his own"**

" **It's always possible"** Javorin shrugged, **"But then,** _ **anything**_ **is possible where humans are concerned: once they commit to a goal with conviction and determination, they seldom give in to anything"**

" **... It's always possible that a human** _ **may not**_ **be the only factor in all this?"** Hecate pointed out: **"If someone had been dabbling in magics they weren't suppose to know about; there's always a chance that** _ **something**_ **caught wind of what they were doing, and decided to have a piece of the action...Or,** _ **something**_ **decided it wanted out of whatever dark realm it was trapped in, lured some poor fool into believing it was a trapped fea or whatever, and bang: it gets out, poor fool probably unknowingly paid for it with their soul, and that** _ **something**_ **was left to its own devices"**

" **Both plausible, but again we can't say for sure"** Javorin sighed, **"It** _ **still not quite**_ **enough: we need to keep searching for answers"**

" **There's something else to keep in mind too"** Herne pointed out, changing the subject slightly: **"That knife that guy showed his friends? That symbol on the blade was written in the hand of the ancients"**

" **So? It wasn't any secret the Celts were one of the few human cultures that could** _ **actually read**_ **the hand of the ancients..."** Hecate shrugged, before gazing at Herne and studying his open thoughts: **"...You think that might be the reason why they were hunted down? To prevent them from finding this 'city of lost memories'?"**

" **Well don't you think it's a little** _ **too**_ **coincidental?"** Herne raised a skeptical eyebrow: **"That the Celts were somehow unaffected by this 'mind wipe' and remember this city? The only thing that would pose a problem to this 'first king' and his power? ...Plus, the hand of the ancients was stylized in many different forms: and yet of all the styles to crop up, the symbol on that blade** _ **just happens**_ **to be the** _ **exact same kind**_ **as the ones carved into our tombs? And tattooed onto our bodies? I'm sorry, but as a god who's been around long enough to know a sign when he sees one, you** _ **don't**_ **ignore something like that"**

" **I agree..."** Javorin sighed as he thought aloud: **"...Each of the points those men raised all pose some serious questions; questions that, apparently would put their very lives at risk...But would looking for the answers point us in the direction we need to go? I'm half tempted to return to Shiganshina and follow them to learn more; but, I can already feel the incantation's magics waning. Apparently, that conversation we overheard** _ **was**_ **the knowledge we needed to find...Where we go from here, will have to be down to us"**

" **I was half worried I was the only one to sense that"** Herne huffed as he propped his head on the root: **"Do you think we should try something else in the way of help?"**

" **As much as I am tempted I don't think we should"** Javorin speculated, **"The ancient ones generosity only run's so far, and we shouldn't push our luck to the point we won't have any contingencies to fall back on in the event something happens. Besides, we're gods: we can make our own luck were needed...We also need to take some time to assess our own curses at some point: try to figure out how best to undo them, so we can** _ **at least**_ **resume human form again, as well as try to remember what happened prior to us winding up in those tombs"**

" **...What Elysia mentioned last night: about not remembering how we ended up in those tombs in the first place? Or how she wound up in a corporeal form?"** Herne thought aloud: **"...Something about that doesn't sit well with me"**

" **Me neither. Memory loss tied to a curse of this nature, is usually** _ **never**_ **good"** Javorin gazed over at his brother with concern laced in his blue eyes: **"But, it's not like we're in dire straits; our powers are intact and we have a means of communication: we may be gods but we can only handle one crisis at a time. Right now, trying to figure out what happened to the humans is our top priority...So on that note, I'm open to suggestions on what we should do today"**

" **If that's how you want to play it, then perhaps this time we should divide and conquer?"** Hecate suggested as she smoothly slipped out of the root cave, and gracefully stood up on both feet as she flicked her long hair to one side. **"What do you have in mind?"** Javorin asked as she smoothly tip-toed in front of him.

" **There's a few things I want to try out,"** she stated as Herne stood up and approached them both, **"I want to go back over the wall and find another one of those titans: this time, I want to take a closer look at the magics those creatures are comprised of. I want to know** _ **exactly**_ **what it is we're dealing with, and if possible, find a way to dispel those magics with an effective counter-spell"**

" **Good idea"** Javorin nodded with approval,

" **I'll come with you"** Herne offered, **"You might need a hand wrangling them"**

" **No offense Shorty, but I work alone"** Hecate deadpanned,

" **Take him with you"** Javorin suggested, **"On the off chance anything happens, you might need a little help"**

Hecate folded her arms, and let a sharp frustrated "Tch!" escape her lilac lips, **"Fine. Whatever. At least it's not the brat,"** she frowned as she gazed up at the canopy, and caught a flash of white as Elysia glided over the tops of the trees.

Ever since she woke up early this morning, Elysia had been flying nonstop all above the forest around the area of the grove: soaring high up into the sky and dropping down to glide over the canopy: she had mastered her wings, and she was proud as punch. When the gods returned to the forest late last night, it came as a real surprise to see her flying all by herself, and summoning the winds to help her do it too; at least now they didn't have to worry about flying lessons: and for Hecate in particular, it was one less nuisance to be annoyed about.

" **Well? For a goddess who's assumed her first corporeal form, she's done well"** Javorin smiled as he watched her circle overhead,

" **True. But we can't afford to spend time teaching her everything else"** Hecate frowned, **"With everything we got to deal with right now, divinity lessons are going to have to wait"**

" **I figured that would be the case"** Javorin smirked, **"Which is why, after you slipped away into the shadows last night, I spent a little time crafting a particular charm for her; it's nothing fancy, but it should give her a good idea of what to do as far the basics are concerned"**

" **Good, 'cause I sure as hell ain't teaching her how to turn herself into a bird..."** Hecate huffed, before gazing up at the canopy, and directing her telepathy up at the sky **"OI! BRAT! GET YOUR FEATHERED ASS DOWN HERE!"**

With a sharp turn and a barrel-roll, Elysia tucked her wings into her sides as she dropped down through the canopy, and opened her wings out again so as to parachute down: landing on the forest floor with bump, and just barely staying upright as she nearly fell forward. **"You called?"** she grinned.

" **We're going to have to show you how to stick those landings sometime"** Herne grinned, **"But hey, you didn't fall face first into the ferns this time, that's an improvement from last night"**

" **I know right?!"** Elysia excitedly bounced up and down on her feet: **"And about time too 'cuz ferns really don't taste nice. So what's up? What're we gonna do today?"**

" **For starters"** Javorin smiled as he laid a hand on Elysia's forehead: **"I made you a little something to help you get your head around your powers as a goddess".** Javorin's tattoos lit up around his arm, and a bright glow of white light burst forth from Elysia's forehead as her ice blue eyes lit up for moment, and her facial and neck tattoos lit up in a pale blue glow: and just as quickly as the glowing started, it died out in a flash, as the charm had been transferred to Elysia's mind, and she blinked in confusion at this strange new knowledge that was now at the forefront of her memory. **"Now don't get carried away: all those spells and charms are nothing complex or overly powerful, they're merely to serve as basic guides to help you construct your own magics"** Javorin added.

" **Wait-"** Elysia frowned at him in confusion: **"Construct** _ **my own**_ **magics?"**

" **Yeah, you know? The basics?"** Herne shrugged, **"Turning invisible, talking to animals and the spirits, controlling the elements"**

" **The element's?!"** Elysia gasped in astonishment: _ **"You mean I can control more than one?!"**_

" **Well of course you can control more than one kid, you're a goddess: you may have a primary elemental power, but all gods and goddesses can control all four elements on a fundamental level"** Herne explained, **"Why? Did you think you were limited to just the one?"**

Elysia went very quiet, as she dropped her gaze with a look of anxiety in her eyes; embarrassment, shame and feeling stupid began to rise up inside her, and suddenly, she felt too ashamed to say anything. Seeing the look on her face, Herne suddenly felt rather embarrassed, and quickly regretted asking. Sensing her rising anxiety, Javorin stepped forward, and laying a reassuring hand on her shoulder, he knelt down to meet her gaze: **"...Whatever you were told, whatever you came to believe before, know this:** _ **you are your own goddess**_ **, and your power is yours to command; no one else, not even any other god, has the right to tell you what you are, or what you can only be. Okay?"**

" **...Okay"** she meekly nodded,

Glancing back at the others, Javorin then got back up on his feet and smiled down at her: **"Listen, how about you help me out today? Hecate and Herne will be gone, and I've got something I need to do"**

" **You do?"** Hecate raised an eyebrow.

" **You're going to analyze the titans in detail; I'm going to see if we're the only gods around here. A forest as vast and ancient as this is bound to have plenty of tree and river gods hiding about: maybe one of them will be willing to offer some assistance?"** Javorin stated as he wandered over to the edge of the grove: **"I don't know how long it'll take, so don't wait up for me if you get back first"**

" **And what about the brat?"** Hecate glanced over at Elysia, who shied away from her cold stern gaze: **"How're you gonna put her to use?"**

" **Hmmm? ..."** Javorin glanced over at her with a small smile: **"She can help me look: four eyes are better than two, and it'll be an opportunity for her to practice her invisibility if she wanders near any roads...Sound good Elysia?"**

" **Uh yeah, sure"** she nodded as she quickly scooted over to his side, and hid behind his frame: trying to stay away from Hecate, who still had her sharp violet eyes trained on her.

" **...Is that okay with you?"** Javorin asked Hecate offhand: grabbing her attention, Hecate merely gazed at him with her stone cold poker face; she _knew_ he was up to something, and in all likelihood it was probably something she wasn't going to approve of. But if that was the case, what could she do? Javorin was a god who worked by his own means and objectives; and although he was never one to do anything that would cause harm or collateral damage, at the same time he was not one to share all his information so openly unless he felt it necessary to do so. But then, who was she to complain? Being the kind of goddess she was, how dissimilar were her own methods from his? The fact they were cousins was one of the few reasons she didn't question him all that much on why and how he went about his divine duties: it was that familial bond and understanding that kept them on good terms like that; but the fact he could be as sneaky and secretive as her pissed her off, and she didn't like it when she was always the last to know. "TCH!" she huffed, **"Whatever, just don't let her trigger Ragnarok or some shit like that"** she deadpanned, before turning into her raven form, and taking off up through the canopy into the open sky above.

" **Well? Have fun. Catch you two later"** Herne waved goodbye, before turning into a sky lark, and taking off after Hecate.

" **...She really doesn't like me, does she?"** Elysia sulked, letting her wings droop,

" **It's not that,"** Javorin assured her, **"She's just, not much of a 'people person': she much prefers her own company: even her own siblings don't get along all that well when their together"**

" **She has brothers and sisters?"** Elysia blinked in surprise: trotting after Javorin as he began strolling through the forest, away from the grove of giant trees.

" **Oh yes, quite a number of them"** Javorin nodded offhand, **"But considering** _ **her**_ **particular divine heritage, it's no surprise really"**

" **Why's that?"** Elysia innocently asked,

Javorin stopped and looked at her in mild surprise: **"...You really don't know who Hecate is, do you?"**

" **Well no, should I?"**

" **... Considering you've never spent any length of time on the ground before: I suppose you didn't really get the opportunity to learn much about the rest of your divine kin..."** Javorin explained as he continued walking: **"Are you at least familiar with the ancient ones?"**

" **Well of course, they're the higher gods that watched the world come into existence"** she shrugged offhand as she continued following him, **"The ones that saw the first manna sprout from the eternal well of the earth, and helped it to fill the world with life; then some of them died so they could give birth to the first spirits, while the rest gave birth to us, the lower gods. Who swore to remain on this world until time ceases to turn and the cosmos breaths its last breath. Everyone knows that"**

" **Ah, but do you know who gave birth to whom? And what tasks they were set? ..."** Javorin glanced back at her with a knowing smile: Elysia listened up as he explained more: **"Hecate's mother was Lune: goddess of the moon and the night, while her father was Sourock, the god of the dead and lord of the Dark realms: from their union, three distinct lines of offspring were born; the Death keepers, who's task it is to find and collect the souls of the dead and make sure they pass into the next life peacefully; the demon gods, who found delight in causing chaos, discord and destruction wherever they went. And the night roamers, whose duty it was to protect the mortal plane from anyone or anything that would threaten the balance between the spiritual and the natural worlds. Hecate is one of the night roamers: and the most powerful and strongest of them all; her strength as a goddess is unmatched, and her knowledge of all magics is unsurpassed, for countless centuries she has been both respected and feared by mortals, spirits and gods alike: even the ancient ones praised her name long ago"**

" **So? She's a demon hunter?"**

" **Not just any demon hunter"** Javorin clarified, **"The** _ **goddess**_ _ **of all demon hunters**_ **: every priest, shaman, medicine man, oracle and exorcist would offer their their prayers and beseech her name to help them fight the forces of evil. Her strength, skill and power is unlike any we lower gods possess; I can still remember, back during the dark ages her mere presence alone would be enough to still the winds and make the earth tremble in fear. For whenever her shadow fell upon the ground, you knew you were in the presence of one that could make mountains crumble to dust, and oceans run black with demon blood"**

" **Is she really that scary?"** Elysia swallow hard,

" **She likes to think she is"** Javorin smiled, **"But deep down, she's really not that bad once you gets to know her: being who she is and the kind of 'work' she's done over the centuries, she does come off as intimidating. But don't let it put you off, she wouldn't do anything to hurt you, I promise"**

" **...So?** **Who're your parents?"** Elysia thought aloud,

" **My mother was Lilith, goddess and queen of all the spirits, and my father was Prometheus, the god of mankind"**

" **Ah! So that's why you're the overseer of mankind!"**

" **That's right"** Javorin smiled: **"When mankind first began to evolve sentience and self-awareness: the ancient ones and many of us lower gods began to realize that this species could develop into something quite powerful, and that if they were not properly observed and cared for, there was no telling what kind of chaos could transpire from their actions. To that end, my father elected to watch over the humans, and help them along, eventually becoming their first god; and when the time came for the ancient ones to leave the mortal plane for the eternal realm, my father left me in charge of their care"**

" **He just left you all alone?"**

" **Oh, not really"** Javorin smiled, **"When you're a god you're never truly alone, no matter what realm you're in. Besides, back then the world was changing in some very big ways, and the ancient one's time on this mortal plane had come to an end, while ours was just beginning...It was okay, and neither of us had any regrets; we both made the right decision"**

" **So were you born into a human form? Or did you exist as something else before the humans evolved? ...I don't really remember how** _ **I**_ **was born: maybe because I didn't have a body to begin with?"**

Javorin thought about it a moment, before answering: **"...It's, a bit complicated"** he dithered, **"Technically, I** _ **was**_ **born before the humans first emerged, but I hadn't yet assumed a corporeal form: originally I was a gust wind that blew at my father's back. Then, when they first started to worship my father, I grew i** _ **ntensely**_ **fascinated with them, and wanted to learn more about them; so I took my first form as a human so I could live amongst them...And ever since that time I've lived countless lives as a human; a different person every time, with a different life, a different destiny, and even a different death"**

" **Death?!"** Elysia exclaimed, **"You allowed yourself to** _ **die?!**_ **"**

" **Well? It's not like the death keepers could keep me for long: being immortal means coming back to life one way or another for us gods: it just depends on the nature of your reincarnation. Sometimes I would live an entire life from birth to death as a human, being born to a human mother; on other occasions I would simply let my corporeal form dissolve into the earth, and the following spring I'd dig my way out of the ground as a completely whole new human. It depended on a number of factors, but after a couple of hundred years I wasn't all that picky... Dying is sort of like falling asleep: you don't remember the exact time it happened, but when you are reborn again, you just know that this new life will be different from the last"**

" **Why? Why can't your new life be the same as your old one?"**

" **Because, no two things are ever the same"** Javorin shrugged, **No two seasons are exactly the alike, and even human twins are different in their own little ways;** _ **everything**_ **is unique, and it is so because that is part of the nature of this world...When the time comes and your current corporeal form has reached its natural end, you can either choose to take a new form and be reincarnated as a whole new person or animal, or, you can return to your elemental form and be completely free from the physical limitations of a body"**

" **Okay. But what will the difference be?"**

Javorin glanced down at Elysia with an understanding look in his bright blue eyes: **"...The difference? ...You might have a reason to want to stay: or, you might have a reason to want to leave; but until then, just live your life in this form, and don't worry. The future often has a way of taking care of itself"**

" **I don't really understand"** Elysia frowned in bemusement, **"But I'll take your word for it"**

" **You'll be okay,"** Javorin smiled as he placed a hand on her shoulder, **"In the mean time, I'd say this seems like a good spot to split up and head off in different directions".** Looking around, Elysia saw they had walked a fair distance from the grove, and were now in a part of the forest where the giant trees were not as big or as old; the steady incline had evened out into a more flat ground, peppered with deep hollows here and there, along with some hidden coves. **"You head off that way, and try calling out for any gods that might be around"** he instructed her, pointing to her right: **"I can feel there's a stream nearby, I'll check to see if there's a river god around there"** he pointed to his left.

" **What do I do if I find one?"** Elysia worried.

" **Just introduce yourself, state your divine title, and inform them of our current situation"** he told her, **"Relax, you'll be fine: and if you get lost don't worry, the trees will let me know where you are"**

" **Uh okay,"** she nodded, heading off in the direction he pointed: **"But wait! What if they don't-** She turned round, but saw he was gone: looking around, she couldn't see Javorin anywhere; sighing in disappointment, Elysia turned back around and started heading off 'Well, at least it's not Hecate: so that's something I guess?' she thought to herself as she walked through the trees. Then, through the thick greenery and down the side of a steady embankment, she spotted a paved road: it looked just like the one she saw the night before last, only now in the daylight, she could see the paved bricks were a pale chalk-white-ish grey, and were neatly lined up together. Wondering if any humans might pass along, she eagerly ruffled her feathers in excitement, and trotted off down towards the tree line: hoping to catch a glimpse of another human.

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the forest:

"Now don't go too far," Freya told the children, "And don't spread out too wide"

"We won't!" they all shouted back as they disappeared into the thick undergrowth.

With the promise of fine weather and a quiet uneventful day, Freya and her sister's-in-law had taken the opportunity to head out into the forest to collect berries, nuts and mushrooms: while their children had been told to practice their archery by trying to bag a few game birds. Having wandered a mile or so up from the main road, into an area they knew was reliable for foraging and hunting, the four mothers could relax a little while the children wandered off into the surrounding hollows and coves to flush out any game. All, except for Ariana, who trailed after her mother with her bow and quiver slung on her back, carrying the large wicker basket; trying to remain inconspicuous.

Any other time Ariana had no problem with hunting by herself, but the fact that she had been told to stay with her brothers really put her off: and ever since they left home she'd been trying everything she could think of to try and avoid being near Rowan.

Rowan, for his part tried to keep a distance from the group: his cousins were still not okay being around him, mostly because they didn't know if he was still simmering in one of his moods, or if he just wanted to be left alone. So for most of the journey, he and his brothers ambled a few meters behind the group.

"...Ariana? ..." Freya glanced behind her, only to find her daughter wasn't there; glancing over into the nearby bushes and catching a flash of deep auburn red, she knelt down and parted the twigs aside, to see Ariana crouched down with a look of frustration; she hated being found out: "I don't think there are any birds in there" she smiled, but Ariana simply huffed and folded her arms in annoyance. "...Darling, please" her mother pleaded softly, "Just go and talk to him? He really is sorry about what happened"

Ariana simply stared back at her, unwilling to yield: there was no way she was apologizing to Rowan, not in a million years. Seeing she was still in a foul mood over the issue, and knowing she couldn't force her to do anything she didn't want to, Freya passed a heavy sigh, and stood to one side as she stepped out of the bushes: "Well? If he approaches you, don't get angry with him. Just _listen_ , alright?"

"I'll think about it" Ariana sighed, which as far as she was concerned meant no: "...Couldn't we have left a little later? I wanted to see the Scouts embark on their latest expedition"

"You can watch them return when they get back" her mother smiled as she picked up her basket, "Now grab your bow, and go and fetch a nice fat pheasant for the pot. And don't go too far this time okay?"

"Fine, whatever" Ariana sighed as she wandered into the undergrowth, "See you later"

"...Think she'll be okay?" Skadi asked offhand in concern.

"I hope so" Freya sighed, "I just-, hope they both don't drag this out for too long"

"Well? Something will have to give eventually" Bestla offered,

After wandering less than fifty yards from where Freya and her aunts had started foraging for berries, Ariana heard a rustle in the bushes behind her; turning around, she was surprised to see Hazel standing there, looking rather unsure of herself. "Hey..." she greeted anxiously as she stepped forward: "Um? Listen, I know I didn't say anything yesterday: but I wanted to say I'm sorry for what happened the night before"

"...You don't need to apologize" Ariana blinked in surprise, "What happened wasn't your fault"

"But I didn't stop you from running off, or stop Rowan when he hit you the first time round" she admitted reluctantly: "I didn't even stop to check if you were still there: and I should have insisted we stay in the forest to look for you...I-...I'm not a good cousin"

"Don't be stupid, you're a great cousin" Ariana tried to assure her, "It's Rowan that's the problem: he's the one who started it. Look, don't feel bad about it okay? We're good"

"That's great to hear" Clay smiled as he poked his head out of the nearby bush, "Now come on Hazel, I just spotted a big fat wood pigeon with my name on it: go flush it outta that tree over there! before Jaye gets it first!" he pointed to a nearby low-lying hawthorn tree; glancing back at Ariana with an apologetic look, Hazel added: "We'll talk more later, yeah?" and quietly slipped between the foliage, staying close at Clay's back as they approached the tree with their bows and arrows ready.

Glancing around, and listening carefully, Ariana decided she wanted her own space, and so quietly headed off in the other direction: away from everyone else.

Rowan watched as she disappeared among the pallet of greens, and sighed in hesitation, wondering whether or not to go after her.

* * *

Meanwhile, somewhere out beyond wall Maria:

After having flown a good several miles out beyond the wall, Hecate and Herne were now soaring along the edge of a large evergreen forest, looking for any suitable titan 'candidates' to capture and study. There were quite a few in this area, but finding the right one was proving to be less than easy.

" **What about that one down there?"** Herne gestured to a ten meter tall titan,

" **Too large, he might put up a bit of a fight"** she replied frankly,

" **Okay? What about that one? He's only five meters tall"** he pointed to another with the tip of his wing,

" **Looks good enough..."** she watched the titan carefully, **"okay, let's get him"**

The two gods circled back around, and lined up to get into position to perform a stoop; the aim would be to swoop down, transform back into their original forms mid-way down and land either side of the titan, taking it by surprise: quick and simple, without allowing it much time to fight back. But as they approached the titan, they suddenly noticed it and all the other titans were now starting to run, all heading in the same direction: away from the forest, and out into the open prairie.

" **Whoa! What's got their attention?"** Herne blinked in surprise as he quickly changed course, and followed the titans overhead.

Gazing down at them and reading their aura's, Hecate could see there was a slight shift in the tangle of chaos magics: as if something had suddenly stimulated a baseline instinct of some kind, and was now compelling them to follow it: **"Don't know, but something's** _ **definitely**_ **up"** was all she could say.

" **Where are they going?"** Herne thought aloud and they both flew far ahead of the growing stampede, and gazed out across the open land.

They soon spotted something else entirely.

A long column of riders on horseback stretched for over four hundred yards, galloping at speed and kicking up large clouds of dust in their wake: towards the rear were several supply wagons and carts, and every rider wore a pine green hooded cloak with a large crest on the back, depicting a set of white and blue wings. As they turned and flew parallel to the column, the two gods quickly realized the titans were heading straight for them, and on the opposite side, another six titans were quickly closing the distance.

" **What're we gonna do?!"** Herne exclaimed as he ruffled his feathers, **"Whatever these titans got in mind, it can't be good;** _ **who are**_ **these humans anyway?"**

" **Fight now, ask questions later"** Hecate frowned as she dropped down below Herne, **"Summon some fog for me, and make sure those humans don't stop for anything!"**

" **You got it!"** Herne shouted back as he soared up into the sky, and called on his power to summon the weather to his command. Within seconds, the fluffy white clouds high above turned dark and heavy, and before long they wafted down to ground level, creating a thick fog that shrouded the prairie from sight and turned the sky grey. The humans started to panic, but the column stayed together and they didn't slow down; so far so good, as Hecate dropped down, transformed, and charged head-long into the stampede of titans.

In an instant her fingers elongated into long robust blade-like claws, nearly four meters in length, and as the titans came within range, she cut them down with one effortless swipe after another: striking them in the chest and head, before summoning her power and incinerating them with her purple flames. In hardly any time at all, all the titans were dead, and she was the only one left standing.

" **Nice job but we ain't done yet!"** Herne called out, **"There's another lot heading for the rear right flank!"**

Transforming her claws back into fingers, Hecate began to run after the column, quickly gaining ground until she could hear the sound of thundering hooves less than three hundred yards in front of her. To her right, she heard the titans approaching, and turning her fingers back into claws again, she swung hard and decapitated one titan: as it fell down it tripped up another three titans that were right behind it, causing them to come crashing down and leaving her free to strike the remaining two, decapitating them and sending them crashing to the ground too.

" **Herne! Open up the fog: let the humans see what's ahead, but keep me covered"** she shouted,

" **Sure thing!"** he replied, and within seconds the fog grew thinner, until visibility was good for over eight hundred yards, but the fog behind the column stayed as thick as pea soup. Using her power to see every living aura, and thus navigate within range of the humans, Hecate glanced around with concern. There were more titans approaching, she could see their unnatural auras coming from every direction, and they were all heading straight for the column.

" **If these humans don't find cover soon, they're going to be in serious trouble!"** she huffed, **"Why are the titans chasing them? What do they want?!"**

" **To eat them maybe?"** Herne suggested, **"The humans say they eat them, I suggest we don't test that theory!"**

" **Okay, you stay up there and tell me what's coming!"** she called back, sensing his aura some seven hundred feet above the column, **"...Javorin! Can you hear me? The humans are in trouble! Get your toned up ass out here and help me save them!"**

But no answer came

" **JAVORIN! CAN YOU HEAR ME?! ANSWER ME COUSIN!"** she telepathically bellowed, but still, he didn't answer her.

" **What's wrong?!"** Herne panicked slightly, **"Why isn't he responding?!"**

" **...Forget him..."** Hecate frowned as she saw more titans approaching from a couple of miles away, **"We're on our own..."**

'I _swear_ Javorin: you had better have a _damn good excuse_ for ignoring me like this!' she mentally huffed, making a mental note to seriously kick his ass when they returned to the safe side of the wall.

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere within the Marian forest:

As Carla wandered along the road, she walked as quietly as possible, making sure she could hear every little noise behind the bushes and beyond the tree line. The long walk from Shiganshina had been uneventful, and now she was on the same stretch of road she traveled the night before last. With the memory of the human traffickers at the forefront of her mind, the adrenaline in her blood kept her on edge and alert: she wanted so badly to turn back and run, afraid they might still be out here somewhere; lying in wait to pounce on her once more. With the farmers out in the fields and other people traveling along the roads, she figured it might be riskier for them to attempt anything in broad daylight; but it did little to quell her fears.

But she was determined to find answers, or something at least, that would prove what she saw the night before last wasn't a figment of her imagination.

As she cleared the next rise and turned the corner, she soon spotted the stretch of road where the attack/encounter took place. Pausing a moment to take a deep breath and steady her nerves, she steadily walked down the incline, until she recognized the layout where the horse had thrown her from the saddle. On the right side of the road she saw a large clearing in the tree line, where something huge had come crashing through the dense undergrowth with force: twigs and branches were broken and lying all over the place, and hanging from the bushes in a scattered mess; some small trees had been pushed aside, having been uprooted completely, while leaf litter, dead ferns and ivy, and dirt was everywhere all over the road. On the opposite side, hoof prints and track marks left by the wagon testified to how fast the horses had bolted in fear.

Looking around, Carla wanted to breathe a sigh of relief: the only thing that stopped her was the nagging doubt of whether that creature was what she really saw; a human-faced bird creature? How could such a beast be real? As she gazed up at the clearing, she wondered if the creature was even still here: it had wings after all, so it could have flown off, and is probably long gone by now.

Thinking there was nothing else to be found here, Carla turned back, and started heading for home: when suddenly, a large shadow loomed over her; turning around to see what was casting it, Carla all but jumped out of her skin when she saw a huge pair of ice blue eyes gazing down at her. Tripping over her own feet and falling onto the grassy verge, she crawled back in fear, until she looked up, and instantly recognized those eyes.

It was the creature: gazing down at her with an eager look of excitement, it bounced up and down on its digigrade legs like a little child who'd just seen their best friend for the first time in a long while, as it let out a happy string of chirps and warbles.

Somewhat relieved, yet still on edge, Carla didn't know what to think as she let out a nervous chuckle: "Oh, it's you", she quickly got back up: "I uh, I was wondering if I'd find you here" she admitted nervously. The creature smiled as it let out another long series of chirps: obviously it was talking about something, but it didn't seem to be aware of the fact that it wasn't making any sense; to Carla's ears, it just sounded like several complex bird songs all strung together. Then it paused, obviously waiting for a reply.

Seeing it in daylight, Carla was taken aback by the creature's elegance and beauty; its feathers were as white as snow, and were laced with iridescent colours, like a rainbow. The symmetrical markings on its face and neck were as black as coal, and they didn't look like natural marking's, more like a strange design someone had pained onto its skin: it had big long wings folded up at its sides, hair that was comprised entirely of long downy feathers, and two huge flank plumes on the back of each shoulder. And trailing behind it was a long elegant white tail over ten meters long, much like a bridal trail. It was breathtaking to say the least, but the one thing that caught her attention the most were those eyes; bright pale blue like freshly fallen spring rain, they seemed to glisten in the morning sun as the creature bobbed its head up and down slightly. Carla couldn't believe this was the same creature that saved her life the night before last. And what struck her the most was just _human_ its face was: young, innocent and full of wonder: it looked more like a child's face than anything else, and was a far cry from being terrifying; chances were, it probably couldn't even say boo to a goose.

The creature tilted its head to one side and chirped inquisitively, as if asking her what she was looking at: snapping back to reality, Carla's brain was tripping up on her; what do you say to a creature that only speaks in bird songs? Then she remembered their first encounter: it had understood her, and responded when she talked to it; Carla nervously cleared her throat and replied: "Uh, I'm sorry for staring, I just noticed all the colours in your feathers" she pointed up to its left shoulder.

Glancing down at its shoulder, the creature nodded with a pleased smile, and let out another string of chirps; bending right down until its face was right next to hers, it looked her over more closely, as if curious about her whole form. It sniffed the top of her head: let out a puff of air, making her skirt flap around her legs, and stayed perfectly still as Carla cautiously reached her hand up, and gently touching its cheek. Its pristine white skin was quite warm, and smooth with a slight soft fuzziness, like a peach: all the while, the creature just kept smiling with delight, as if happy to know she wasn't scare of it.

As she continued to stroke the creature's cheek, Carla felt the tension in her muscles ease: the adrenaline waned and she allowed herself to relax a little, now confident she was in no obvious danger; the one thing that kept her from totally letting her guard down was the creature's sheer size, at over seven meters in height with a long tail that could easily knock her off her feet with one sweep, she wasn't taking its size and far superior strength for granted. Even if this creature had no intention of harming her, there were no guarantees it might not accidentally hurt her: so for the time being, she was staying alert. But as she gazed up into its eyes, and saw how they seemed to shine with curiosity, Carla couldn't help but smile; a genuine smile of amazement.

"...Wow..." she breathed: "...You know it's funny, considering how big you are, you could almost be mistaken for a-

And that's when Carla's smile disappeared, and her stomach dropped like a lead weight: this creature was mostly a bird, but it also had a human face, and was of a _gigantic_ size. Her mind back-flipped a few paces as a sudden realization began to turn over a new line of thought, and as she stared off into space, she began to wonder '...Is this creature...a _titan?!_ ', could such a titan exist? Was it possible for titan/animal hybrids to be a real thing? But what else could it be? There was no other creature that even came close to resembling this strange bird hybrid, except for a titan; they were huge, looked human...and titans _eat_ humans. But this creature, this 'bird titan' clearly had no interest in eating her, which made utterly no sense; _all_ titans eat humans, she knew that...or did she? This was no titan she had ever seen before, but then, she'd _never actually seen_ a real titan to begin with.

As she tried to make sense of what she knew, and what she was seeing right now: a warbling chirp snapped her back to reality. Meeting the creature's gaze again, Carla saw the concern in its eyes, as she suddenly realized it had seen the look of confusion on her face: gently pulling her hand away: she assured it "I-it's okay, I just-..." she paused a moment; drawing in breath, she decided to take another chance, and asked nervously: "...Um, this might sound a bit forward, but: are you a titan?..."

The creature blinked at her in surprise, before firmly shaking its head, confidently stating no: "Okay? ..." Carla sighed, unsure whether to be totally relieved; but still, she had to be sure, and so asked: "-But, I don't _really know_ what else to call you? I ask, simply because, well? You sort of _look_ like a titan; your big and you have a human face, the only difference is you don't seem to want to eat me"

The creature's face dropped in shock, ruffling its feathers in alarm as its jaw practically hit the ground; it then shook its head even more, and unfolding one wing, pointed its feathers at its mouth as if they were fingers and contorted its face into a disgusted grimace as it made a gagging motion: emphasizing the point that it _really_ didn't care for human flesh.

"You _really_ don't like human flesh?" Carla realized, "Okay, sorry I asked"

Much to her relief, the creature smiled and nodded, as if to say it was okay: it then stretched its wing right out, and Carla was really taken aback by just its sheer size; it must have been nearly eleven meters long, and as it stretched the other wing out to get the cricks out of its joints, the sunlight fell on its back and lit up its feathers as if they were made of pearl and starlight. With all the iridescent colours shining with such radiance, they lit up the whole underside of the canopy with every colour imaginable. It was so bright that Carla held up a hand to shield her eyes, squinting as she tried to see through the blinding white.

"Wow..." she couldn't help but smile, "With feathers and wings as radiant as that, and a face so sweet and innocent, you almost look like an angel". Suddenly, the creature started bouncing up and down and chirping with excitement, nodding its head eagerly: "Angel? ..." Carla repeated; and again, the creature got all excited and happy, "...Is that your name?"

Nodding confidently, the creature opened its wings out and turned its face to one size, striking a pose, as if to help confirm her assumption: "...Huh..." Carla smiled, "...Angel...it suits you...well Angel, I'm Carla Jaeger; it's nice to meet you" she properly introduced herself. "So uh? Where do you come from? I guess it must be somewhere far away from here"

Angel dropped her gaze for moment, as if thinking about her question: and then she suddenly perked up again, as if suddenly getting an idea. Crouching right down and laying her head on the ground, Angel chirped and directed Carla's gaze to her back. "You want me to climb up on you?" the woman asked in surprise, to which Angel chirped and nodded. Glancing up at Angel's shoulder, Carla tentatively climbed up and tried to get comfy, holding onto a handful of feathers in each hand. As Angel quickly got back up, the sudden motion nearly sent Carla flying and she let out a surprised yelp as she slipped off the smooth skin of the shoulder. Freezing in place, Angel nearly panicked as she caught Carla with the bend of her wing, and pushed her back up onto her shoulder; she waited as Carla awkwardly climbed along until she was seated right by her neck, where she could keep a good grip on a handful of feathers from her head, and keep her feet firmly planted on her collar bone. Once Carla was certain she wasn't going to fall off again, she offered a nervous smile: "its okay, I think I can do this"

Angel carefully nodded, being careful not to knock Carla accidentally on the head, and as steadily as possible, she walked off back up into the forest: keeping her gate as smooth as possible so Carla wouldn't be jostled around too much, and using the bend of her wing to brush aside the branches and twigs that threatened to swat Carla off her perch.

Glancing down, Carla felt her stomach turn as she saw just how far up from the ground she was, a fall from this height would result in a bone fracture for sure: her grip tightened as she tried to keep her balance; every little motion of Angel's stride felt like it was nudging her off bit by bit, and she had to keep scooting up a little closer to her head to stop herself from slipping any further. After a few uneasy minutes, Carla steadily began to get a feel for the rhythm of Angel's gate, and adjusted her own balance and grip to stay on her shoulder more securely; once she was sure she got the hang of it, she nervously glanced around, and realized they were heading deep into the forest. Where was Angel heading? Was it a secret hiding place? Or a nest perhaps? Being part bird, it wouldn't be surprising if she had a home somewhere high up on the branch of some giant tree.

It was then Carla suddenly realized: _'Just what the hell am I doing?!'_ Here she was, riding some intelligent bird titan she'd only just met, with no idea where she was going or what would be waiting for her when Angel reached her destination. _'I'm mad! Utterly and completely mad!'_ her mind panicked, as she simply sat there and held on for dear life.

She began to wonder at the back of her mind, if stepping out of her front door this morning, was really a wise choice?

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the forest:

Ariana looked around carefully and listened, making sure no one had followed her; once she was confident no one was around, she pressed on, heading through the undergrowth towards the stream, trying to remember the direction she took towards the grove of giant trees, and to where she saw that titan. Now that she was back in the forest and remembering what happened the night before last, her curiosity to want to find the behemoth had overridden her mother's order to stay within range of the family. But was this the right way? It was night time when she found the grove, and the only light she had was moonlight, so it's not like she got a good look at her surroundings as she went along, and with her nose swollen from being punched, she hadn't been able to smell anything that might help her to navigate effectively.

As she approached the stream and gazed down at the crystal clear water: she huffed in disappointment; looking back down the incline of the forest floor, she couldn't see her mother, aunts or cousins anywhere. Which wasn't a problem, she remembered the way this time, and knew the quickest way back to them: keeping one ear open for in case her mother called, Ariana gazed up into the forest, and wondered if it was really worth carrying on.

She was about to proceed, when a soft thud suddenly made her stop: what was that? It sounded like something heavy had hit the ground: not enough to echo through the trees, but still, it sounded big, and close by too. Looking around where she stood, Ariana couldn't see anything: silently drawing an arrow from her quiver and locking it in place on her bow, she readied to fire in case something came charging out of the bushes.

Suddenly, a warm puff of air blew from behind, kicking up her bangs, and making her freeze to the spot. Wind was not hot like that; it felt more like an animal's breath than actual wind. Bringing her bow and arrow up into position, Ariana spun on her heels and aimed; only to find herself staring at a giant pair of folded forearms.

Gazing up slowly, her eyes grew wide as dinner plates as she found herself staring up at the blue-eyed titan: lying on his belly with his elbows propping him up. He was gazing down at her with a happy smile, as if to say: why hello there. Staring intently up into those radiant blue eyes, and recognizing them instantly, Ariana couldn't help but let a broad smile creep across her face: "...I _knew_ you were real..." she breathed with excitement as she lowered her bow, replaced the arrow into the quiver, and slung the bow over her shoulder.

Ariana remained still as he slowly got up and sat himself next to a tree, leaning back against the trunk, and stretching his legs out to their full length as he reclined nonchalantly: totally relaxed and unconcerned. She was at a loss for words as she took in just how big he was; that night, when she saw him standing up, he looked gigantic, but here in the daylight she could see in full, the sheer size and scale of his form, and the muscles he boasted were _absolutely huge_. Compared to her tiny little frame, he was practically _a mountain_ of flesh. She wasn't sure whether to come any closer: looking up at his face, and seeing that lipless cheekless maw again, she hesitated a little; seeing this, he made a deep cooing sound, as if to say: don't be scared, I won't hurt you, and laid a hand down on the ground by his side, as if to invite her to approach.

Realizing he was trying to be friendly, Ariana cautiously stepped forward: as she came closer, his giant frame encompassed her entire range of vision: _he was so damn big it was unreal!_ And as approached his hand, she was amazed by the size of his palm and fingers; reaching out, she laid a hand on his thumb and was struck by how warm it was. Craning her head all the way back to meet his gaze, Ariana saw just how far up he was compared to her, and he was only sitting down.

"... You're really _really_ big" was all she could say; to which he replied with a deep chuckle.

Looking at his palm, Ariana threw caution to the wind and climbed up into his hand: she nearly fell forward as he steadily raised his hand, and sat her down in his lap. Standing up, she looked up and down his legs and torso, and found her smile growing wider: that was when she noticed the intricate markings covering most of his body, and on his palm and fingers beneath her feet. And her eyes lit up in realization: "...Hey, I _know_ these markings" she breathed, "They're just like the one on my dad's hunting knife" she turned to meet his gaze, "Are you a Celtic titan?!"

The giant let out a deep soft laugh, being careful not to jostle her too much: gazing down at her, he shook his head: no. "Oh, okay" Ariana nodded, "But-, do you _know_ the Celts?"

He shrugged, and gestured with his other hand, as if to say: sort of. "...So?" Ariana changed the subject: "...Were you the one who did this to my eye? That night?" she asked anxiously, pointing to her left eye. The giant gazed down at her with an apologetic look, and nodded: "I guess I should thank you then; I don't know what happened or what you did. All I remember is that one second my eye was in pain, and the next I wake up, and I can see again, and the pain's gone. So, Thank you" she smiled, to which the giant smiled warmly back at her.

* * *

Javorin had sensed her aura the moment she came within a few miles of his position: her and her mother, along with the rest of her extended family, as he sensed their proximity to the stream. _No way_ could it be just a coincidence that she would show up again in this forest, and so near to him too.

Deciding to indulge his curiosity, Javorin watched as she left her family and ventured away from them: unknowingly wandering closer towards him. Watching her aura, he was intrigued by just how comfortable she was being alone in this forest: knowing there were predators out here, and yet she moved with a neutral fluidity that allowed her to slip through the undergrowth stealthily; she was confident in what she was doing, aware of her surroundings, and all the while, attuned to the sights and sounds and smells of the forest. This child was a born hunter: no wonder he didn't sense her creeping up behind him the night before last. As she drew closer, he could see the remnants of his blood within her eye: just a tiny portion; from where he stood it looked like a distant blue star set into her orbital socket, with barely any power remaining. It would seem that her eye changing colour had been the only side-effect of his healing her injury.

Although he was invisible to her eyes, Javorin still took great care in lowing himself down into his belly by the stream, and propping himself up on his elbows: he would try to make himself look as less intimidating as possible, which, given his huge size and unsightly maw wasn't going to be easy, but if he did this right, hopefully she wouldn't run away in fear this time.

As she came within ten yards of him, he picked a log that had been by his side, and threw it off into the undergrowth; the sudden thump made her turn around: which gave him the second he needed to drop his invisibility and reveal himself in full. He softly blew down on her, and with her bow and arrow at the ready, she spun round and stopped in her tracks as she laid her eyes on him.

For a long tense moment she just stood there in shock, staring up at him: until she gazed into his eyes, and smiled: ...I _knew_ you were real..."

Relived, he then slowly got up, and sat against the tree: gazing down at her with the friendliest smile his lipless face could muster (at least, he _hoped_ he was smiling) while cooing as softly as he could, to further emphasize his gentleness. Judging by the look on her face, she was obviously taken aback by just how big he was: Javorin couldn't help but not get over his size too, as the girl looked _absolutely tiny_ , and she was only several meters away. Placing a hand in front of her, he allowed her to approach and investigate, almost like a nervy stray cat or dog: reading her aura, he could see her fear was waning, being replaced by awe and wonder, and as she placed a hand on his thumb, her smile grew wider: "You're really _really_ big" she gazed up at him.

'And you're really _really_ small' he couldn't help but mentally smile.

With her confidence finally returned, the girl climbed into his palm, and he gently brought her up and placed her in his lap: standing up in his palm, she looked him up and down, seemingly studying the tattoos on his skin: "Hey, I _know_ these markings" she suddenly blurted out, "Their just like the one on my dad's hunting knife"

Dad? Hunting knife? A symbol written in the hand of the ancients? This child _recognized_ the hand of the ancients? 'So?' He thought with great interest, 'That gentleman is your father hm? ...This just got _interesting_ '

"Are you a Celtic titan?!" she blurted out: Javorin couldn't help but laugh, with all the markings on his skin it was easy for anyone to make such an assumption; he shook his head, and she nodded in understanding: "oh okay...But do you _know_ the Celts?"

Javorin paused a brief moment, without his voice he was very limited in his response; deciding to opt for body language, he gave an uncertain shrug, and with his other hand he gestured a 'sort of' type of motion. Fortunately, she seemed to pick up on this, and nodded in understanding: "So?" she nervously changed the subject: "...Were you the one who did this to my eye? That night?" she pointed to her left eye.

Not wishing to lie to her, and yet, unable to explain exactly how: all Javorin could do was gaze down at her apologetically, and nod: "I guess I should thank you then; I don't know what happened or what you did. All I remember is that one second my eye was in pain, and the next I wake up, and I can see again, and the pain's gone. So, Thank you" she smiled. Touched by her honesty, Javorin smiled warmly at her, and courteously nodded in thanks.

"You know" the girl changed the subject again, "For a titan, you sure are friendly: oh, and thank you for not trying to eat me. That'd be quite bad if you did". Again, Javorin couldn't help but laugh, 'It'd be quite bad for _any god_ to try and eat a human' he mentally chuckled. "So? Do you have a name?" she smiled.

Javorin paused for moment as he thought about it carefully: he was a god that was under a curse of some kind, without knowing who cursed him and for what purpose, and without knowing if that same person (or persons) might still be alive; it was probably not wise to give away his real name to just anyone. Also, none of the humans in this world remembered him or any of the other gods, so it was unlikely that she'd recognize his real name anyway. Thinking quickly, he wondered what would be a suitable pseudonym: something short and easy to remember. Glancing down at the girl, he smiled as an idea came to mind, and cupping her in both hands, he carefully maneuvered his legs so as to stand back up.

Glancing over the edge of his fingers, the girl breathed in awe as she saw just how high up from the ground she was, and gazing up through the trees, she could see so much more of the forest. "...Whoa..." was all she could breathe, "Look at your shadow! It looks like it goes on forever". Javorin nodded with a soft "Nn-Hnn" through his teeth, and pointed down towards it; indeed, with the sunlight behind him, through the dappled light, his shadow stretched far beyond their line of sight through the trees and undergrowth: blotting out the sun over most of the forest floor and stream.

"Shadow?" she glanced back up at him, "That's your name?" He nodded with a smile. "Cool!" she beamed, "I'm Ariana," she patted her chest. Having read her memories the night before last, Javorin of course had already known her name: but being who he was, he felt it was better to allow her to introduce herself properly (also, it would become rather awkward if he were to tell her he already knew her name to begin with). "So what are you doing here inside wall Maria? Did you climb over the wall? If so, how did you get past the Garrison?" she asked curiously, before a look of disappointment suddenly crossed her face: "...Oh wait I forgot, titans aren't supposed to talk, are they? ...Can _you_ talk?"

Again, Javorin was limited in his response: until he recalled her memories, and in particular her written language. Suddenly getting a brainwave, Javorin glanced down at a bare patch of mud next to the edge of stream, and knew exactly what to do. Glancing back at her, he shook his head: no. He then slowly bent down next to the stream, and holding her in one hand, with his one free hand, he wrote in the mud: No, but I can write.

"Whoa you can write?! Who taught you that?!" Ariana beamed,

'Technically, _you_ did' Javorin mentally smiled as he wrote in reply: I taught myself.

"How many words do you know?"

: As many as you do: he replied, which technically was true, since he was going by the knowledge in her memories, he could only work with what she knew, which was sufficient enough to be getting along with.

"Huh, that's a lot of words" Ariana thought aloud, "So how did you get over the wall?"

: I didn't: he wrote, :I've always been here: , which again, was technically true; even though the majority of that time was spend cursed to sleep in an enchanted tomb for goodness knows how long.

"You've _always_ lived here?!" Ariana gasped, "Inside wall Maria?! How long for?!"

: A very long time: was all he wrote in reply; deciding to get off this subject (least it could turn awkward very quickly), Javorin asked, : But enough about me, where do you come from?: he wrote, before smoothing out the mud to make room for more writing.

"Oh, I live in Shiganshina, that's just a few miles from here" Ariana pointed westward: "My mum dragged me out here today so she could go looking for berries and nuts with my aunts, while me and my brothers and cousins go hunting for birds" she replied, before her smile faded and a look of slight annoyance came over her: "We're supposed to be practicing our hunting skills: but I just wanna be left alone"

: Why?: he wrote, sensing her growing frustration,

"Because of my stupid brother Rowan..." she frowned, letting her gaze drop with a dejected sigh, "...Actually, he's _kinda_ the reason I met you that night. He said something he shouldn't have, we got in a fight and he punched me in the face: I got upset and ran away, and I just kept running, until I ran into you..." she gazed back up at him. Despite knowing of the incident in question from her memories, Javorin didn't say anything, and merely listened as she continued: "Mum wants me to forgive him, but I don't want to. He _always_ gets mad; he never learns anything, especially controlling his temper" she frowned, before letting her anger pass, and gazing up at his with a pleading look: "...Can I hang out with you for a bit? I don't want to go back yet"

Javorin smiled and nodded, : Of course: he wrote.

"So um?" Ariana changed the subject, "How did you get those markings? Did someone paint them on you?"

Javorin shook his head, and wrote, : No. I woke up the night before last, and they were there:

"So that's why you were awake when I found you? You couldn't sleep because you woke up and found yourself covered in these?" She pointed to one of the markings on his hand: raising a quizzical eyebrow: "That's _seriously weird_. I don't know what _I'd_ do if I woke up and found myself covered in strange markings" she thought aloud in utter bemusement.

Javorin did his best to stifle a giggle: 'Not too quick on the uptake, are we?' he thought offhand with a smile, 'But you're young; give it time'

"Hey! Maybe we could get my dad to figure it out? He knows these markings, he writes them out all the time. Maybe he could help you figure out what happened?" she suggested.

Javorin eyes widened in alarm, as he quickly scribbled in the mud, : Not a good idea! I'm a titan : he mentally facepalmed when he realized what he'd written, but before he could correct his error, Ariana's eyes widened in realization: "Oh crap yeah..." she started off into space as the cogs in her little brain started to turn, "People would flip if they knew a titan was living out here...OH MY GOD! Bryson would _totally freak out_ if he knew a titan was here inside the walls! He'd be out his with ODM gear and pairing blades in a heartbeat!" she then gazed up at him in mix of alarm and shock, "We can't let anyone know you're here! _I_ can't let anyone know you're here!"

Javorin nodded in agreement, and quickly wrote, : I've been hiding here a long time, it would be best to stay secret:

"Yeah, defiantly" Ariana nodded as she regained her composure, and passed a deep sigh, "But, a titan as big as you: how have you remained hidden all this time?"

"ARIANA!" A young boy's voice echoed through the trees,

Ariana snapped her head round in the direction of the voice, and panicked: "Oh shit! It's Rowan! He's coming this way! You gotta hide quickly!"

Javorin smiled and wrote, : Relax, I got this:, he then smoothed out the mud, washed it off his fingers, and stood back up again. He treaded softly over to the tree he'd sat against, his giant feet hardly making a sound with each step: and with his free hand he made a shushing gesture, pressing his finger to his teeth, telling Ariana to be quiet. She gawked at him, alarmed and confused by this move: but didn't say a word, thinking what the hell was he doing?

He hid behind the giant tree and watched, as he laid his bright blue eyes on the approaching boy, who was now less than a hundred yards away from them. He was obviously looking her, as his head swung back and forth, scanning the undergrowth, but to no avail. Huffing in exasperation, he paused to catch his breath and looked right at them. Ariana's breath caught in her chest, he'd spotted her!

But Rowan looked away; he hadn't seen her?

Ariana gawked up at Javorin, "What gives?!-" she mouthed. But when she saw him, she stopped and stared in bewilderment: his whole body was semi-transparent, with a vague blueish aura completely surrounding his outline, she could _see straight through_ him! She could see the trees behind him, and quickly looking down at the palm she was standing on, Ariana nearly gasped when she saw the forest floor some twelve meters below; but she wasn't falling through his hand, it was still solid. It was then she saw her whole body was semi-transparent too, surrounded in a blue aura of her own. Sensing her mix of amazement and horror: Javorin quickly assured her by leaning over the stream, and directing her gaze down at their reflection...

Or rather, _the lack_ of their reflection: Ariana stared at the water in confusion, completely dumbfounded at what she was seeing (or not seeing rather): "What happened to our reflections?" she mouthed.

Rowan wandered closer, until he was only five meters away from Javorin's left foot. Gazing down at him: Ariana watched in a panic as he gazed up at them but wasn't reacting to them, or doing anything that would suggest he sensed anyone was here; this was _really weird_ , and it made no sense what so ever. With a playful grin, Javorin bent down, and waved his free hand right in front of Rowan's face: again, he gave no reaction: "ARIANA!" he called again, cupping his hands around his mouth, but no response came as Ariana watched him walk back the way he came.

It was then, Ariana suddenly realized: 'I'm invisible?'. "We're invisible?!" she pointed to herself and him. Javorin nodded, and shot her a sly smile, as if to say: pretty impressive huh? "A titan, that can turn _invisible?!..._ " Ariana gasped in a whisper, before a huge grin spread across her face: " _That is so awesome!_ "

"ARIANA!" Rowan called again, this time more sternly: he was getting tired of this. Quickly bending back down beside the mud patch, Javorin quickly wrote, : You better go and see what he wants:

"What?! No! I'm not going near him!" Ariana stubbornly told him, but Javorin didn't give her much of a choice, as he lowered his hand and gently deposited her in a soft patch of ferns. Ariana rolled head over ass as she tumbled out of his palm and into the greenery, coming to a stop after the third roll: she quickly jumped back up on her feet, but when she looked up expecting to see him there, he was gone. Breathing a sigh of disappointment, Ariana didn't know what to do.

Javorin watched her as she stood there, her aura reflecting her feeling of dejection: he didn't want to have to do that, and although he was invisible to her now that she was no longer in physical contact with him, he remained where he was, kneeling only within four meter's of her, as she continued to stand there.

"There you are!" Rowan exclaimed angrily, "Do you have any idea how long I've been looking for you?! Mum told you not to wonder off, and what do you do? _You wander off!_ " he fumed as he angrily stormed over towards her. Acting on instinct, Ariana quickly grabbed her bow and an arrow, and in one fluid movement, aimed right at him. Rowan stopped and gawked at her: Javorin was equally surprised to see her react like this; but judging from the way her aura was spiking with fear, it was clear their 'altercation' had affected her more deeply than he thought. He could do nothing but watch, as the two siblings locked eyes and remained where they were, only a few meters apart.

"Ariana, what?-" Rowan stared at her in alarm: "DON'T YOU DARE COME ANY CLOSER TO ME!" she screamed angrily: lowering her bow, but keeping the arrow locked in place, "I don't want you anywhere near me! So _go away!_ "

Rowan tried to plead with her, "Ariana I just-"

"-NO!" She angrily shot back, " _I don't wanna hear it!_ ... You have to learn there are consequences to your actions Rowan, but you _don't_ learn! _You always never learn!_ And what happened that night is the last straw for me! _You hurt me_ , and you never even said sorry!"

"THAT'S WHY I'M HERE!" he shouted back angrily, quickly adding: "-That's why I wanted to find you, so I can say _I'm sorry!_ "

Ariana studied him with a stern frown for moment, before letting her gaze drop in bitter disappointment: "...You _always_ say that; you _always_ promise mum you'll never do it again, and you _always_ promise us you won't get mad at us...But you keep doing it over and over again: and that night, you went _too far_...So why should I believe you now? ..." her face contorted into a look of hurt, as tears welled up in her eyes: "...You're my big brother Rowan...Why do you have to be so mad all the time?" she sobbed, letting the bow and arrow fall out of her hands: "... _I don't care_ if you come from a different family, or that I'm not your real sister: _you're my brother_ , and I just want you to be there, and be happy. Is that so wrong?"

Rowan stared at her in alarm: he already knew he hurt her, but now, seeing Ariana hurt like _this?_ His guts began to tie themselves in knots, and his mouth went bone dry and he was suddenly overwhelmed with shame and guilt. He didn't know what to say, he literally had no words that could make up for this, and the longer the silence dragged out between them, the more it became unbearable.

Seeing this little family drama, Javorin couldn't help but smile: 'Ah kids...' he thought, shaking his head, 'they always have to learn the hard way...Though, I think these two just need a little encouragement'. Lowing one hand down to the mud patch, and raising the other over Rowan's head, Javorin's tattoos glowed softly, as he summoned the necessary spell...

As she wiped the tears from her eyes, a sudden warm gust of wind blew past Ariana, and over the stream. Ariana glanced up, but nothing was there: looking down at the stream, she blinked in surprise at the one word written in the mud: listen:

"I-I..." Rowan stuttered, "-I don't-..." he painfully struggled to find the right words. He was just about to tip over into a panic attack, when suddenly his head felt light and airy; he felt himself relax, and he felt a strange presence: as if he and Ariana were not the only one's here...

" _Let your heart speak its truth: let that which troubles you run like water from a stream, and be gone, freeing you from your burden"_

Rowan felt the knots in his stomach untangle, and his mind suddenly didn't feel so muddled and stuck anymore. It was so strange, he could still hear Ariana's words ringing in his head, and he knew exactly what to say: part of him wondered what this feeling was? It didn't feel like him, it felt more like he had somehow slipped out of his body, and someone else was now controlling it.

Breathing deep and calming right down, Rowan met Ariana's confused gaze, and in an anxious voice, he spoke: "...I don't know? ..." he frowned, as the words suddenly became clear as glass: "I _want_ to be happy, I really do; but-...I don't know how?", Ariana listened in surprised silence, she had never seen or heard Rowan talk so calmly before, or be so honest; she didn't move or say anything as she let him continue: "...I see people in the streets, doing everyday stuff, and doing their own things: and I think about all that stuff we hide in our basement, all those things that no one is supposed to see or know about... Before, I didn't know _why_ we had to do that, but after uncle Evrard told us about the wall cult and what they did to the Crow clan, and my real parents: I got _scared_ , and I didn't know what to do... All I know is that we're Celts, and we're _different_ , and being different in this world is a bad thing; but I see all those people in the street and _none of them_ are the same: some are rich, some are poor, some are happy, some are sad, some know stuff, and some know nothing. And I can't help but think, how _stupid_ can you be, to think everyone is the same as you? When, clearly they're not: _I don't understand how people can think like that_ , and it makes me _so mad_ when they think they know everything, when actually, they know _nothing_..." he scowled in ire, before taking another deep breath, and continuing: "...And that's when I realized, _no one_ in this world is truly free; if we all can't be ourselves, then how can we hope to keep on living? And I don't mean just the Celts, I mean _everyone_ inside the walls...I just-... _I don't know_ how I can be happy, when I'm not allowed to be myself? And-, I don't know how to stop being mad: when I can't forget the reasons that make me mad in the first place?"

Silence

Ariana stared at Rowan completely dumbfounded: now it was _her_ turn to be lost for words; as Rowan's anxiety began to creep back in and contorted his face into a look of worry, Ariana walked up to him, and held his hand in her's: "...Why didn't you say anything before? ..." Was all she found she could ask,

"...I-..." Rowan hesitated, "...Because I knew no one would listen to me: Ash and Dale already know why: but they're my brothers, it's not the same thing with them. And your my sister, you don't listen to me anyway, and since all our cousins are scared of me of course they won't listen either...No one thinks I have anything to say, so they don't listen" he frowned in a mix of hurt and bitterness.

Glancing back over her shoulder at the word written in the mud, Ariana suddenly realized what it meant, and gazing back at Rowan, she took his other hand in her's, and looked him in the eye: "...Well? _I'm listening now_ , okay? And I'm sorry it took me so long to figure that out"

Javorin smiled as he felt his heart flutter with pride, watching silently as Ariana pulled her brother in for a hug, and held him tight as he stood there in confusion. With his face still reflecting his anxiety (albeit it was now starting to wane), Rowan wrapped his arms around her, and hugged her back; their auras swirling around each other in affection.

"I'm really sorry I hit you the other night: and I'm sorry for shouting. I never should have said those things" Rowan admitted quietly, still feeling ashamed.

"Yeah well?" Ariana sighed with a weak smile, "You _are_ my idiot brother, it's kinda your job to not think straight". "And you're my annoying little sister" Rowan smiled weakly, "It's your job to be a pain in the ass": they both stood back, and gazed at each other with honesty: "Next time you get mad like that, just walk it off okay? Don't use anyone for a punching bag again" Ariana told him.

"That's our job, isn't it?" Ash smiled as he stepped out of the bushes, with a grinning Dale following close behind. Rowan's face dropped and turned as red a beetroot, as he stepped away from Ariana and glared daggers at them both: "HOW LONG HAVE _YOU_ BEEN STANDING THERE?!" he exclaimed in utter annoyance.

"Long enough" Dale casually shrugged, "And _wow_ , I never heard a speech like that come from you bro: when did you learn to buck up like that?" he teased.

" _You idiots!_ If you tell anyone I went soft I'll-" Rowan fumed as he raised his fists, but Ash beat him to the punch as he grabbed him into a headlock: "Oh shut up, you know we won't say anything" Dale scoffed. "Seriously though" Ash asked as he let go of Rowan's head, "What you said back there: that's how you _really_ feel? About us? And everything else? Why didn't you just say so in the first place?"

"Because we're brother's dimwit," Rowan frowned, "I _shouldn't have_ to tell you"

"Well?" Ash deadpanned as he folded his arms, "We ain't mind-readers, so it helps if you _do_ tell us: just 'cuz we do everything together doesn't mean we know what you're thinking. And if we don't know what you're thinking, how do we know what you're feeling? It ain't weak to be honest okay?"

"...Okay" Rowan stubbornly admitted. Glancing over at Ariana, Ash couldn't help but smile: "So? You forgive him?". "Hmmm? ..." Ariana glanced over at Rowan skeptically, before stating in a serious tone: "Next time mum bakes her five fruits cake, I get _your_ slice"

"Deal" Rowan huffed in annoyance: "... So are we cool?"

"We're cool" Ariana nodded with a smile.

"Great, it's about time" Dale smiled: "Now come on, let's go and break the good news to mum" he thumbed over to the bushes: turning around and started heading back the way he came with Ash and Rowan following close behind. Seeing Ariana wasn't following, Ash turned and saw her picking up her bow and arrow: "Hey, Ariana, you coming?"

"I'll catch up, I'm gonna try and bag a bird; tell mum I'm okay yeah?"

"Will do" Ash waved good bye, "Just make sure you come back when she calls"

After the three brothers had walked some distance away from the stream, Ariana sighed in relief. Although not quite understanding where or how Rowan managed to summon the courage to lay his heart bare like that: it felt oddly nice to have finally resolved their issue, and be free of having to put up with the uncomfortable tension that had been wedged between them.

A sudden rush of warm air blew from behind, and turning around, Ariana nearly jumped when she saw 'Shadow' kneeling down in front of her. Noticing he was in the same spot as before, she sudden realized: "...You've been here the whole time? ..." she then dropped her arrow as she facepalmed, "You were invisible, _of course_ you were there the whole time!" she grumbled in embarrassment.

Shadow couldn't help but chuckle as he shook his head, and leaned down to meet her gaze: "...Uh? Sorry about all that" she sheepishly scratched the back of her neck, "It-, kinda got tense there for a moment" Directing her gaze to the mud patch: Shadow wrote: Nothing to be sorry for. Families argue, its okay:

"Yeah," Ariana awkwardly admitted, "But I really should have listened to him sooner. That's my bad"

: And you learned from it: he wrote, : You did real good:. Blinking in surprise, Ariana gazed back up at him, with growing wonder of a new kind: "...You really know some things, don't you?". He nodded with a knowing look in his eyes: Ariana paused a moment as she thought about it, and with a smile she boldly asked: "Hey, would it be okay if I come back and visit you tomorrow? Since _you_ can turn invisible, and _I'm_ good at sneaking about places: I don't think getting caught by anyone's going to be a problem for either of us"

Shadow smiled, and wrote: I think that will be okay: how about we meet near the road? So you don't have so far to walk? :

"Okay" Ariana shrugged, "But if you're invisible, how will I know where-, or _how_ , to find you?"

: I have a secret word that only I can hear; this word will make me visible only to you for a moment, I will teach you this word:

"Okay"

: Abin-suul:

"A-been-sool?" Ariana read the word aloud, trying to figure out how best to pronounce it: "Abin-suul". She glanced back up at Shadow, but he'd vanished again; realizing what he was up to, Ariana smiled: "Abin-suul!". Practically in the blink of an eye, Shadow's massive form flashed in an out of visibility, before he made himself visible again, and he nodded with approval. "That's so cool!" Ariana couldn't help but grin: but, Shadow gazed at her with a serious tone in his eyes, and wrote, : never repeat this word to anyone else; understand?:

"Sure thing" she nodded, "But what does it mean?". He replied, : Let that which is hidden, be seen only to me:. "Huh," Ariana frowned in bemusement, "That's a lot for one word... Well, I better be going, mum will probably be calling me soon; see you tomorrow Shadow!" she waved good bye as she started running in the direction her brother's went: "Oh wait!-" she suddenly remembered, stopping in her tracks and turning to face him as he stood back up "...Thanks. For telling me to listen!" she called back. Shadow gave her a thumbs-up, and casually turned and wandered off into the forest, turning invisible again.

Watching the area where he faded into the dark shadows of the thick canopy, Ariana felt a surge of exhilaration go through her: she met _a titan_ for the first time in her life: a friendly non-human-eating titan, and his name was Shadow. No one would ever believe her if she told them, and it was that incredibility, that gave her the confidence in knowing her secret would be safe. As she turned and headed back to where she'd left her family, her mind began dancing with ideas on what to do tomorrow with her new friend: and as she started planning on what sound excuse to use to get out of the house and back into the forest, she began to revel in the excitement of it.

As he watched Ariana's aura fade into the distance, Javorin contemplated that interesting little encounter: or rather, that _reintroduction_ , and pondered on where things were likely to go from here. 'No turning back now, for either of us...' he sighed mentally: he couldn't be sure if his decision was the right one: but in his gut, his instincts as a god were telling him that that encounter in the forest, the night he and the others awoke from their cursed sleep, was not just a chance one-off. Although he couldn't put his finger on it, there was something about that girl that told him she would be of use to them somehow: though what it was, or _might_ turn out to be, he couldn't say for sure. But there was a more important, and practical reason why he wanted to become acquainted with her: his blood healing her wound and changing the colour of her eye to that of his own bright vivid blue, was _not_ to be taken lightly; not when the power of a god's blood was concerned. For although he initially sensed there was just barely a drop of his blood remaining in her eye, there was nothing to suggest the colour change was the _only_ side effect. Ergo, he would do what he could to make sure nothing else had been passed onto her from his blood; it was the responsible thing to do, and to ignore it would be reckless.

The only question now was, how to break this to the others: it was inevitable that Herne and Elysia were going to find out, and Hecate was not going to be too pleased about it. But she wasn't a goddess without sense and reason, and Javorin was confident that once he explained his reasons for allowing this mortal human child to become acquainted with him, she'd (for the most part) respect his decision. Though, for the time being: until he was sure that drop of blood, was _only_ a drop of blood and nothing more, he would stay discreet about Ariana; his only other conundrum now, was how to slip away to meet her without the others becoming curious.

He couldn't help but smile: he'd been good at being discreet all his life; a god living as a human, had many options open to him, and the fact he was now over fifteen meters tall, didn't change that fact.

'Now then...' he thought offhand as he reached his power through the roots of the trees, looking for Elysia: 'How's _your_ new friend holding up?' he smiled.

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the forest:

This day had gone from strange, to downright bizarre: and it wasn't even lunchtime yet.

Carla stared up at the remains of the gigantic tomb in a mix of bewilderment and skepticism, walking around its perimeter, walking over the pieces of the broken lid, and trailing a hand over the strange carvings that covered the sides and lid. Glancing back up at Angel, who was standing nearby, watching her in a mix of excitement and curiosity. "...Seriously," Carla frowned in disbelief: " _You_ -, were _inside_ this thing?! ...I mean, actually asleep inside?!". Angel firmly nodded in a very matter-of-fact way: Carla simply stared back at the tomb, unsure what to make of this.

After a fifteen minute walk up into one of the deepest parts of the forest, Carla was amazed to find Angel had taken her to a grove of giant trees: never in her life had she imagined giant trees could reach so high, with such wide trucks too. Still seated on Angel's shoulder, she craned her head back to look for any giant nests up in the thick branches; so it was quite a surprise when Angel showed Carla, what looked like a giant tomb instead, with a small collection of her feathers scattered about on the inside. Was _this_ her nest? If it was, she hadn't feathered it very well. Letting her down gently so she could have a closer look: Carla was perplexed by the strange symbols and writings carved into the stone. What on earth was this thing? After a long process of using awkward gestures and the bends of her winds to try and motion the acts of sleeping and lying down: Angel finally managed to tell Carla that she had previously been trapped inside this tomb.

Which had led up to this point, where Carla was now trying to process what Angel had told her, and trying to get her head around the incredibility of it.

* * *

Elysia thought this would be a little easier than anticipated.

Seeing Carla again had filled her such joy and excitement, of all the humans to come wandering down that stretch of road, what were the chances it'd be her? She must live close nearby: that was the most logical answer. The language barrier however was still a problem: and although she was speaking to the human, it was clear humans didn't understand bird tongue. But it wasn't a terribly big problem, Elysia had managed to articulate her body language and crude 'wing gestures' (not having hands was annoyingly frustrating) to be able to get across the gist of what she was saying; and in the process, she got a new name out of it.

Elysia already knew what angels were: it was one of many names she and the other Tempus gods had been called by the humans down the long centuries, some hailed them as omens of destruction, while others had worshiped them as the gods they were. And besides, she had no clue how she was going to articulate her name in the first place: she didn't know any human languages so it's not like she could write her name in the dirt, and there were no wing gestures she could think of that would spell out the name 'Elysia'; so for Carla to make that observation, really came as a stroke of luck.

Despite the poor woman precariously teetering between amazement and worry at being in her presence, Elysia had done everything she could to make sure her new friend wasn't harmed in anyway. She had painstakingly kept an eye on her long thick tail and her big bird's feet, being careful not to accidentally knock or step on her. And at one point, she really worried whether letting her sit on her shoulder was a good idea? She thought it'd be better that she stay where she could see her: least any accidents might occur if she dropped out of her line of sight, so placing her up between her shoulder and her neck just seemed like the logical thing to do. But balancing a nervous human on one's shoulder was easier said than done: poor Carla nearly slipped right off at one point, and when she regained her grip and nearly yanked her feathers out, Elysia wondered if it might be better to just carry her in the crook of her wing. But to her surprise, the woman insisted on staying on her perch: and after several minutes of walking a slow and steady pace, to her amazement Carla got the hang of it, albeit she was still somewhat nervy.

As she scratched her head in confusion, Carla leaned forward to look at the inside of the tomb, and saw the various tree roots that had forced their way up through the small cracks in the bottom, along with the many cobwebs that hung from the corners: and the large bare area were something had prevented the roots and spiders from advancing, a patch that had a distinct human-shaped outline.

This just didn't make any sense, how could _anything_ survive inside this thing? Never mind actually sleep for any length of time before running out of air. There were no openings aside from the lid, but from the size of the pieces, it had to have weighed more than a good few tons when it was still in one piece, making it near impossible to open. Staring at the bottom, Carla wasn't sure what to think, and decided for the sake of her sanity to just along with it: "...Well? ...If you say so?" she sighed with a shrug.

Seeing the look in her eyes, Angel bend down and cooed a long string of warbling chirps, as if to say: you don't believe me? Looking back up at Angel, Carla passed another heavy sigh: "I'm not saying you're lying, it's not like that: it's just-...Look at the inside; judging from all those roots and cobwebs, you'd have to have been asleep in there a very long time; and by a long time, I mean, probably _longer_ than anyone could possibly imagine. There's nothing in this world that can live that long"

'Yes there is!' Elysia mentally exclaimed, 'We gods and goddesses are immortal, we can live way longer than anything in this world!'. With a look of annoyance in her glistening pale blue eyes, Angel pointed to herself, and tapped her chest with the bend of her wing, trying to emphasis her point.

"You're saying _you_ can live that long?" Carla raised an eyebrow, to which Angel nodded firmly with a serious look on her face. Carla was silent for a moment as she contemplated all this, before finally replying: "...I don't understand how that's possible, but, I'll take your word for it"

Angel smiled weakly and nodded: it was close enough.

"But, it doesn't look very comfy in there" Carla glanced down at the feathers, "How are you able to sleep on that hard stone? Wouldn't you prefer something a little more comfortable? Like a nest?" she pointed to the branch of a nearby bush, where a Blackbird sat in her nest, silently eyeing them both. Angel nodded in agreement, but shrugged her shoulders with another long string of chirps, as if to say: sure, but I don't know how to build a nest.

"Well? How about I help you build one? I'd hate to go to bed tonight knowing you haven't got one of your own to sleep in". At that, Angel chirped with excitement and bounced up and down on her heels like a little puppy: Carla couldn't help but smile, this giant bird titan was so easily excited and happy: it was more like a child than anything else, and as she gathered up the feathers inside the tomb, she pointed to a large pile of dead fall on the outskirts of the grove: "Okay then: for starters, we need to build the basic structure, and we can do that with some good solid branches; have a look through that dead wood and see what you can find. I'll put these feathers to one side, they'll make good lining"

The next few hours seemed to steadily fly by as the two friends worked on the nest together: first, after inspecting all the trees in the grove, Carla found one with a good sizable root cave at its base; it would be perfect for keeping the rain and snow out, and it was obscured from sight, so it would not be easy to spot amid the roots and dense undergrowth of the forest floor. Then, after collecting enough large branches and small logs, Carla and Angel built the base of the nest: Angel did most of the heavy lifting, while Carla used an assortment of smaller branches, ivy vines and pine cones to firmly wedge the logs and branches into place between the roots of the cave, and tie up any loose ends. The interwoven structure slowly turned from a circular pile of wood, into a bowl-shape that began to resemble a nest. Once the structure was soundly in place, they then began the process of collecting mosses, dried leaves, and using Angel's shed feathers to line the inside: Angel even plucked out more of her feathers to make it extra soft and warm. Using her feet, she scratched the surfaces of the roots and boulders to get the mosses, while Carla scooped them up and placed them on a large curved piece of bark that served well as a make-shift basket.

As they worked, they talked, albeit the conversation was rather one-sided: but Elysia didn't mind at all, she was just so fascinated to hear Carla talk about her home in the place called 'Shiganshina', and of her husband Grisha, and her son Eren, and all the people who lived on her street, and what friendly and interesting neighbors they were. The more she heard about this human city, and the people living inside its walls, the more Elysia wanted to go and see it. She _never_ had the chance to see anything of the human world before, and from the sounds of it, it sounded like _so much more_ than just the sky, the clouds and weather. It sounded alive and brimming with new things, things she'd never even heard of: things she wanted to see and experience for herself. As she sank further into the daydream of an exciting adventure in human world, Elysia became oblivious to her surroundings.

"Hey, Angel? ..." Carla lightly tapped her on her foot: Angel nearly jumped out of her skin in surprise, glancing down to see Carla pointing to the nest: "Sorry, but we still need to put these in place". Snapping back to reality, Angel nodded, and grabbing a foot-full of mosses, pressed them onto the side of the nest, before taking another few feathers and holding them in place while Carla tucked them into position between the twigs and branches.

"You know?" Carla thought aloud, "I can't help but wonder, how you have managed to remain hidden within the walls? I mean, a big white bird titan isn't exactly going to blend into the forest unless it's the middle of winter"

Thinking about it for a moment: Elysia suddenly remembered the charm Javorin bestowed upon her, and the collection of basic charms and spells that would allow her to access her powers. Flicking through the new 'memories', Elysia grinned broadly when she found exactly what she was looking for. Turing to Carla, she tapped the woman on the shoulder with the bend of her wing, and as she gazed up at her, Elysia turned invisible. Carla yelped in surprise, nearly falling off the nest as she snapped her head back and forth, looking all around: "What the-" she stammered, "Where'd you go?!"

Angel suddenly reappeared, materializing out of thin air: Carla nearly jumped again, as she stared up at her with her jaw totally slack; as if to let her know she wasn't seeing things, Angel turned in visible a second time, and reappeared again after a few seconds. "You...can turn _invisible?_ " Carla breathed in awe, to which Angel smile and nodded proudly, 'Wow, I just learnt how to turn invisible!' Elysia mentally beamed, 'Thanks Javorin!'

"Whoa..." Carla had to sit down on the nest for a moment: "No wonder no one's ever caught sight of you", she rested her head on her elbow as she tried to wrap her head around this: "So? If you can turn invisible, that must mean you've been coming and going for goodness knows how long?"

'Coming and going?' Elysia thought offhand: She let out a long string of curious-sounding chirps, tilting her head to one side with a raised eyebrow.

"Well?" Carla offered sheepishly, "I just _assumed_ , what with those wings of yours that you must be able to fly quite a long distance: and since you're the only bird titan around here, I thought you probably might have come from somewhere else, you know? Like, the outside world? ...Far beyond the walls?"

Elysia frowned in confusion as she contemplated her assumption: it was a fair observation, since learning how to fly she could be able to fly over many miles, and coming from some other place beyond wall Maria certainly wasn't impossible. But was it right to let Carla think that she migrated back and forth between the Marian forests and somewhere in the outside world? And just after she told her she'd been cursed to sleep in a tomb for the last several hundred years (maybe?); it didn't feel right lying to her, but then, it's not like she could clarify what she was saying, and even if she could, would Carla believe her?

She remembered what Javorin and the others had told her of their exploration of Shiganshina yesterday: and how the humans have long forgotten the gods and the old ways. If humanity no longer remembered her and her divine kin, would they believe that such beings of great power still exist in the world?

No, _she_ existed; Javorin, Hecate and Herne existed: just because they had been forgotten, didn't mean they didn't exist anymore. Feeling determined, Elysia made a mental note to practice using the charms and spells some time, and learn to use them well; she had a feeling she would need them in the not too distant future. Turning back to Carla, Angel promptly shook her head, and pointed to the ground, as if to say: nope, I've always been here: .Which only elicited another confused look from the woman: "...Wait, so you've-... _never ventured_ over the walls?"

Not really knowing what else to tell her, Angel simply shrugged her shoulders and nodded. Technically it was the truth, which unbelievable as it sounded, was all that she could offer. But to Elysia's surprise, Carla's face turned from a look of surprise and disbelief, into something she could only describe as sad and regretful. "...Oh...I'm so sorry"

'Sorry?' Elysia raised an eyebrow, 'You've got nothing to be sorry for'

"...I just thought-... Being a creature with wings, you have the ability to be free from this walled world; and yet you choose to stay here?" Carla gazed up at her with an apologetic look: "Are the titans really that numerous that you cannot leave? ...Is that why you stay? You're safe from them here too?"

A long awkward silence passed between them, before Carla pressed her hand to her forehead and sighed in exasperation: "...I'm getting way too ahead of myself" she looked back up at Angel: "I'm-, sorry: I just-...I don't know what I was thinking? I came back to that stretch of road trying to remember if what happened that night _really did_ happen the way I remember it. And now, here I am: helping _you_ to build a nest..." I'm sorry if I sound a little crazy" she couldn't help but chuckle, "but-, it's kinda been a crazy morning for me" she smiled weakly. "...It's not every day you run into a bird titan... And, I'm _really sorry_ if I'm not able to fully understand you: it can't be easy, not being able to speak properly I mean".

Elysia blinked at her in surprise, totally taken aback, before her face fell into a look of regret: it really sucked not having a human voice, it would relieve Carla's stress to let her know exactly what she was trying to say; to let her know who she was, and why she is here in the first place. She thought back to the time when she existed as a breeze on the wind, totally free and unconcerned about the world: and she remembered all the human voices she used to hear drifting up from the ground; why didn't she listen to any of them? Why didn't she learn some basic words at the very least? Something like, hello, how are you? Are you okay? Goodbye and I'm sorry. Back then, they just sounded like random noises all thrown together: just babbling noise that made no sense to her, and thus she dismissed them as strange human nonsense. But now she was here, listening and (trying her best to) conversing with the first human she'd ever known: hearing those random noises in full, she suddenly realized the importance of voice, how essential it was for making yourself and your intentions known to others; and she felt bad for not paying attention, or not caring enough to want to learn sooner.

As Angel stood there pondering about it, Carla jumped down from the nest, and climbed up over the vast network of roots to stand at the entrance to the cave, and admired their combined handy work. "Well?" she gave a weak smile, "At least you have somewhere comfy to sleep tonight" Standing back to admire their work, Elysia couldn't help but grin, it was a good looking nest, and with all those feathers and mosses lining the inside, it should be quite comfy indeed. Looking back up at her, Carla offered a more genuine smile: "You know, for a creature that can't talk, you make yourself known surprisingly well"

Hearing that, Elysia stared at Carla in amazement; of all the things she thought she might say: she hadn't expected that. "And, even though this has been a 'different' sort of morning, I don't regret it...I'm glad I got to meet you again" Carla smiled. Elysia couldn't help but smile with delight, and with a happy chirp she bent right down, and booped Carla on the forehead with her nose: to which Carla couldn't help but laugh: "I'll take that as a thank you", to which Elysia nodded. 'I'm really glad I got to meet you too again, Carla' she thought.

Suddenly, a loud hiss echoed through the canopy, making both Carla and Angel snap their heads upwards. Far off in the distance, through the towering giant trees, Carla gasped in alarm as she spotted the silhouettes of two men coming towards them on ODM gear; "Oh no! You've got to hide! You can't let them see you!" Quickly, Angel scooped her up with the bend of her wing, taking her by surprise, and swiftly ducked down back into the cave; tucking Carla between her wing and her side and crouching as low as she could in the nest, trying to remain silent.

As they both strained their ears to listen: the sounds of the ODM gear's piston-shots drew nearer, until finally they heard two sets of feet land on the ground only several meters away from the entrance of the cave. "So this is where you found it?" a male voice asked, "Yeah, just over there" a second voice replied: they both heard the men walking away; Carla was about to breathe a sigh of relief, but when she realized the direction they were walking in, her breath nearly hitched in her chest. They were both heading straight for the tomb.

Carefully and as quietly as possible, Carla wriggled out of Angel's grip, slid down the side of the nest, and gently climbed up to the entrance of the cave: Elysia panicked, terrified she'd be spotted, but Carla turned back and mouthed: "Their heading for the tomb!". Unable to move for fearing the men would hear her, Elysia watched with her nerves on tender hooks as Carla approached the entrance to the cave, and carefully peeked around the edge of a large root; spotting the men on the top of the ridge, above the hollow where the tomb was situated. They were talking to one another: and with both their backs half facing her, they weren't going to easily spot her in their range of vision. But even though they were some hundred yards away, Carla could hear their voices echoing across the grove, and could easily make out what they were saying...

"More feathers?!" one exclaimed: a tall lean ginger-haired man with a mustache, dressed rather smartly, which was a tad odd.

"I'm telling you Pascal there was a whole bunch of them in there!" his friend replied: a shorter gentleman with light brown hair and what looked like a goatee, dressed more casually, more 'country' as one would say out here in the outterlands: " _I swear_ I'm not lying!"

"Hey, I saw that feather for myself okay? _I know_ you're not crazy West, so pipe down" Pascal waved off. The two stood there in silence for a moment, seemingly in contemplation, before Pascal spoke up again, "... _You're sure_ you never saw the creature that shed them?"

"I'm positive" West exclaimed, "Look-, whatever shed those feathers obviously came back for them, that's the only reason I can think of that explains why their gone: there's been hardly any wind since the night before last, so I know they didn't just blow away!"

"Or? ..." Pascal scratched his chin, "What if someone else came by here, and picked them up?"

Carla felt a lump begin to rise in her throat, as she listened with dread.

"Oh _shit!_ " West facepalmed: "Why didn't I think of that?!"

"Because you were scared shitless that a giant bird was gonna fly down and pluck you off the ground" Pascal pointed out casually, "It's perfectly understandable: and forgivable" he nodded, before stating seriously: "...But still: having people believe there's a giant who-knows-what flying about the place is gonna be bad for business. Our customers are already on alert for the MP's out here: we don't need a bunch of hunters and trophy collectors coming out and stalking about the place, trying to bag a giant bird"

Carla frowned in confusion, what did he mean by 'our customers are already on alert for the MP's': were these men criminals? Where they involved with some kind of illegal activity?

"But what if this thing is a predator? You know? Like an eagle or a hawk?" West began to panic, "What if this thing _eats_ people?!"

"Like it would be any different from a bear or pack of wolves attacking people on the roads late at night?" Pascal pointed out, "I'm sorry, but nature is a damn cruel thing, and not everyone gets to go home with a free lunch. Sometimes, you end up _becoming_ the lunch" he patted his friend on the shoulder, "So some poor soul every once in a while gets eaten by this giant bird-thing: _at least it ain't us_ ; all we do is stay vigilant, keep a blade or gun handy when out in the woods, and just make sure when using the ODM gear to travel through the thickest parts of the canopy. It ain't cannon science West"

West seemed to take a deep breath, and after a moment, seemed to regain his composure: "...Yeah, I guess it makes sense"

"That's the spirit!" Pascal slapped him on the back, "Now put that feather back where you found it," he pointed down into the hollow; from out of his coat, West produced one of Angel's feathers, and started heading down into the hollow towards the tomb; "As far as we're both concerned: you never found it, you never found this 'tomb' (or whatever the hell it's supposed to be), and this conversation never happened, understand?"

"Got it!" West called back as he beat a hasty retreat back up onto the ridge: "trust me, I'm in no mood to push my luck waiting to see if the creature will come back here": "Good, because we're never coming back to _this place_ again" Pascal stated matter-of-factly, before jumping off the ground, and flying up into the trees on his ODM gear, with West following close behind.

As she watched them disappear into the dappled canopy, Carla emerged a little further: looking all around and up, and listening to the sounds of their piston-shots fade into the chorus of bird songs and the rustling of the leaves in the trees; until finally, the forest was quiet again. Gazing back at Angel with a sigh of relief, she nodded, "Their gone...It's okay now"

Breathing her own sigh of relief, Angel allowed herself to relax as she stepped out of the cave, and looked around in concern: Carla headed for the ridge of the hollow where her tomb was, and gazing down into the steep depression, Carla saw a single white feather sitting inside the tomb. Coming up behind her, Angel tilted her head to side with a curious chirp.

"From what I overheard, I don't think they intend to come back here..." Carla assured her: although she couldn't be a hundred percent certain they actually meant it. From what she heard, it sounded like those two were definitely criminals of some kind. Could they be part of the gang that tried to kidnap her? The thought of it made her mouth go dry with dread, and the more she thought about it, the more she began to worry for Angel's safety; "...But, just to be sure, you might want to start using that 'invisibility trick': in case you hear them come back when you're in your nest" she added, to which Angel nodded.

A thought suddenly occurred, which made Carla's eyes widen in concern: "Angel, how much about humans do you actually know? I mean, I'm sure you must have watched us walking by along the road, but, do you _actually know_ what we do? And how we do things in this world?"

Sensing the concern in her voice, Elysia could tell this was serious, and shook her head: no.

Those two men: Pascal and West; they _knew_ about this place, they knew about Angel (albeit they didn't know she was titan/bird hybrid), and although they said they'd never come back here: what was there to say someone else might not come across this place by accident? Someone with ill-intentions? Or worse, someone who might have caught a glimpse of Angel when she wasn't invisible, and decided to try and bag a one-of-a-kind trophy? Looking up at Angel, Carla couldn't bear the thought of her being trapped and killed like some wild beast, she may have been good at hiding all this time, but no one's _that_ lucky. Everyone's luck runs out eventually, and for all she knew it might only be a matter of time before something bad happens.

Making her mind up, Carla decided she would help Angel to hide here in the forest, and the best way to do that would be to arm her with the knowledge of what to expect in the event a hunter comes along: "...Tell you what," she addressed the giant avian, "I'm going to help you remain hidden: I'm going teach you everything about the humans that live in this forest, and what to do in case they discover you , and try to come after you. You may be good at hiding now, but you _need to know_ what to expect in case the worst happens..." she hesitated slightly, as she thought about the risk involved, "I'm-...I'm not a hunter, and I'm not a soldier, but I _can't stand_ the thought of you being discovered and killed by some hunter or Scout. Besides, you saved my life: it would be terrible of me not to return the favor..." she smiled; anxious and worried, but determined never the less.

Elysia's eyes lit up with wonder as she vigorously nodded in excitement: bouncing up and down and bending down to boop Carla on the forehead yet again, a little too hard this time, which nearly sent her flying backwards: "-Ah!" Carla rubbed her forehead but she couldn't help but smile: Angel's antics were just too adorable, "Also" she added, "We need to work out an effective way for you to talk without getting confused: maybe use those bird calls of yours somehow?"

Angel nodded again, as she let out another long string of happy warbling chirps: getting giddy with excitement, she bounced around the grove like a little kid who just woke up to a birthday full of presents. Carla couldn't help but laugh, the sight of this giant bird titan hopping around like a wet hen was just too funny. She didn't know what got her so excited all of a sudden, but in any case, it seemed like she was eager to engage, and that was a good start.

"Okay okay" Carla raised up her hands, trying to grab her attention; Angel came bounding over and crouched down beside her, "Listen, I'll have to go home and get some things ready before Grisha and Eren get back, so I'll have to leave now; but I'll be back tomorrow, I promise"

Angel nodded understandingly, and scooping Carla up in her wing, kept her pressed to her side as she ran back along the trail towards the road: Carla held on for dear life as the trees rushed by in a blur of green and golden dappled light. If Angel was this fast on the ground, how fast was she up in the air? Before long, Angel made it back to the tree line near the road, and after looking both ways to make sure no one was coming, she stepped out into the road, and plopped Carla down on her feet. As the woman took a moment to regain her bearings, Angel chirped as she pointed to the road, seeming telling her that they could meet here again.

"Uh, that probably might not be a good idea: someone might come along and see you: and if your invisible I won't know if your there or not" Carla pointed out, "Listen, how about I go up the trail a little way, until the road's out of sight? You can meet me there okay?"

Angel chirped with a nod, in a sort of sing-song chime that could have sounded like an 'okay'

"Alright," Carla smiled, "Tomorrow then: see you Angel" she waved goodbye, and started bounding up the road with a kick in her step, as she crested the incline and turned the corner, she waved goodbye again before disappearing out of sight among the trees.

Waving farewell with her wing: Angel then paused to let it sink in, and then started bouncing up and down with giddy elation: 'WOOOHOOO!' she mentally cheered as she chirped and trilled with laughter, 'I'm gonna learn about humans! And Carla's gonna teach me!'; she kept bouncing up and down along the road, until a certain realization made her stop and freeze with dread; ' _Oh gods!_ I can't tell the others about her! What would they say? What would they do?! What would Hecate-

The thought of Hecate finding out about Carla made a chill go right down her spine, and made all her feathers stand on end; what would she do to her? She _knew_ Hecate didn't like her, so what would she do to a human who knew of their existence? 'I can't let them find about her' she thought worryingly, 'for _her_ sake I have to keep her secret...' but then another realization came to mind, 'but-, she's coming back here _tomorrow_! How do I give the others the slip?'. Thinking about it for a moment, Elysia had an idea, 'I know! I'll just tell them I'm looking for any gods further afield, I can fly, so it's the perfect excuse!' taking a moment to admire her brilliance, Elysia suddenly remembered: ' _OH GODS!_ I'm supposed to be looking for tree gods!' she panicked, and beating her wings hard, she took off up through a clearing in the canopy: turning herself invisible as her tail cleared the trees.

The forest was soon still and quiet again, as the road and the forest around it returned to its original tranquil state, filled with bird songs and the buzzing of insects. The leaves rustled as the wind blew through the canopy, and from out of a wide gap in the tree line on the opposite, Javorin materialized out of thin air, and gazed up through the gap in the trees; folding his arms as a wide smile grew on his face. 'Well? ...' he couldn't help but smile internally, 'It would seem you too were fated to meet a 'certain someone' of your own that night...We'll have to see how this pans out...'

* * *

Later that day, mid afternoon, Shiganshina:

After returning from the forest, helping out with the chores around the house and getting a bite to eat, Ariana had managed to get some time to herself, to sneak down to Claude and Bryson's book shop at the end of the street, and look to see if there were any books about titans. Amid the piles and shelves of old and new books, she eventually found what she was looking for, a small government-issued pamphlet that had all the information on titans that was available for public distribution:

All the pamphlet said was, that titans were classed according to their size, ranging from three meters all the way up to fifteen meters, and that there were two main varieties: normal's, and abnormal's. Normal titans typically would try to eat any human that gets within close enough range for it to grab, while abnormal's were prone to acting more randomly, and are likely to attack groups of humans, ignoring singular humans altogether. A titan's physique and appearance would typically range from lean, skinny and emaciated, to fat and robust to near-obese, with some muscled specimens having been observed on the rare occasion: they have wide gaping mouths, and some physical deformities varying from titan to titan; their facial expressions are typically frozen, without expressing any emotions, even the act of eating humans doesn't elicit any emotional response. Titans will consume humans as soon as they get a hold of them, and will not hesitate to eat them despite said humans fighting back: the only way to effectively kill a titan is by severing the nape with a set of pairing blades: upon death, the titan body immediately starts to evaporate, all skin and soft tissues completely evaporate within less than ten minutes, while the skeleton takes up to twenty minutes on average.

A titan's main source of energy is sunlight, thus all titans are inactive after sunset: since titans do not possess a digestive system they cannot obtain any nutrients from their prey: a titan will regurgitate its victims in the form of a pellet about an hour after consumption: note: titans do not eat any other animal, they only eat humans. Titans do not possess reproductive organs, and thus do not produce offspring the same way as humans and other animals do (huh? Ariana made a mental note to ask her dad where babies come from later) their means of reproduction is currently unknown. All titans are unintelligent and are incapable of speech: they possess no ability to think or process information; they are easy to distract, and they will simply rush their prey and try to grab any human they can see and reach, they are uncoordinated and are typically clumsy in their movements and walking: note: some walk on two feet, while some abnormal's have been known to walk on all fours.

Looking through the pamphlet, Ariana studied the illustrations off all the different size-classes of titan, there were even some pictures of the Scouts in the actions of hunting, chasing down, and killing a titan by various means: from swinging down from a tree, to shooting a grappling hook into the neck of a titan and swinging up and around to sever the nape from behind (a common tactic used when riding a horse over open ground). There were some pictures of a dead titan in the process of evaporating, and several other smaller pictures of the ODM gear, a small brief history of the Scouts, and even a recruiting advertisement at the back: stating how noble and selfless it was to offer up your heart to humanity by joining the Scouting legion.

Ariana sighed in disappointment: sure it gave all the basic facts, but there wasn't anything that told her what she needed to know: gazing over at the desk, Ariana spotted Bryson staking some books, and decided it couldn't hurt to ask a Scout veteran for his knowledge on the subject. "Hey Bryson, you used to kill all kinds of titans right?". Looking up from what he was doing, and spotting the pamphlet in her hand, Bryson smiled: "Many different classes, many different normal's and abnormal's" he leaned over the desk as she approached, "You thinking about joining the Scouts?"

"Meh, I'm still mulling it over..." she shrugged offhand, before asking him in a serious tone, "...Listen, when you went out beyond wall Maria and you fought the titans: did you see any that were different from the rest?"

"Different how?" he smiled with a raised eyebrow,

"Different like..." Ariana carefully chose her words: she didn't want him to get suspicious: "Any titans that _didn't want_ to eat humans?"

Bryson couldn't help but laugh, until he saw the serious look on Ariana's face, "You're serious?" he blinked in surprise, to which she nodded in reply: "...Well? It would be nice if there were any titans that _didn't_ eat humans: but unfortunately, there's no such thing"

Ariana frowned in confusion: "How can you be sure? The outside world is a big place, maybe they're out there somewhere?"

"Maybe? Who can say?" Bryson shrugged as he got back to work: "But after a hundred years, don't you think if there were such titans around, the Scouts wouldn't have seen them already?"

Thinking about it, Ariana knew what she wanted to say, but instead feigned defeat and replied: "Yeah I guess?" she knew she couldn't say anything about Shadow: of all the people Bryson was the one person that mustn't know about him; it felt dangerous just talking to him about the subject, part of her was worried she'd screw up and let her secret out. But fortunately she managed to keep her cool, and not let anything slip: it was just a question of using the right words to not arouse any suspicion.

"Why do you ask?" he smiled offhand.

"Like I said, I'm still mulling it over; and if I'm gonna be fighting titans one day, I need to know what to expect" she shrugged

"Very practical" he nodded with approval, "Though, you might not want to ask that question if you meet any Scouts in person: they'll just think you're crazy"

"Why's that? It's a reasonable question isn't it?" Ariana frowned,

"Talking openly like this, yes it is a reasonable question" Bryson glanced down at her, "But you have to remember Ariana: the Scouts may be proud but they are very no-nonsense, they seldom if ever go on any theories and ideas unless it serves to aid them in a practical way. Their losses are bad enough, falling victim to the normal and abnormal titans alone; to be asked if they've ever come across any friendly titans before? Is pretty much a slap in the face"

"...Oh" Ariana dropped her gaze, now regretting she asked,

"But hey, don't let it put you off" Bryson smiled "If you join the Scouts, you won't find a more reliable and trustworthy comradrey anywhere else within the walls"

"Okay" Ariana nodded, "Thanks Bryson" she waved goodbye: "Cheerio Ariana" he smiled, and got back top staking some more books. Placing the pamphlet back on the pile she found it on, Ariana was about to make her way to the door: when she suddenly spotted a familiar face at the end of one of the aisles, 'Mrs Jaeger?' she blinked in surprise as she ducked behind one of the book shelves in the middle of the shop floor, and watched her as she scanned over the rows of books. Carla hadn't seemed to notice her, and pulled off three books from the shelves; reading the titles, Ariana frowned in bemusement, as they seemed to be odd choices for someone like Carla.

A book on hunting and trapping, a book on the common practices for hunting big game, and a book on the roads and pathways around the outskirts of the Marian forests. 'Since when did Mrs Jaeger become interested in hunting?' Ariana thought offhand. It seemed a little strange: Carla always got her game from either her father or one of uncles; she had no need to go out into the forest to hunt. And the way she was acting was a bit odd too: she kept glancing over her shoulder towards the shop windows and door, as if worried someone might spot her. Eventually, she took the books and discreetly made her way to the desk: when her back was turned, Ariana quietly slipped away and out the door, being careful not to let Carla hear her. She then quickly ran back up the street, and ducked down the alleyway next to her house.

"Hey" Ash nearly made her jump out of her skin as he tapped her on the shoulder: "What trouble did you get up to now?"

"Nothing!" she frowned, before stating matter-of-factly: "Just wanna get home is all"

"Uh huh?" Ash folded his arms as he gave her a sideways glance, he knew she had something on her mind, "So? What's up?". Knowing he suspected something, Ariana mentally huffed: she couldn't tell him where she was going tomorrow, she knew he, Rowan and Dale would only trail after her. So she settled for an excuse she knew he wouldn't question; feigning a sense of disappointment, she turned to her big brother and asked: "...Can you cover for me tomorrow morning? I wanna go and get that bird I didn't shoot today"

"You wanna go back out into the forest?" Ash raised an eyebrow,

"Not the forest" Ariana clarified, trying to keep her expression as genuine as possible: "Just old man Hickman's place out by the inner gate, he's got _loads_ of woods pigeons out on his farm and I overheard dad saying he's been moaning about it for months: I figured he wouldn't mind if I shot one and let me keep it?"

Ash thought about it for a moment, before sighing in defeat: "... Yeah okay, I guess it'll be alright: just don't go out any further than the hazel copses. You and Rowan might have made up but mum and dad are still twitchy about you going out by yourself again. Don't try anything until the heat's died down okay?"

"Okay" she nodded with a smile, and ran towards the back door, "Thanks Ash! I owe you one!"

"You better mean that this time!" he called after her as she disappeared inside the house: Rowan and Dale came strolling down the alleyway and glanced over at the back door: "What was that all about?" Dale asked offhand. "Ariana asked me to cover for her; she's going to old man Hickman's place to try and bag a pigeon tomorrow morning" Ash shrugged.

"Huh" Dale frowned in bemusement, "That's not like her to want to just go as far as old man Hickman's farm; what's she up to?"

"Dunno?" Ash sighed, "I figure she's probably gonna go as far as the Rickman's place, maybe down to Fluss pass and play around in the river. It ain't like her to stay in one place long"

"Think we should keep an eye on her?" Rowan frowned in concerned,

"Hey, you guys just made up, so don't go ticking her off by letting her think your stalking her" Ash placed a hand on Rowan's shoulder, "Besides, it's not like she's hiding anything: what's the worst that could happen?"

"I guess?" Rowan sighed offhand

"Besides, _if_ she is hiding anything we can always blackmail her for her desserts?" Dale grinned.

* * *

Later that day, early evening, the Marian forest:

The sun was starting to approach the horizon and the hour was growing late, as the day slowly began to shift into the twilight: the forests and surrounding farmlands were bathed in gold as the light streamed down at an angle, casting long dark shadows that stretched across the ground for several meters; creating varied stripes of gold and blue everywhere.

As she circled around over the tops of the trees, Elysia found the clearing where the grove of giant trees was situated, and with a sharp turn and a stoop, she dropped down through the canopy and landed near the hollow where her tomb was. Looking around, she thought no one else was here, until a familiar set of soft footfalls grabbed her attention. **"Ah, I thought I heard your wings beating somewhere up above"** Javorin smiled as he entered the grove, and sat himself down on a giant log.

Relieved to see he was the first one back, Angel smiled as she approached him: **"I thought flying would be the quickest way to go..."** she dithered as she thought about the task he'd set her earlier: **"I'm sorry but-, I didn't have much luck finding any tree gods; either they're hiding or they're in a completely different part of the forest"**

" **No, it's not that"** Javorin frowned in concern, as he propped his head up on his elbow: **"I must have walked and flown all over most of the forests in this region, and I couldn't sense a single god anywhere. These forests are** _ **ancient**_ **: to not have a single god anywhere is just-,** _ **unnatural**_ **"**

" **Could-, they have gone somewhere else?"** Elysia suggested sheepishly,

" **No, tree gods typically stay in the vicinity of the tree or trees their power is connected to: they won't leave willingly unless their tree is felled or dies naturally"** Javorin explained, **"And it's not just the tree gods: I couldn't sense any river gods near the rivers or streams, no one in the fells, coves, groves or hollows of this land; and the fact there are no abandoned or forgotten shrines is even more worrying. I called out, but no one answered"**

" **Well? You'd think a god would be easy to pick out: I mean, how many humans do you find way out in the middle of the forest?"** Elysia thought aloud. Javorin glanced at her in confusion for a moment, before realizing what she was referring to: **"Ah, you must be unfamiliar with the habits of the nature gods"** he smiled: **"Most gods that live in forests like these do not typically assume human form unless they need to: most of the time they'll appear as animals, plants, or spirits. They're generally very meek, and try to avoid mortals where they can: unless they are summoned to a shrine, in which case they will appear in a form they are familiar with"**

" **Huh... Hey that reminds me"** Elysia suddenly remembered: **"Will you teach me how to turn into a bird sometime? I wanna go over the wall and see what Shiganshina's like"**

" **Of course, any particular reason?"** Javorin smiled: knowing full well her reason for asking.

As she thought about Carla, Elysia shrugged and casually smiled, **"Meh, no particular reason: I just-, never seen a human city up close before. I've blown through many, but never really stopped to check one out"**

Javorin was about to say something, when the silhouette of a raven and sky lark flying over the grove got his attention: **"-Ah finally, their back"** he sighed in relief, **"Looks like their excursion took longer than planned"**

" **Yeah, they've been gone all day"** Elysia thought offhand as she watched them drop down beneath the canopy. Reading their auras to confirm it was them, Javorin's ears pricked forward in alarm when he saw waves of anger radiating off Hecate like flames: Herne was cautiously flitting around her, trying to stay out of her way and yet dropping down to try and reach the ground before her: **"RUN!"** he cried out in a panic.

" **WHAT?!"** Javorin exclaimed: but before Herne could reach him, Hecate transformed back into her titan form, and dropped like a lead weight: hurtling towards him with her long claws extended, and a look of rage in her violet eyes.

" **Oh sh-**

The log he was sitting on exploded under their combined weight, as she tackled him to the ground and threw him against one of the giant trees with an earth-shaking BOOM! Horrified, Elysia ran for cover outside the grove, while Herne transformed and grabbed her leg, but she kicked him off hard **"Stay outta this Shorty!-"** she hissed venomously, before turning back to a dazed Javorin, **"WHERE THE HELL WERE YOU?!"**

" **Wh-what?"** he rubbed his sore head: **"What do you mean?"**

Grabbing him, her claws easily gripped around his neck as she hoisted him up clear of the ground, and dangled him in front of her, hardly breaking into a sweat: **"Don't play dumb with me Javorin!** _ **Where the hell**_ **have you been all day?!"**

" **A little clarification please?"** Javorin deadpanned: not too concerned with her murderous attitude; this wasn't the worst her temper could get, and he knew she wasn't going to make mincemeat of him.

" **Hecate please!"** Herne shoved himself between them, and forced her to let go: Javorin fell on his ass with another boom that made the leaves in the tress shake, and rubbed his sore neck. **"-Give him a chance to explain himself!"** he sternly told her; Hecate regarded him with an angry glare, before folding her arms and letting out a sharp "TCH!", **"Fine, but this had better be good"**

" **Explain what?"** Javorin frowned as he stood back up: Elysia stayed put as Herne frowned up at him: **"Where you've been all day brother. We called out for you but you didn't come"**

Javorin snapped his head in Herne's direction, staring at him in disbelief, **"...What?!"**

Herne and Hecate's eyes widened in alarm, Javorin wasn't lying: **"** _ **You did hear us**_ **this morning didn't you?! When the titans attacked the humans and I had to fend them off?"** Hecate demanded, hoping in the back of her mind that this was all one big tasteless joke.

Javorin merely started at her in alarm: **"...No I-...** _ **what happened?!**_ **"** he demanded.

Sighing in worry, Herne leaned against the tree so he could stand upright, and looked his brother in the eye with a serious tone: **"Not long after we left the wall, the titans converged on a group of humans who had left Shiganshina sometime earlier this morning. Hecate managed to fend most of them off, but many more showed up; we fought as hard as we could but it wasn't enough, and the humans suffered severe casualties"**

" **In addition they lost all their supply wagons and had no choice but to return to Shiganshina this afternoon. Herne managed to keep me from their sight with some fog, but I was calling you** _ **all day!**_ **We needed help out there!** _ **Why didn't you answer?!**_ **"** Hecate demanded angrily,

" _ **I never heard you!**_ **"** Javorin pleaded, **"** _ **I swear**_ **on my immortal life and all that is sacred, if I'd heard you I would have been there in a heartbeat! ..."** He paused a moment, before anxiously asking: **"what happened? How bad was it?"**

An unnerving and uncomfortable silence fell over the grove, before Hecate scowled: **"They ate them"**

Javorin and Elysia both stared at her in dismay, before Hecate raised her hand, and pressed her finger to Javorin's forehead: **"Don't believe me? See for yourself"** she seethed. A flash of white light filled Javorin's vision, as he experienced her memories of the day's events: from when she and Herne flew over the wall, to when they watched the humans file into the gate, returning to the safety of Shiganshina before flying off back towards the forest.

Javorin didn't know what to say as he stood there in complete shock: as he tried to process all that she experienced, only one thing stood out: **"...Why didn't I hear you? Our telepathy is universal: you can hear each other from beyond the veils of the realms, but-...** _ **what happened?**_ **"**

" **You tell me Javorin, because I don't know what the hell happened back there"** Herne sighed as he rubbed his forehead, **"It was like you were shrouded in a fog,** _ **we knew you were there**_ **, we could still feel your presence on the mortal plain, but you-...it felt like you were beyond our reach"**

Hearing that, Javorin turned himself into his elemental form and blew up through the canopy as a storm-force wind, leaving the forest and souring up into the sky; he _had_ to see what was responsible for this. Higher and higher he climbed, through the clouds and up into the atmosphere: where the winds blew with such force that they could howl over mountains and stir the oceans to birth hurricanes. At this height, many thousands of feet above the ground, the continent stretched on forever: endless hues of green and shades of earthy browns as far as the eye could see, and the curvature of the earth was just about noticeable. High overhead through the scattered clouds, the eternal sky glistened with billions of stars, and distant planets turning in their orbits.

But when Javorin turned to gaze back down at the earth, the sight before him made him stop, and made his insides turn over in horror.

All across the face of the earth, there were no other human auras, except for those inside the three walls which sparkled and glisten with life. And all around beyond the walls, stretching as far as he could see: the unnatural auras of the titans were peppered everywhere; dotted about by several or tens of miles apart at the most, while a goodly number surrounded the outside of wall Maria, like insects drawn to dead flesh.

But that wasn't the worst of it: extending his power to read all the ambient manna of the earth, Javorin could see the titan's unnatural auras giving off that weird discharge; which was wafting up into the sky and collecting in the atmosphere. _The entire world was bathed in it_ : and it was comprised of nothing but chaos magics. Like a poisonous fume it hung thickly with a consistency as sticky as honey: choking up the ambient manna and polluting it. And all the while, it was pouring out of the titans as if it were their breath and sweat.

The titans were poisoning the earth: whatever magics they were made out of, it wasn't natural, and it wasn't right. Shocked and horrified, Javorin let himself fall back down to the earth: down to wall Maria and the giant tree grove: he rematerialized on the ground, and stood there in a daze. While the others gazed at him in alarm and concern. **"Wh-..."** Elysia approached closer, **"Where did you go?"** Knowing why he flew up there, Hecate asked: **"What did you see up there?"**

Placing both his hands on Hecate and Herne's foreheads, Javorin shared his memory with them, and they both gasped in horror. For a long time no one spoke as they just stood there: shocked, dazed and confused; all the while Elysia didn't know what was going on. This was obviously very serious, and she knew she wasn't equipped to weigh in on the matter, whatever it was, so she stayed out of it and remained silent. Hecate was the first to break the silence, as she pressed a hand to her forehead, trying to make sense of what Javorin had just shown her: **"...Those chaos magics...I know they were bad news,** _ **but this?**_ **...Nothing like this has ever happened before"**

" **Chaos magic like that,** _ **doesn't just**_ **build up over a few years"** Herne realized, as he gazed up at Javorin with worry in his golden eyes: **"...Call me crazy, but I'm beginning to get a really bad feeling we were in those tombs** _ **a lot longer**_ **than we'd previously thought"**

" **...I think you're right"** Javorin sighed heavily, **"No wonder I couldn't find any other gods: their power is obscured from my sight: as much as mine is probably obscured from theirs"**

" **And the humans, you couldn't see any past the walls?"** Herne worried,

" **Not that I could see"** Javorin glanced down at him: **"But-...that didn't mean there couldn't be any others out there? ... "** he turned his gaze away, pressing a hand to his head as he tried to get his thoughts straight: **"I just-...** _ **I don't know**_ **"** he admitted in frustration: **"...I couldn't see...I** _ **just don't know**_ **..."**

Sensing his worry, and now feeling like an idiot for attacking him, Hecate bit the inside of her cheek as she approached him, and lay a hand on his shoulder: **"I wish I could say there's a way to fix this"** she stated seriously, before having to conceded to her own frustration: **"...But, I don't know** _ **if this can**_ **be fixed?"** she frowned in annoyance at her own helplessness, **"...This is...** _ **really bad**_ **to say the least; and those titans? They're the cause of this"**

" **No"** Javorin frowned, **"The ones who** _ **created them**_ **are responsible for this"**

" **Yeah well until we find them, or the magics they used to create them, we can't do shit about it!"** Hecate snapped angrily: **"All we can do, is concentrate on the things** _ **we can**_ **do to help fix: and that starts with the humans, remember?"**

Knowing she was right, Javorin reluctantly put the subject to one side in his mind, and got back to the subject of today's debacle: **"... These humans, the ones that left the wall; who were they?"**

" **They called themselves the Scouts"** Herne explained, **"They're the ones that go out to fight the titans on their own turf"**

" **And do a shitty job of it too"** Hecate frowned as she folded her arms, **"When the titans converged and started attacking they were outnumbered practically five to one. They had no set plan of attack except using that 'ODM gear' of theirs to fly up and cut the titans nape as best they could, preying they wouldn't get eaten in the process. They had no defensive formation or any other strategy to try and evade them,** _ **and**_ **they had no other weapons except those damn little blades of theirs"**

" **But that's not the worst of it,"** Herne chipped in, **"There wasn't a single witch, wizard, mage or alchemist among them: no one with** _ **any**_ **magical potential that could fight the titans off or undo their chaos magics...I know we didn't sense anyone like that in Shiganshina yesterday, but I thought that was just a fluke on my part: now we know for certain. The humans have been made to forget** _ **all**_ **the magics of the earth, in addition to the outside world and what came before"**

" **Javorin,"** Hecate got his attention: **"The Scouts** _ **just barely**_ **made it back to Shiganshina: they lost** _ **forty five**_ **troops to the titans. Those dull creatures are stupid and clumsy, and yet they hammered them as if they were nothing; I'll admit even I had a hard time trying to hold them off at one point. I didn't use my full power for fear of accidentally getting the humans caught in the cross fire, as well as freaking them out...I hate to say it, but if those humans go outside the walls again, they** _ **won't**_ **stand a chance; not if we're there to defend them... If Herne and I hadn't been there today: I don't even** _ **want**_ **to think about how much higher the body count would have been"**

Javorin folded his arms as he contemplated her words: **"...Did the Scouts ever mention if or when they'll go back beyond the wall again?"**

" **Not that I heard: but then, we didn't exactly hang around to eavesdrop"** Hecate shrugged,

" **If they do go out again, it won't be for some time yet,"** Herne surmised, **"Restocking supplies and rethinking their tactics aside: They need to bury their dead... The ones they able to retrieve at least"** he trailed off in a sombre tone.

" **On that note..."** Hecate sighed as she gazed through the trees, watching the sun as it sank lower in the sky: its golden light fading into a dim orange glow, as the shadows grew longer and darker, **"You'll excuse me if I'm absent tonight. We'll reconvene in the morning and discuss what to do if those Scouts head back out again; but right now, I've got work to do..."** and without another word, she transformed into her shadow form, and melted into the shadows like liquid: silently flowing along the ground and through the trees, leaving no sound or trace of her presence as she headed in the direction of the wall.

" **-WHOA!"** Elysia jumped with fright, her feathers puffing up as she backpedaled towards Javorin: **"I didn't know she could do that!"**

" **Yeah it ain't friendliest way to make an entrance"** Herne smiled, **"But you get used to it after a few hundred years"**

" **What did she mean by 'I've got work to do'?"** Elysia frowned up at Javorin, as she tried to flatten her feathers

" **Remember I told you Hecate's father is the god of the dead? And that one line of her siblings is the death keepers?"** Javorin glanced down at her. **"Yeah, so?"** Elysia shrugged, **"** _ **So**_ **..."** Javorin gave her a bit of a sideways glance: **"** _ **Technically**_ **, while she is the goddess of all demon hunters, she's** _ **also**_ **a death goddess. As in, part of her divine duty is to ensure the souls of the dead pass over into the next world"**. Elysia went wide-eyed: **"...Oh..."** she sheepishly realized.

" **Been teaching her the family tree eh?"** Herne grinned up at Javorin with a sly yet cheeky glint in his eyes, **"Did you tell her about Loki?"**

Javorin glared down at Herne with shock " **-She doesn't need to know about him!"** he sternly warned.

" **Who's Loki?"** Elysia innocently asked,

" **Oh, one of our more 'distant' relations who had a real knack for getting into trouble"** Herne grinned, **"Like this one time, he turned himself into a mere and got preg-** but Herne didn't get the chance to finish as Javorin began casting a silencing spell around his mind; **"-SHE'S A YOUNG GODDESS! SHE DOESN'T NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THAT JUST YET!"** Javorin chide as Herne tried to playfully fight back. **"Uh? ..."** Elysia wasn't sure what to do as the two gods bickered like a couple of kids, **"...Okay, well? I'm gonna go get some sleep okay? I'll leave you two alone yeah?"**

She quickly left them alone, and retreated to the root cave: stopping at the entrance, she took a moment to admire the nest she and Carla built together; as she stepped inside and made herself comfy, she thought about Carla, and what tomorrow would bring.

'Good night Carla' she mentally sighed to herself in content: closing her eyes, and thinking up a good excuse to get away from the others tomorrow.

* * *

 **Elysia invented the nose boop XD When I first thought of that I almost died! XDDDD Well, yet again another long chapter, but there were some things I wanted to address, like Javorin and Hecate's origin(-ish) story (of sorts, no doubt other stuff will become known further along in the story). I got a lot of ideas for the titan-gods by looking at a number of mythologies. When you look at classical, Norse, Celtic and a number of other ancient religions and faiths: it's interesting how their constructed. who was born how and to whom, who had sex with who (or what), and who died in what way. In a way, it tells you a lot about the people that worshiped them, and how they viewed the world spiritually. For this story, the gods didn't exactly create the world and everything in it, but rather, sort of helped it along; and the gods themselves were not worshiped in a way that we might traditionally think they would be. But then, I didn't just look at mythologies for ideas, I looked at a number of anime's and manga's, in particular for the OC's.**

 **This story is kinda going along the lines of the unconventional, which, considering its an AU to begin with, is going to have a lot of stuff that might be hard to follow in places: but hey, if you need clarification on anything, just drop me a message or leave your question in the reviews, and I'll get back to you :)**

 **N/A: Something to clarify real quick: this chapter is set in the year 840, so Erwin isn't yet part of the Scouts and thus hasn't introduced his long-distance scouting formation yet. Hence why the Scouts got their asses kicked.**

 **So, hope you enjoyed this latest chapter, and hope you can me again for the next installment :) don't forget to R &R, and see you all next time! **


	7. Chpt 6: Secret Friendship

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Chapter 6: Secret friendship

One month later, near the Marian forest:

The distant sound of a rooster crowing broke the silence, as the sun's light peeked over the eastern side of Wall Maria, touching the sides of the distant mountains and shining down into the forests and valleys below. A hazy mist hung in the air amid the lower farmlands and sheltered hollows and glens: tinting everything the same shade of pale blue, while in the clear still air above, everything was bathed in pale gold sunlight.

Across the farmlands the fields were green with the first grain crops of the year, while flowers of varying shades of yellow, pink, white and blue blossomed in the open meadows: in the hedgerows and copses the roosters wake-up call was mingled with the dawn chorus of the birds, greeting the day with their various melodious songs.

Ariana had really grown to enjoy seeing this time of day: when everything was still and quiet and no one else was around, it was just her and the birds. As she left the main farmland road and headed up into the Marian forest, she turned back to gaze over the valley, and smiled at seeing the blue shadows and gold light colouring the land in a whole pallet of warm and cool colours; it was a beautiful sight for sure, but unfortunately she knew she couldn't hang around, she had a 'play date' to keep.

* * *

Meanwhile, deep in the forest:

As the sunlight shone through the grove of giant trees, Javorin smiled as he felt its life-giving warmth comfortably stir him from his sleep, and teased his eyelids to open: rubbing his eyes and sitting upright from his bed amid the roots of one giant tree, he gazed over at the sleeping forms of Herne and Hecate. Herne, being the animistic god that he was, favored sleeping in a nice comfortable hollow of ferns and dead leaves, with a smooth moss-caked rock for a pillow; while Hecate, being a goddess of the night, seldom ever slept. Except for when her energies were quite spent and she needed to rest: she wasn't fond of the sun's light and so slept peacefully in her root cave, curled up in the fetal position with her long black hair draped over her shoulder and side.

Studying them carefully, and satisfied they were soundly asleep: Javorin quietly turned himself into his elemental form; the wind, and gently blew through the trees, rustling the leaves and stirring the mist like a ripple in a pond. Hecate lazily opened one eye, and watched as the god's aura moved through the trees, away from the grove: and closed her eye again, heaving a deep frustrated sigh: **"He's at it again"** she grumbled to Herne.

" **I know,"** he sighed, flicking one pointed ear as he turned over onto his side: **"And it's none of our business, (not yet anyway)"**

" **Aren't you even** _ **a little**_ **bit curious as to what he's up to?"** Hecate frowned in her sleep: **"He's been sneaking off like this for the past four weeks, and I** _ **seriously doubt**_ **it's got anything to do with 'stretching his legs' or meditating.** _ **He's up to something**_ **"**

" **And I've told you before, he'll let us in on it in his own good time"** Herne sighed, he really didn't want to have to be doing this, not at this hour of the morning: **"You know how he works: he doesn't like to get anyone involved unless he feels its warranted; whatever he's up to, I'm sure it's nothing serious"**

" **You** _ **do realize**_ **he's been using a concealment spell too? Every time he comes back, I can smell that magic all over him"** she frowned,

" **I** _ **had**_ **noticed"** Herne frowned,

" **And?"**

" **And, I'm not worried: and neither should you; now pipe down and let me get ten more minutes of sleep"** Herne huffed, and tossed over onto his other side, flicking his tail up in annoyance,

Hecate passed a frustrated sigh, and turned over onto her other side, facing away from the mouth of the cave. She hated it when someone kept secrets from her: and deliberately went out of their way to keep her out of whatever it was they were doing, even if it didn't warrant her involvement. It was childish for sure, but she was nosy like that: and the fact it was Javorin of all people, peeved her off all the more. Trust the Overseer of mankind to be sneaking off to be getting up to goodness-knows-what: in all likelihood it was something to do with the humans, it was a no-brainer; but what? Knowing him he was probably going out of his way to help some poor family get some food, or some kid find their lost pet, or maybe even helping a whole village to rebuild after a fire or some kind of natural disaster.

Hecate wasn't fond of humans, and she wasn't fond of the fact that Javorin was so fond of them. Humans were an annoyance at the best of times: a paradox of intelligence and stupidity, they were often the cause of many accidental catastrophes and deliberate acts of selfishness that resulted in a mess one way or another. Some messes which resulted in her having to clean up their mistakes and punish them for their stupidity; what Javorin saw in them she never really understood, and she probably never would. All she knew right now was that they were in no position to be getting side-tracked and distracted by something trivial.

" **...You** _ **do**_ **realize it's not just him that's holding out on us?"** she added, vainly trying to pique his curiosity,

" **I know"** Herne smirked, knowing full well what she was implying, **"And I wouldn't worry about the kid either"**

Hecate jerked in surprise as her eyes flew open, and as she flung a string of telepathic curses at the Hunting god, demanding to know what he knew. Meanwhile, across the grove: Elysia carefully poked her head out of her root cave, and checked to make sure Herne and Hecate were still asleep. Seeing no movement from their 'beds', she quietly sneaked out, and started heading off into the forest.

She walked some seven hundred yards up an animal trail, until she came to a large clearing where the sun shone bright without being filtered by the canopy: in the center of the clearing there was a large stick standing upright, deliberately planted there with twelve evenly-spaced pebbles forming a semi-circle around it on one side, with the stick's shadow pointing towards the pebbles; a crude yet effective sundial that served well for telling the time during the day. Standing over the sundial, Elysia breathed a sigh of relief, seeing the shadow of the stick was only on the first pebble.

'Okay, I've got plenty of time' she thought with relief: 'when the sun's between the third and forth stone, I've got to slip away somehow' she frowned, thinking back over the past month: '...But it's getting more difficult. _They know_ I'm up to something, and soon they're gonna want to know what's going on...' she thought in vexation: '...I guess I have no choice? I'm going to have to introduce them to her...Maybe today is as good a day as any? And with any luck, if Javorin's present, Hecate probably won't try to stuff a giant pillow with me'

Turning to head back the way she came, Elysia thought about what the day might bring, and began thinking of how best to make her 'big announcement' to the other gods. When she got back to the grove, she saw Javorin was gone, and Herne and Hecate were string in their beds, still telepathically arguing.

'I wonder what Javorin's been up to?' she thought offhand, 'He's been sneaking off the same as me; does he have someone he doesn't want Hecate to know about?'

Far from the grove, near the edge of the forest a little way up from the road, Javorin rematerialized and stood by the giant trees: scanning the sparse undergrowth, he soon spotted his reason for being here, and kneeled down in readiness for her arrival.

* * *

As she made her way through the bushes and ferns, keeping her bow and quiver close against her side, Ariana soon spotted the giant form of Shadow amongst the giant trees: kneeling down with one hand lowered to the ground, and with that friendly welcoming smile of his.

"Shadow!" she beamed, running up to him and jumping into his palm: standing back up and bringing her close to his face, Javorin greeted her with a happy purring moan; while ruffling her hair with one finger. "It's great to see you again, a week takes forever to go by!" she smiled, playfully swatting his finger away. With his one free hand, Shadow activated his power, and with the tattoos on his hand glowing softly, he wrote on the side of a giant tree : I know, I missed you too Ariana: in letters that were made of blue light, that hung on the bark for a moment or two before evaporating away like smoke.

"I still think that's so cool" she grinned, reaching out to run one hand over one of the glowing tattoos on his wrist, "But anyways, what're we doing today?"

: I have something new to show you: he wrote on the bark, to which Ariana perked up and started bouncing up and down with excitement: "Something new we ain't done before? Cool!" she beamed, "Is like that trick you do to make plants and trees grow?"

: Nope, even better: he wrote back

"Sweet!" she grinned wildly as she flopped down into his palm, while Shadow turned and started walking back into the forest.

For the past month, Ariana and Javorin had been meeting like this in secret: at first Javorin managed to limit the visits to half a day every week so as to avoid arousing suspicion with Herne, Hecate and Elysia, and vice versa with Ariana's family. But the art of sneaking out of the house and out through Shiganshina's inner gate only served to sharpen Ariana's stealth, and before long she was creeping out into the forest twice a week to find him; and that little nose of her getting better at picking up his scent.

During these little 'play sessions', Javorin and Ariana did a number of things together: mostly wandering the farmlands and surrounding villages whilst invisible, seeing how close they could get to the houses and people together. Other times they'd wander far into the forest and he'd let her explore the more remote hollows and coves: places that no one had visited in a number of decades. And likewise Ariana was always keen to share her world with him: she showed him the places she and her cousins and friends would frequent, from the stone circle near wall Maria, to the copses surrounding the farmlands near the inner gate, and the campsites her father and uncles would take her and her cousins to for their hunting and bush craft lessons.

And when they were not exploring the countryside together, they would meet up in one of the hollows somewhere near the road, and simply talk with one another. Javorin had found a way to take his writing-in-lieu-of-talking one step further, by using his power to write words and sentences using light, either on surfaces or in midair; it saved him having to look for a patch of mud every time he needed to say something, and his only concern lay in being able to write fast enough to keep up with the conversation. Sometimes he'd write with his finger, other times he'd wave his hand and a whole paragraph would appear floating in midair. It wasn't the same as having his actual voice, but it worked pretty well.

"...So listen, I've been thinking" she smiled up at him.

Waving one hand above her, a sentence of words appeared, : Oh dear, that sounds dangerous: he chuckled,

"Yeah yeah very funny" she waved off: "So anyway, me an' everyone went to see Bryson yesterday for that 'ODM gear tryout' he promised us: he let us all try out his gear to see how good we were, and we _totally_ nailed it!" she smiled, before sighing ruefully: "Well? All of us except Eren, he couldn't keep his balance and kept falling over; I feel really bad for him... Anyway," she glanced back up at him: "Outta all of us: me, Ash, Ashlyn, Belle, Shyla, Fox, Lucy, Hawk and Hazel managed to fly up to the top of roof the best; Bryson said we had natural talent. So, I got thinking, and I kinda had an idea"

: Which is? :

"I'm gonna join the Scouts!" Ariana announced boldly with a smile,

Javorin stopped and glanced down at her in mild alarm. Last week was when the Scouts ventured out beyond the wall again: and this time he followed them, along with Hecate and Herne to see them in action for himself. It had been an eye-opening experience to say the least: seeing those humans in action against the titans with only their ODM gear and pairing blades to fight with, and nothing else; it had been a hard-fought battle to keep the majority of the expedition from being eaten. The Scouts lost fifteen brave souls, before they even reached the end of their journey, which had been an old castle that served as a supply depot and campsite: and on the way back, they lost a further five. All the while the gods remained invisible and in the background, staving the titans off and dispatching them, while trying to keep the humans none the wiser.

After returning to the forest, he had been emotionally exhausted as much as he was physically exhausted: those Scouts had died a horrible death, and the fact he and the gods looked like titans themselves didn't help. They'd cut them down as soon as look at them: powers or no powers, gods or not, as far as the humans were concerned a titan was a titan; end of story. Which only made their job of protecting them all the more harder, fighting off a hoard of charging titans while staying invisible wasn't easy, even for the most experienced god; and the fact the Scouts had no real strategy to avoid incurring heavy losses didn't help either. Of course there were a number of Scouts that had their head's screwed on right, and knew what to do when on the defense or offense: but the stringent attitude of following orders to the letter didn't allow for a lot of flexibility, in terms of making judgement calls on one's own terms when faced with different situations: and thus, the Scouts would lose soldiers, simply because the status quo called for them to never disobey their commander. It was a mess, and for the immortal life of him, Javorin couldn't understand _why_?

Seeing the look on Shadow's face, Ariana sat up and turned round to face him properly: "What's wrong?". Javorin hesitated a moment: he didn't want to alarm or upset her by saying no outright; deciding to hear what she had to say, he was about to manifest his words, when Ariana beat him to it: "...I know it sounds crazy, but hear me out okay?"

He nodded with a weak apprehensive smile, and continued walking on as he listened. "So, we _obviously_ can't let the Scouts know about you living here inside the walls, I mean it's _suicide_ ; they'll kill you as soon as look at you" she stated matter-of-factly: "But, what if I were to get my hands on _my own_ ODM gear, and practice killing titans with you, as my stand-in regular titan? Think about it: I could be _a great_ Scout if I get a head start on the training now, then by the time I'm old enough to sign up for the military, I'll breeze through ODM gear training and titan-killing training, and be accepted into the Scouts within a month; and then I'll be able to join them on the expeditions and go beyond wall Maria"

Cocking an eyebrow, Javorin couldn't help but chuckle as he waved his hand, and wrote, : Sounds like you really thought it through, but why do you want to go beyond the walls? :

"... Because..." Ariana hesitated sheepishly, idly plucking the string of her bow: "...I want to go see if there are any titans like you"

Javorin stopped again, glancing down at her in surprise; "Bryson said there's no such thing as titans that don't eat people: but _you're_ here, you're a titan and you don't eat people; and you can do all kinds of cool stuff too. I just think, _if there are_ others like you out there in the outside world, _someone's_ got to find them and prove they exist...It's just-, you being alive, kinda proves that maybe we don't know the titans all that well? Not if titans like _you_ are real"

Javorin couldn't help but smile: he had to admire her tenacity, and reading her aura, he could sense the conviction she held for her idea, along with the compassion she held for him. : That's a very brave and noble thought: he spelt out with one hand, : But how would you get your hands on an ODM gear? :

"Oh that's easy!" Ariana perked up: "As far as mum and dad know I'm out hunting rabbits and birds when I go to meet you: at first they didn't make too much of a fuss about it, but when the pantry started getting full I started selling my catches door-to-door up our street, and then down in the market place in Shiganshina. Since last month I've saved up fifteen gold pieces, twenty seven silver pieces, and a hundred and fifty copper pieces; that's what I'll use to buy the gear with, and since there are all kinds of criminal gangs out here in Maria, it shouldn't be too hard to find one that trades stolen ODM gear"

Frowning in disapproval, Javorin quickly wrote: Absolutely not! Do you have any idea how dangerous that is? :

"Of course I know how dangerous it is!" she retorted, "These are _criminals_ we're talking about! Their gonna drive a hard bargain so I'm gonna have to throw something in to sweeten the deal"

Javorin facepalmed hard; creating a gust of wind that knocked Ariana off her feet and into his palm: rolling his eyes and letting out a long pained groan, he couldn't believe the ballsiness of this child, and the fact she actually meant every word of it only doubled his headache, : _You_ are going to be the death of me: he wrote in exasperation, : There is no way I'm going to let you do such a ridiculous thing! :

"Well?" Ariana thought about it as she stood back up, "Now that I think about it. Maybe looking for ODM gear traders in Maria isn't a good idea? ...", she perked up again with an innocent smile, "Maybe we should try and sneak into Sina and look for one there? It's the interior so they might be more professional and reliable?"

Javorin facepalmed again, knocking Ariana down into his palm: "Hey! You keep hitting your head like that an' I'll fall out ya hand!" she reprimanded, sitting back up and straightening the bow and quiver on her shoulder: "Well do _you_ have any ideas where I can get ODM gear? Cuz' the military don't sell to civilians you know!"

Regaining his composure, Javorin couldn't help but laugh, : I wouldn't worry about it too much: he wrote, :There's plenty of time before you can join the military:. "Yeah but I wanna start training _now!_ " Ariana whined, "You can't join the military until your twelve, and I'm _five!_ It's gonna take _forever_ to turn twelve!"

: It'll come round eventually: Javorin wrote as he pressed on into the forest, : For now, just enjoy your childhood, you'll be surprised how fast it can pass you:. Flopping down into his palm, Ariana passed a deep exasperated sigh as she watched the blue sky through the canopy pass by: "...So?" she changed the subject, "Where're we going?"

: You'll see: he wrote with a smile.

"Fine, don't tell me," she huffed, "By the way, I gotta be heading back home by lunchtime: mum and dad think I'm hunting near Grune-Felder today"

: That's fine: he wrote, : We'll try and get back early; but before then, let's have a little fun, huh?:

"Yeah," Ariana smiled, "let's"

* * *

A little while later, Shiganshina:

Tyto frowned at the crudely written note that had been lying on dining table: it read, : Dear dad, got up early to go hunting rabbits near Mr Wickfield's farm, should be back around lunchtime, don't worry about breakfast I took an apple with me; see you later, love, Ariana, xxx :

Rolling his eyes and letting out a deep exhausted sigh, Tyto shook his head in disbelief. How was Ariana sneaking out of the house like this? He got up before dawn so as to try and stop her, but when he peered into her room and saw she was already gone with the window open, he was stumped (and annoyed for the umpteenth time). "She's getting too good at this" Freya frowned as she shook her head, "Soon we won't be able to catch her out at all!"

"I'll go get my knife..." Tyto sighed as he placed the note back down on the table, "I'll pop into Cooper's place on the way out; tell his housemaid I'll be late for the delivery today"

"What? No!" Freya stated vehemently: "Cooper said he'll pay you extra for that delivery if you make it on time, and we _really_ need the money Tyto"

"But Ariana-

"-Let the boys go and fetch her" she assured him, "The note says she's up by Wickfield's farm right? That's only a few miles from the gate; they'll have her back in time for a late lunch, okay?". Tyto wasn't comfortable with the idea, but he knew Ash, Rowan and Dale were good at finding their little sister, and they weren't prone to wandering off and getting into trouble when he set them a specific task: "Okay..." he sighed with a small smile, "BOYS!" he called up the stairs, "YEAH DAD?!" Ash called back: "Hurry on down, I got a job for you three to take care off"

Hurrying down the stairs, the boys barely had time to ask what was up before their father beat them to the punch: "Your sister snuck out again early this morning"

"Yeah no shit dad" Rowan deadpanned, "We kinda figured"

"Language" Tyto shot him a look, "I need you three to go fetch her: according to her note she's hunting near Wickfield's farm today; think you can handle it?"

"Sure, it ain't like we got much else to do today?" Ash shrugged,

"Hey can I with come you guys?!" Clay asked eagerly as he grabbed his bow and quiver; "Me too! Can I come?" Ashlyn piped in as she dragged Hawk down the stairs; "We ain't got much to do today either, so can we come too?" the Raven twins chimed in.

"What? No, we ain't-

"-Take them with you" Tyto smiled, "it'll keep them out of trouble"

"I can keep an eye on them uncle Tyto" Hazel interjected.

"Atta' girl" Evrard smiled as poked his head out of the kitchen, "And make sure you take the large arrows with you: I heard there's a colossal boar up near that area; try and get him for me okay?"

"Yeah sure whatever" Ash rolled his eyes as he grabbed his bow and quiver, and was out the door, "See ya later old man!". "Be careful out there" Tyto called after him as the rest of the kid's grabbed their stuff and filed out the door, slamming it shut behind them. "A colossal boar?" Freya deadpanned, regarding her brother with a very sideways look: "Seriously Evrard?". "What? We haven't had boar in a long while" he shrugged innocently.

Outside, the kids sorted out their bows and quivers as they started walking down the street, but before they could even reach the bottom of the broad road, several familiar faces stopped them in their tracks: "Hey guys!" Gale smiled as she skipped up to them, with her sisters, Bemadette, Fox, Shyla, and the Cooper twins following close behind, "You going out hunting?"

"Hunting Ariana: she snuck out again this morning and took off up to Wickfield's place" Dale smiled, "You wanna come with us?"

"Hell yeah! We got the whole weekend off remember?" Belle piped in. "And our parents are outta town until Tuesday" Lucius stated, "So we got our place all to ourselves" Lucy added without skipping a beat; "Great! The whole gang's back together again!" Ashlyn beamed, "Come on! I'll race you to the gate!"

But before they could take off, another two familiar faces made them stop in their tracks: "Eren! Armin!" Belle smiled in delight, "Hey guys" Armin waved with a nervy smile as he gripped his Grandfather's hand, while Eren remained at his side with a bandage wrapped around his head and a noticeable sour look on his face. "You guys off anywhere?" Eren asked offhand, "We're going to look for Ariana, she snuck out again and dad wants her back home" Ash explained, "You guys wanna come help us look?". "Sorry but we can't: we got chores to do today" Armin regretfully shrugged. "And my mum's out, so I gotta stay with Armin". "Come along boys" Armin's grandfather smiled, "We got a lot to do today: catch you kids later". "Bye" they both waved goodbye as they headed off up the street.

"See ya..." Poppy smiled as she waved farewell, "...Think he's still sore about yesterday?" she glanced over at everyone else, "Well you gotta admit, he _did_ fall over quite spectacularly" Josefa smirked: "Meh, it ain't our fault he ain't got no balance" Rowan shrugged casually; "Ah well, their loss..." Belle shrugged, before taking off down the street, "I'm gonna win losers!". "Like hell you are!" Rowan took after her, with everyone following in hot pursuit.

Taking off and trying to keep up with one another, the kids all jostled for first place as they ran through the streets towards the inner gate; once on the other side they played, talked and laughed as they headed north, following the north-bound road up through the fields. Around and over the wooded knolls, and down through the meandering valley were the majority of the fruit farms were situated, all the while the great southern Marian river kept dropping in and out of sight amid the copses and hillsides.

Winding down a little and walking at a steady pace so as to save their energy for the journey back, the topic of conversation soon turned to Ariana: "So, what do you guys think she's been up to this past month? Why the need the sneak out?" Lucy asked offhand. "She says she just wants to practice her hunting and make some coin off the game she catches," Ash replied, "Call me suspicious but I don't think it's got anything to do with hunting"

"Huh? _Seriously?!_ " Clay raised an eyebrow in surprise, "But she brings home a bird or rabbit every time she goes out, how's that _not_ to do with hunting?". "Yeah Ash, what makes you think she's up to anything?" Bemadette asked offhand.

"You two haven't fallen out again, have you?" Shyla asked quietly as she gazed over at Rowan, "Hell no, we're still good" Rowan shot her a half-reprimanding look, "But-, Ash has a point: it has been really weird the way she's been sneaking out like this". "And every time we ask her why, she just tells us she doesn't like doing chores, and would much prefer to be out hunting...None of us can figure out what she might be hiding; even Josefa and Jaye haven't been able to find out anything, and they know everything that goes on under our roof" Dale chipped in. "True" they both nodded, "There's not much we don't know, so the fact Ariana's been holding out on us like this is quite impressive" Jaye added.

"I don't think it's a something," Hawk thought aloud, "I got a gut feeling it's more like a _someone_ ". Everyone glanced over at him in mild surprise, "A friend she's keeping secret?" Gale blinked in surprise, "But why?"

"They're either a criminal on the run or someone who doesn't want to be known" Dale theorized, "Either way, if it is a someone they must have an important reason for telling Ariana not to tell anyone about them". "Let's just find her and ask what's up?" Ashlyn waved off, "I'm sure there's a perfectly reasonable explanation"

Thinking back to yesterday, Belle couldn't help but smirk: "... So? You guys thinking about joining the Scouts?"

"After yesterday, I'm certainly thinking about it," Clay smiled, "The ODM gear was _so cool_ to use; I tell ya guys, the look on Bryson's face was priceless when we reached that rooftop!". "I kinda like the idea: I've always wondered what the outside world looks like" Fox shrugged offhand: "I'm going with you" Shyla replied in a monotone: "What? Like hell you are!" he retorted; Shyla gazed up at him and held his hand as she replied, "Know this Fox, wherever you go I'll go with you. You're my big brother; it's my job to have your back". Knowing he wasn't going to dissuade her, Fox reluctantly put his other hand in his pocket and just carried on walking.

"It's an idea I suppose?" Ash shrugged,

"Well _I'm_ still signing up for the Scouts when I turn twelve" Belle stated boldly, "Just you wait, I'll be the best Scout the Corp has ever had!"

"Haven't you got to go through two years of training before you can choose which branch of the military you want to join?" Dale asked offhand; "Meh, I'll breeze through those two years easily," Belle proudly smiled, "Trust me guys, you ain't seen nothing yet!"

As they crested the next hill, the scene up ahead made them stop and watch in a mix of confusion of curiosity. At the crossroads, a large group of people were gathered with a long line of heavily packed carts and wagons stretching back up the eastern road: the people at the front of the gathering were engrossed in a very heated argument with a bunch of wall cultists, while several MP's were trying and failing to calm the situation. But from the sounds of their raised voices and raised fists, it seemed like it was about to escalate into a brawl.

Beyond the crossroads, on the land that rose above the rest of the surrounding farmlands on a large gently rolling hill, the burnt remains of a large farm house, barn and several smaller close buildings could been seen in the distance: with small thin wispy plumes of black smoke still rising from what was left of the chard structures. It seemed like it had been pretty bad too, as the surrounding grass was burnt black; a smaller gathering of people were nearby, seeming putting out the last of the flames, and checking the over the damage.

As they approached closer for a better look, the kids began to get a feeling that this was something very serious: "Whose farm was that?" Gale stared up at the burnt out house in morbid curiosity. "Mrs Hafer's" a young blonde boy replied, as he sat watching the argument on a boulder next to the signpost: "The whole place went up in flames the night before last: we saw the glow from our place over in the next valley. I heard you could see the smoke as far away as Shiganshina"

"Huh, how did we miss that?" Josefa and Jaye both frowned in bemusement, glancing at one another in suspicion,

"Did they get out okay?" Poppy glanced over at him worryingly.

The boy glanced at her anxiously: "...I heard from my uncle they found six bodies in the ashes yesterday morning: they think it might have been his wife and two daughters, along with all the house staff...They still haven't found Mr Hafer yet"

"How awful" Ashlyn ruefully sighed, "Who're all these people? And what's with all the carts and wagons?" Ash asked offhand,

"Their-, they _used_ to be Mr Hafer's laborers; they were helping to put out the last of the fire yesterday afternoon when these guys from the wall cult showed up, and told everyone that Hafer had sold them the farm and all its surrounding lands to them the week before. Then yesterday, they came by again and handed everyone an eviction notice: told them that if they didn't leave the property by midday today, they'd call the MP's on all of them: everyone called bullshit on that and, well? The cult arrived this morning and started throwing people out of their homes, the MP's showed up an hour ago to try and help, but it's kinda going downhill" the boy explained,

"Why did the wall cult want to buy the farm?" Shyla watched as the men continued to argue. "Not the farm, it's the land they want: apparently their going to build one of their 'sanctuaries' up there where the farmhouse and barn used to stand; guess it was a stroke of luck for them? The whole place burning down like that"

"...Yeah..." Rowan frowned in suspicion, "...Lucky them"

"...Well? Thanks" Ash waved the boy farewell, and head off down the western road with everyone following closely behind; "...I don't understand" Belle frowned in confusion, "Why can't they just let the laborers stay in their homes?"

"It's the wall cult Belle" Bemadette frowned: "If you're not one of them they won't even acknowledge you: hell, as far as their concerned, anyone who doesn't follow the 'word of the divine architect' is less than human"

"How do you know that?" Hawk asked offhand curiously; "Pops" she shrugged, "He and the rest of the Willums have had a grudge against the wall cult for a long time". "It's true" Gale concurred, "Granny can't stand them: she doesn't like to talk about them; she doesn't even like to look at them when they pass her in the street"

"Why?" Josefa blinked in surprise,

Glancing at one another anxiously, Gale, Poppy and Belle, weren't quite sure how to answer her, until Gale sighed, "...I can't be absolutely sure: but I have a feeling it's got something to do with our parent's deaths". "And don't ask us why okay?" Poppy added, "We don't know why or how; all we know is that Granny told us she'd tell us the truth one day, when we were older...That's all we really know guys"

No one said anything as they continued to walk on down the road: leaving the gathering far behind, until the sounds of angry voices were no longer in earshot. As they rounded a bend in the road, the southern Marian river was now in sight, along with the raised bridge that stretched across it: and on the other side were the outskirts of the Marian forest. And nearby, their destination: a small yet sizable hamlet with a small farm nearby.

"Think old man Wickfield's home?" Rowan suggested as he folded his arms: "There's no way he likes poachers, even if they're not on his land, so Ariana would have _had_ to ask permission to avoid getting an ass-loada buckshot from that musket of his". "Let's go and find out?" Ash shrugged, "He may be a crotchety old git but he hates rabbits as much as the next cabbage farmer"

* * *

Meanwhile, Elsewhere in the forest:

"Hey" Pascal stuck his head out the back door, "Where's the gun-powder?"

"Oh," West snapped out of his daydreaming: "I put it in that box next to the wine in the basement..."

West sat on the porch staring out into the forest, idly daydreaming of nothing in particular, and letting the dappled sunlight warm his face; it had been just over a month since he showed Pascal the hollow where the huge broken tomb was located, along with the giant white feather. After which, for the sake of not wanting to attract unnecessary attention, Pascal told him to put the feather back in the tomb and never speak of it again. Since then, life carried on as usual: customers came to the cottage to buy their stolen ODM gear, and business was good. Being so far out in the sticks of Maria was a far cry from the countryside of wall Sina and wall Rose: not that he didn't like it; but still...

Having to remain hidden from the MP's and avoid the more violent criminal gangs was all he thought they'd have to worry about: knowing there was a giant mysterious bird-creature somewhere out there in the wild still sent a chill down his spine from time to time. But, after a month of worrying and waiting for something to happen: nothing did; he had gradually begun to relax a little, but at the back of his mind he couldn't help but remain curious. Pascal's attitude towards the creature was a little blasé to say the least, but then, that was Pascal: it took a lot to throw him off, and he was never totally convinced something was real unless he saw proof of it for himself. Well? He showed him the feather he found in the tomb, and still it wasn't enough to convince him there was any real danger. But, after a month of nothing occurring, and not hearing of any strange rumours of anything lurking about in the forest, maybe he was worrying over nothing? Maybe that bird-creature was no longer here, and had flown to new pastures somewhere in the outside world?

Breathing deep and letting out a sigh, West got up and headed back inside: he needed to be doing something, concentrate on something else so as to take his mind off the subject. Heading for the kitchen, he opened the cupboard and frowned at the bare shelves; there was nothing except for a moldy tomato, a slice of stale bread, and a mouse nibbling on a crumb of biscuit.

"Hey Pascal, we need to go food shopping" he called out to his friend,

"What? Don't be ridiculous" Pascal smiled as strode into the kitchen, "We've got plenty of-" but his face fell flat as he stared into the cupboard, "...Oh... Okay: I'll go get the cash you get a start on getting the horses ready"

After getting the horses and cart ready and grabbing their satchels, Pascal and West were ready to go: West locked the front and back doors before mounting his horse, and walking down the dirt road alongside Pascal, who was driving the small cart. "We should start making food shopping a more regular thing you know? We live out in practically the middle of nowhere, and neither of us knows how to grow anything or keep chickens at the very least"

"Didn't we get some chickens for eggs when we first arrived?" Pascal frowned, trying to remember: "We did" West deadpanned, "The foxes got them". "Huh...Well? Maybe it wouldn't hurt to start poaching for the odd pheasant or two? With all the farms around here there's bound to be a few with birds stealing their grain and berries". "You know, there are plenty of pheasants that roost in the trees over the cottage? They'd be easy enough to shoot down" West suggested, "Besides, I prefer beef: it's a bit meatier than game". "Well be sure to get plenty of meat, we need to get enough food to last us the next week or so" Pascal told him. The two friends continued to talk as they wandered down the road: steadily heading down towards the main forest road.

Back at the cottage, the forest was eerily quiet: a strange stillness came over the place as the wind slowly stopped and the birds fell silent; from out of the canopy, a large white butterfly fluttered down; its wings were such a pure shade of white that they almost appeared to be luminous as they shone in the dappled sunlight. Delicately fluttering down further, it came to rest on the handle of the front door: then suddenly, as it opened and closed its wings, the lock on the door turned, and door opened ajar. The butterfly flew away back up into the canopy, and the wind and birds returned: as if nothing had been there at all.

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the forest:

"What are we doing here?" Ariana frowned in confusion as she stared up at the side of wall Maria, "You're not seriously going to climb that are you?!" she exclaimed in disbelief, : No: Javorin wrote as he smiled with a sly twinkle in his vivid blue eyes, : we're going to fly up:

" _Huh?!_ " Ariana started up at him as if he'd lost his marbles: but before she could ask how, all the tattoos on Javorin's body glowed bright blue, and his skin turned a shade of blue as he turned intangible at the same time. Then, all at once his body dissipated while his tattoos flew apart like leaves on a breeze: swirling and spinning around her as the wind suddenly started gusting up from below, and as she fell from the space where his hand had been, she suddenly found herself being blown upwards and carried on a powerful current that blew straight up the side of the wall. All the while Javorin's marking's continued to swirl all around freely, seemingly holding her aloft. With a yelp of surprise and fear, Ariana helplessly flayed her arms and legs around, trying to figure out what the hell was going on: until she caught sight of the markings, and could make out the outline of Javorin's body and face amid the gusting wind; it was strange, this wind was powerfully strong, and yet she found she could still breathe, her hair and clothing was flapping about yet her bow and quiver remained at her side and hadn't been blow off, and although the wind was coming from below her at every angle, Ariana remained perfectly upright, as several small gusts of winds pushed her sides, as if keeping her in a safe yet strong grip.

It was then, Ariana could see the smile on Javorin's transparent face, amid the swirling markings, and suddenly realized what was going on: "...You can turn into the wind?!" she called out over the howling gusts: Javorin nodded, and defined his outline a little more so she could see him better. Now she could see, he was hovering several meters off the ground with her safely cupped between his two huge hands, while the wind was kicking up all the leaf litter on the ground, bending the branches in the trees back and rustling the leaves. "HOLY CRAP YOU CAN TURN INTO THE WIND!" she cried out in sheer amazement.

In one swift and steady movement Javorin carried her up the side of the wall; with a surge of adrenaline stoking Ariana's excitement, she kept her eyes on the wall as they ascended into the sky. And they cleared the top, Ariana gasped as she saw over the top of wall Maria for the first time in her life, and gasped at the view before her. Endless open wilderness that went on forever, open prairie peppered with pine trees and small forests, and beyond them, vast mountains as far as the eye could see. But Javorin didn't stop there, he kept ascending up and up, far into the clouds: until wall Maria could be seen stretching from one end of the horizon to the other and Shiganshina looked absolutely tiny from this distance.

With the wind in her hair and joyous elation bursting from her heart, Ariana let out a long happy cry of excitement of Javorin twisted and turned amid the clouds: positioning her so she could fly like a bird, her arms outstretched like wings with her fingers for feathers; letting her feel the wind catch her and keep her aloft. Through the endless blue sky they soared for goodness knows how long, time fell away and lost all meaning as Ariana totally surrendered to the freedom of the air; banking and barrel-rolling with the winds as they pushed the clouds along, gliding on warm thermals as they rose high into the atmosphere, and chasing after flocks of birds as they headed beyond the wall.

As she continued to yell and whoop with giddy excitement, Ariana didn't even feel the coldness of the air: or the stinging of the wind as it hit her eyes and dried her corneas; Javorin was careful to shield the bulk of the wind from her face so she could see straight, but other than that, it made his heart leap with happiness to see her so enthralled in this new experience. Using his power to read her aura, he saw how her energies had formed crudely into the shape of a bird: a magpie; her spirit animal. For Ariana, this was freedom; this was the way to see the world, as she gazed down and smiled at the all places she knew below: like all the birds, she knew the call of freedom in her heart and it reflected in her energies. This child was a free soul, and Javorin couldn't be more proud of her. "Hey! How fast are we going?! Everything's passing by so slow down there!" she called out to him.

Javorin banked left, dropping down until they were souring some thirty feet above the ground, and from this distance everything was simply racing by, faster than the fastest horse could gallop: and as they passed over a field full of laborers, Ariana realized they hadn't seen them. "We're invisible aren't we?!" she grinned, "THIS IS THE BEST THING EVEEEER! WHOOOOO!" she cheered, as they continued to sour over the land.

Over farmlands, rivers, hills and mountains, over towns and villages, passing roads and people alike, across the whole southern region of Maria they flew together, until the sun was high overhead and exhaustion finally began to kick in for the five year old. Returning to where they had taken off, Javorin rematerialized his corporeal form and his markings returned to their exact positions on his body, while Ariana safely landed in his waiting palm: albeit she flopped down with exhaustion, unable to stand up as she was so exhausted from holding her arms out for so long, she couldn't even sit up right, her spine felt like it was turning to stone, while her legs left like jelly, and her eyes felt so dry and uncomfortable. But as she awkwardly rolled herself onto her back, she gazed up at Javorin with the biggest grin her face could muster: "...That was amazing..." she panted, "... _You_ are amazing, Shadow..."

Smiling in heartfelt appreciation, Javorin raised his free hand over her, and decided to alleviate her exhaustion: twirling his fingers round in a circle, the tattoos on his hand and wrist glowed as blue orbs of light materialized out of the air, and surrounded Ariana in a pale blue aura. All at once the aches in her joints melted away, the dryness in her eyes was replaced with fresh moisture, and the biting cold in her skin melted into soothing warmth as blood pumped heat through her extremities. Blinking in surprise, Ariana sat upright and glanced around at the orbs as they began to disappear, and the markings on Javorin's hand returned to their normal state.

"Whoa, what was that?" Ariana stood back up, "One second I'm exhausted, then next, I feel totally fine...is that another one of your tricks?" she smiled up at him. : One of many: he spelled out with his free hand; "You gotta show me all of them!" she bounced up and down in excitement, "I wanna-

But suddenly, Ariana passed out like a flame, and fell into Javorin's palm fast asleep: Javorin nearly panicked, what just happened? When he suddenly sensed a familiar dark aura surrounding Ariana: keeping her out cold.

" **Yeah, like** _ **that's**_ **going to happen..."** Hecate deadpanned as she slipped out of the dark shadows of the thick canopy, and silently moved towards Javorin, who simply regarded her with a sideways glance, as he cupped his free hand over Ariana to keep her safe: **"I figured you'd find yourself a little pet sooner or later, you just** _ **can't**_ **help yourself, can you?"**

" **Well it's not like I could keep her a secret forever?"** Javorin deadpanned, **"especially from** _ **you**_ **"**

" **Too right you couldn't..."** she grinned, feeling rather pleased with herself for having called it: **"You should know, there** _ **are no**_ **secrets I don't know about"**

" **So?"** Herne smiled as he emerged from the undergrowth with Elysia in tow, **"Who's your new little friend?"**

" **Before we begin with the introductions: just** _ **how long**_ **were you all tailing me?"** Javorin regarded him with an old fashioned look. **"Meh, long enough"** Herne shrugged nonchalantly, **"But for the record it was her idea, not ours"** he pointed to Hecate. **"Uh huh? ..."** Javorin deadpanned, **"...Okay, let's get this out the way,"** he sighed, and with a wave of his hand he dispelled Hecate's magic, and Ariana began to wake up.

As she rubbed her eyes and sat upright, Ariana smiled when she saw Javorin's familiar friendly gaze, but when she noticed the three unfamiliar faces gazing down at her from beside him, she nearly jumped out of her skin in shock, and very nearly out of Javorin's hand. Quickly cupping his free hand over her so she had some feeling of security; Ariana stared at the three strangers with eyes as wide as saucers. When it became apparent these new titans were the same as Javorin on account of the markings on their bodies, Ariana leaned out of his cupped hands, and looked them up and down with her mouth agape.

"...Shadow..." she gasped in amazement,

" **Shadow?"** Hecate glanced at Javorin with a weird look: **"I'll explain in a minute"** he shot her a look, to which she didn't reply, and simply stood there with her poker face in place as the tiny human child looked her and the others up and down. Pushing Javorin's other hand away for a better look, Ariana was totally taken aback by these new titans: "...Are these your friends?" she smiled in a mix of excitement and nervousness.

: They are my family: he wrote in midair, : And I think it's time you met them:

" **Oh great, you learned her written language already?"** Hecate deadpanned, **"Why am I not surprised?"**

" **Aww she's so cute**!" Elysia let out a long chirping squeal of delight, **"That's really what humans look like when their babies?"**

" **She's hardly a baby kiddo"** Herne chimed in,pointing to the bow and quiver on her shoulder: **"If she's able to hold a bow and arrow straight and shoot a target, then she's practically half grown"**

" **Don't go getting attached to it brat"** Hecate glanced sideways at the weather goddess, **"It'll be dead within a hundred years anyway"** she let a sharp "TCH!" escape her lips, making Ariana jump as she approached her for a better look: **"Besides, they don't-**

Hecate stopped in her tracks when she gazed Ariana in the eye, and noticed her unnaturally vivid blue left eye: **"...Wait a minute..."** she frowned. Quickly scooping Ariana up in her fist, and with her other hand carefully pinched her head between her finger and thumb so as to stop her from wriggling about as she got a closer look at that eye. Before Javorin could grab her back, Hecate shot him an incredulous stare, glaring daggers right at him: **"-ARE YOU** _ **KIDDING**_ **ME?!"** she exclaimed in disbelief: **"You used your blood to heal this brat?!"**

Frowning and rolling his eyes in exasperation, Javorin snapped his fingers and Hecate's hand suddenly flew open, letting Ariana drop down into his other hand: gasping for breath, Ariana quickly scurried up his arm like a squirrel and hid in his thick mane of hair, trying to hide from Hecate as best she could. She was terrified of her, and it showed in her aura as it shuddered with nervousness.

" **Oh great, that's a good first impression Hecate"** Javorin deadpanned, **"-Don't change the subject!"** she jabbed her finger in his face as she got up close into his personal space: **"What in the nine circles of hell is the meaning of this?!"**

Taking a deep breath and reaching for Ariana, Javorin soothed her with a few reassuring coos as he stroked her back with one finger, and gently placed her on the ground; gazing up at him, she watched as he spelled out the words, : Could you give a minute Ariana? I just need to talk my cousin in privet for a moment:, "Cousin? ..." Ariana blinked in surprise, "...She's your cousin?" she looked the giant black and white titan up and down, suddenly forgetting her fear, and noticing the much more intricate markings on her body: "..She's really pretty" she smiled. Hecate stared down at the child as if she'd completely taken leave of her senses, while Herne couldn't help but laugh: **"Oh this is gonna be interesting!"** he smirked, while Ariana continued to watch Javorin and Hecate, as they argued telepathically.

Standing a little way off from the action, Elysia checked the position of the sun up in the sky, and began to grow a little nervous: 'Carla will have entered the forest by now. I've got to go now'. She slowly and quietly backed away, and was just about to make herself invisible, when Herne glanced over at her with a knowing smile: **"...Got somewhere you need to be kid?"**. Elysia started sweating musket bullets as she tried to think up a good excuse; glancing back over at the two arguing gods, Herne glazed back at her, and smiled: **"...I wouldn't worry about those two, their gonna be at it for some while, and don't worry about the kid, she'll be okay...If you just want to go for a fly, that's okay"**

" **Yeah..."** Elysia smiled anxiously, **"Flying, that's what I was gonna do"** she nodded, **"-Catch you guys later!"** and without another word, Elysia quietly took off through the undergrowth, being careful not to draw Javorin and Hecate's attention as they continued to argue; unaware that Herne had thrown up a concealment spell to help Elysia slip away.

'This day just keeps getting more interesting' he thought with a smile.

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the forest:

As she made her way off the road and up into the thick undergrowth, following the trail up into the trees: Carla glanced up at the dappled light streaming through the canopy, and breathed in the sweet earthy air.

This past month had practically flown by, and yet it felt like so much had happened in such a short space of time; after befriending Angel and deciding to keep her existence a secret from the world, Carla had decided to help her hide by teaching her how to avoid hunters and the military. Visiting Bryson and Claude's book shop a few times a week to read the necessary information required, she would take down notes, and then go to visit Angel up in the Marian forest and relay to her what she'd learnt. In addition, Carla herself had learnt quite a few things: from learning how to construct a simple sundial, to learning how to spot spring-traps and snares. It had been somewhat of an education for her, but for Angel, it was the highlight of her week.

The giant avian titan had been utterly bewitched by the human world: whenever Carla told her something she didn't know her eyes would light up with a deep and endless fascination. But they both had to be careful: Carla could only limit her visits to once or twice a week; depending on when Grisha was away on business and when Eren was either at school, or with Armin and his grandfather, and she had to pick her cover stories carefully too; she didn't want to arouse suspicions by leaving any loopholes that could unstuck her carefully laid plan. She got a knot in her stomach every time she thought about it: but whenever she thought about Angel, and how she was helping her friend, it didn't feel so bad after a while.

Spotting their designated meeting place in a shady hollow up ahead: amid a large cluster of tall boulders and flat stones; Carla found herself a perch on one smooth rounded boulder, and waited for Angel to show up: 'I hope she remembered how to read the sundial. It shouldn't be that hard' she thought offhand anxiously: 'she usually keeps good time... It's just my nerves is all...' Carla mentally sighed; she didn't know what there was to worry about? Grisha wouldn't be back until this evening, and Eren was with Armin for most of the day, what could go wrong?

Thinking ahead to her meeting with Angel, Carla couldn't help but smile as she thought about the last book she perused: "I wonder if Angel knows anything about the weather?'

* * *

Sometime later, elsewhere in the forest:

"Okay, so she's not at Wickfield's place" Dale shrugged, "Maybe she went on to somewhere else?"

"Where?!" Rowan exclaimed in annoyance, "I dunno if you noticed, but she's got _a whole damn forest_ to herself!"

"Look, Ariana may be adventurous but she's not stupid: ever since last month she _knows_ she's not allowed to go back into the forest without someone to keep an eye on her" Hazel pointed out. Ash was about to throw in his two copper pieces, when Clay stopped abruptly, making Ash walking into the back of him: he was about to tell his cousin to watch where he was going, until he noticed how Clay was sniffing the air like a hound: "What's up, what'd you smell?"

"Ariana" Clay blurted out, blinking in surprise,

"What? No way!" Bemadette exclaimed in disbelief,

"No I'm serious guys! I got her scent," Clay pleaded as he sniffed the bushes where the scent was emanating from: "She went off the road and went up into there..." he pointed to the trail that meandered through the undergrowth: sure enough, a noticeable path could be seen where the grass had been flattened by a pair of small feet. "What's up there?" Gale asked offhand: "Dunno, but if that's where Ariana's scent is, that's where she went" Ashlyn thought aloud dubiously.

"Okay, lead the way Clay" Ash gestured for Clay to take point, while Ash and the other hunters-in-training reached for their bows, and locked an arrow into position. "Why the bows and arrows guys?" Belle frowned in curiosity; "As we entered the forest I smelt wolf crap: if there's a pack nearby we gotta be ready" Hawk replied, "You guys stay in between each of us, so in case something comes charging out of the bushes, we can shoot it"

Following Clay up the trail, the Willum sisters, Bemadette, Fox, Shyla, and the Cooper twins each fell into place between one of the other kids; until they were all in single file. As they headed up into the forest the shadows grew darker as the canopy grew denser, and the sounds of the birds began to echo through the trees at a distance; "...This place is kinda creepy" Poppy whispered, "Why'd Ariana go this way?"

"Dunno" Ash frowned, "But she's got some explaining to do when we eventually find her.

It was hard to tell how far they traveled, as the trail rose, fell and curved with the topography of the forest floor: between deep hollows and giant trees, between thick enormous root systems and dense bushes and fern clusters. This part of the forest was dark and gloomy, as the thick canopy high overhead virtually blotted out all the light: it was the kind of place a predator would favor; far from the road and with ample cover, the Willum and Cooper kids felt dangerously exposed here, while the Celtic kids kept their bows and arrows at the ready, scanning their surroundings for the slightest hint of trouble. It was a nerve-racking trek, but they eventually emerged into a large open clearing that was surrounded by a large cluster of boulders by the tree line. It was eerily quiet here: no birds, insects or animals could be heard, and in their guts the kids began to get a bad feeling that told them something was wrong.

"Why would Ariana go through here?" Clay nervously thought aloud: "This place feels _bad_ somehow", "Yeah, I feel it too bro" Hazel nodded anxiously. "Maybe we should move on?" Ash suggested, "You still got her scent Clay?" he asked offhand. "Yeah, I can still smell her; she went this way" he pointed to an opening in the undergrowth on the other side of the bolder cluster. Without having to be told twice, the kids all followed him as he led the way into the forest: climbing over the boulders, and into the thick tall undergrowth.

Suddenly, the distant thunder of galloping horse's echoed through the trees, along with the panicked cry of a man. The children froze still as their heads all snapped in the direction of the sound, listening and trying to make out what was going on; they didn't know where it was coming from, until they all realized it was heading this way fast.

"What-

"-Get down and hide!" Ash barked: everyone dropped down into the greenery on their bellies: "-What the hell's going on?!" Bemadette exclaimed, "- _Shush!_ " Dale covered her mouth, but before she had time to smack his hand away. The sound thundered towards the clearing, and the kids all stared in silence as the scene unfolded...

A man covered in cuts and brushes and with his clothes completely torn and disheveled, came bursting into the clearing: running at break-neck speed with everything he had, his labored panting and feeble cries for help rang out across the clearing as his pursuers burst out of the undergrowth and ran him down. Behind him, twelve riders dressed head to toe in dark charcoal grey uniforms and black hooded capes were riding twelve big black horses; but what really caught the kid's attention were their faces: they were bone white with dark sunken eyes, and bore no expression at all, as if they were frozen stiff like a corpse. One rider flanked the man and let his horse run right over him: causing him to tumble and roll across the grass until he crashed into the side of one of the boulders; effectively bringing the chase to a halt.

Four of the riders immediately dismounted, and slowly approached the man like a pack of wolves: now that they were closer and standing still, the kids saw that their unnatural pale faces were in fact masks; completely covering their faces with the hoods up and concealing the rest of their heads. From where they hid in the undergrowth, the kids could only see part of the man, as he tried to sit up; but his loud agonizing cry told them of the pain he was in, as his broken legs were bleeding quiet badly from being trampled on. Gasping for breath as he coughed up blood, he stared up at his pursuers and glared daggers at them; his hatred for them was plain to see and hear, as he hissed: "...You-, you call yourselves men of god? YOU ARE AS _GODLESS_ AS YOU CAN GET!" he coughed up more blood, before crying out in pain as tears ran down his cheeks: "...My wife, m-my children...You let them die, you let them _burn!_ You're not humans, your _monsters! All of you, monsters!"_ he cried out in sheer rage and anguish.

The riders didn't respond as one stepped forward, and from under his cloak, produced a long blade as he knelt down before the man. From where they were hiding and the angle at which they were looking up from, the kids only saw the man's feet: the rest of him, along with the front of the kneeling rider was hidden by a standing bolder. As they remained silent, their minds raced with dread; who were these people? What were they doing to that poor man? For the Willum and Cooper kids, they had no idea what was going on, but whatever it was, it was _really_ bad. But for the Celtic kids, it like watching a nightmare come to life; those dark riders, the one's their uncle Evrard/father told them about... Were these riders _really_ them? Were these the one's they'd been told to fear? To run and hide from? ... Who'd _kill them_ without a second thought?

Their eyes remained glued to the horrifying scene as the rider brought the blade in front of him: the man tried to say something else, when his breath suddenly hitched and his breathing sounded like he was going into a spasm of some kind, as he rapidly began inhaling and exhaling. Then, quiet unexpectedly, the rider with the blade spoke: "...Monsters? Hardly, we are but servants of he who would guide us in all that is good and holy: his will is our command, and _your death_ , is what he commands of us..." the rider stood back up: the blade in his hand now dripping with blood, and the man's breathing could no longer heard as his feet went limp, slowly stilling, until the kids couldn't see, or hear him moving at all.

A deathly silence fell over the clearing as two of the other riders approached, the first rider produced a white handkerchief from under his cloak and wiped off the blood on his knife: the two other riders produced their own larger blades, and dragged the man further behind the boulders, while the forth rider returned to his mount and unbuckled a large black cylindrical box that was attached to one side of his saddle. The sickening sound of flesh being cut and bone being forcefully broken could be heard: but none of the kids could see what was going on for the boulders blocking their line of sight; the horrible sounds made Poppy sick to her stomach, she came within an inch of throwing her breakfast up but she managed to hold it down. Bemadette turned pale as she covered her ears; whatever was going on, she didn't want to know, and neither did anyone else.

Finally, the noises stopped and the forth rider approached with the box in hand, disappearing behind the bolder for a moment before re-emerging, and reattached the box to his saddle before mounting his horse. The third rider brought his horse alongside the boulders, and with the second rider's help they hoisted the man up and tied him down to the rear of the saddle by his ankles and wrists; but the kids could only see his lower half: his upper half was on the opposite side of the horse. After he was securely fastened in place, the three riders remounted their horses and rejoined the group. Steadily, the sharp biting smell of metal filled the still air: blood. This was bad.

"Do we return to the half-way house sir?" one of the riders asked, as the first rider remounted his horse. "Not yet," he replied in a smooth yet cold voice: "We still need to make sure there's no rabble wandering around this part of the woods; the second hunting party should be along soon enough. In the mean time I want you two to take our 'game' to our brothers for confirmation of the mission's success; they should be in the designated clearing off the road by now" he glanced over at the second, third and forth riders. "Yer sir" they replied with a courteous nod, and galloped off up the trail that led into the clearing: the man's limp form oscillating with the horse's jerky movements. "Come, let's go" the first rider ordered, and together the remaining riders took off galloping back the way they came; disappearing into the greenery until only the sound of the horses hooves could be heard echoing through the trees, growing fainter and fainter, until only the songs of the birds could be heard at a distance.

"Are they gone?" Gale nervously looked over at Ash. The raven-haired boy slowing raised himself up, and scanned the clearing: it was just as it had been when they first arrived: except for the strong smell of blood hanging in the air: "...I think we'll be okay..." Ash swallowed hard. Cautiously standing back up, the kids stayed close together as they tentatively re-entered the clearing: slowly walking around the bolder cluster, they stared wide-eyed in dread at the sight of the massive pool of blood on the ground and on the sides of the rocks; it was so dark it looked almost black.

No one knew what to do or say for a moment, as their minds spun in confusion and horror: what had just happened? What happened to that man? What did those riders do to him? And were they hunting anyone else? Tears began to well up in Poppy, Hazel, Ashlyn and Lucy's eyes as they clung to their siblings for comfort. "...We have to find Ariana" Ash glanced over at Clay, "Right now!"

Swallowing hard as he tried to keep his breakfast down: Clay went back to the original spot where Ariana's scent was: the smell of the blood was hard to filter out, but as he closed his eyes and concentrated, Clay could just about make out her scent: "Come on" he told them, and readying their bows and arrows, the kids followed him: keeping a sharp eye and ear out for anything.

' _Dammit Ariana!_ Of all the times for you to go off getting sidetracked!-' Ash thought as he frowned in annoyance: '...I just hope we get to you before those riders do'

* * *

 **Enjoying the craziness thus far? well it gets even crazier in the next chapter :) Hope you enjoyed, and don't forget to R &R on the way out ;) **


	8. Chpt 7: First Introductions

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Chapter 7: First Introductions

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the forest:

Hecate leaned against a giant tree with her arms folded, staring at Javorin with a sharp scrutinizing gaze: having heard him out over his reasons for keeping Ariana a secret from her and the others, she let out a sharp "TCH!" as she rolled her eyes and gazed up into the canopy: **"...Well? ...At least you take your responsibilities seriously, which is more than I can say for** _ **some**_ **gods..."** She glanced down at Herne, who was horsing around with Ariana: letting her sit on his head and holding on tightly to his mane-like hair while he galloped around several trees in a wide circle, chuckling in a set of deep throaty grunts while she squealed with delighted, telling him to go faster. **"...So? Did anything come of that blood?"** she asked in all seriousness.

" **I'm glad to say no, and I think it's highly unlikely anything else is likely to manifest"** Javorin stated: **"I know it's not your policy as a goddess to take these kinds of matters for granted:** _ **believe me**_ **, I'm fully aware of the consequences of a god's blood being transferred into a human"**

" **Even so, you** _ **could**_ **have at least told me you were addressing the matter in person: you didn't have to go behind my back"** she frowned at him. **"Don't get me wrong,** _ **I know**_ **this kind of falls under your 'divine jurisdiction': but let's face it, you're not exactly good with children, and especially not ones as young as her"** he gestured to Ariana. Hecate huffed in annoyance, she knew he had a point: **"...I suppose?"** she shrugged casually. **"You suppose?"** Javorin glanced over at her with a cheeky glint in his eye: **"If I recall correctly, you prefer them sautéed and grilled with mint and apples".** She couldn't help but smile: **"...Heh, I always did enjoy scaring them out of their little skins: they make the most delightful screams of terror"**

" **Well you're plum out of luck with this one I'm afraid"** Javorin smiled, **"She'll have you sussed in no time"** he glanced down at his feet; following his gaze downwards, Hecate was surprised to see Ariana standing between them, gazing up at her with intense curiosity. Bending down and gently picking her up, Javorin carefully held her close to his chest as she leaned out over his hand to get a closer look. **"... 'Ariana', was it?"** Hecate glanced at Javorin, **"Ariana..."** he nodded, **"And have you two thought of your chosen pseudonyms? As I've already explained, it wouldn't be a good idea to reveal our real names at this current time"**

" **No I suppose not..."** Hecate glanced away as she thought about it, **"...Okay, Midnight"** she stated, gazing back at him. **"You'll be 'Midnight?'"** Javorin couldn't help but smirk, **"How original for one of the night roamers...But, it does suit you"** He assured her. **"And with these fine-looking ivories-"** Herne smiled as he stroked one of his tusks, **"Call me Boar". "Boar? How** _ **original**_ **for the god of the hunt"** Hecate deadpanned: **"Meh, it's short, sweet and easy to remember"** Herne shrugged, **"But 'Shadow?' That's a little maverick for the overseer of mankind isn't it? Something like 'sentinel' or 'watcher' would suit you more, wouldn't it?"**

" **Well? Actually, Ariana kind of chose it for me"** Javorin shrugged: **"This** _ **is**_ **a new world we have awakened to after all, in addition to staying hidden, it seems only fitting we should have new names to go with our new forms..."** he held Ariana up near his face, as he waved his free hand, and formed the words, : Everything's okay now; time to introduce you to my family:

"About time, you guys were taking forever with that staring contest of yours" she stared up at Javorin with a weird look. It was easy to forget that humans couldn't hear the telepathic thoughts of a god: even the most sensitive and powerful of mediums couldn't hear their secret thoughts between one another. So to Ariana, or any other human: while Javorin and Hecate were deep in conversation, it simply looked like they were staring off one another intensely; while at the same time gesturing the typical body language and postures that would be unconsciously made during the act of talking. It was strange and kind of funny for the five year old to watch.

: This is Midnight,: he gestured to Hecate, :And this is Boar: he pointed to Herne, : There is one other, but she's not here right now, I'm sure she'll turn up eventually:

" **She'd better"** Hecate frowned, **"Where'd the brat sneak off to anyway?"**

* * *

At the same time, elsewhere in the forest:

Gazing up at the sky through the green canopy, Carla was suddenly stirred from her musings when she heard a twig snap: gazing over in the direction of the sound, she didn't see anything; until suddenly Angel reappeared out of thin air, and happily chirped as she bent down and greeted her with a nose-boop on the head. "Finally, I was beginning to wonder what was keeping you?" she smiled as she stood up and stroked the side of her face: Angel chirped something in reply and shrugged in a casual manner: "Well, you're here now: shall we go to our usual spot? I'm not expected back until this afternoon, so we've got plenty of time today" Carla gestured to the large trail that led up further into the forest.

Elysia grinned broadly and leaned right down, allowing Carla to climb up onto her shoulder and seat herself in her usual position. Over the past month Elysia had been offering her friend shoulder rides to their secret meeting place, Carla had acquired a knack for balancing on the avian titan's smooth bare shoulder, even when she jogged through the trees at a quick pace, the woman managed to hold on tight and position herself onto the back of her shoulder when she leaned forward to balance the weight of her huge tail feathers. Of course it hadn't been without the occasional mishap: there had been a few slips and falls that resulted in Carla going home with some sore bruises, but by and large, Carla found she could sit atop her giant friend with ease now. The other highlight of their time together, was when Elysia had demonstrated to Carla that by remaining in physical contact with her, she too could become invisible: a rather useful trick for avoiding anyone on the roads.

As Elysia started making her way up the trail, heading towards the secret place where they would meet weekly for her 'human studies': Carla smiled as she held on to some of her hackles, and caught her attention with a casual glance: "So, how have you been this past week? Did you get up to anything interesting?". 'Oh not much really' Elysia shrugged, letting out a long casual warble: "So? Not much?" Carla raised an eyebrow, to which Elysia nodded. 'You know, you could stand to loosen up a little and have some fun' Elysia thought with a smile, unfolding her wings and flapping slightly, as if to indicated that she wanted to fly: "You went flying again? Where did you go this time?" Carla smiled; 'No, I mean: _you and me go flying together..._ ' Elysia frowned in slight annoyance. Using the bend of her wing, she pointed at Carla and then to herself, and started flapping again. "... Wait, you want me, to come _with you_ when you fly?" Carla blinked in surprise: 'That's the idea!' Elysia nodded with a big smile: "Oh goodness," Carla pressed her forehand to her head, slightly taken aback, "I've-, never thought about that before" she worried slightly, "-But, I'm not sure if I could? You must be able to fly at such great heights; and at speed too. I don't know if I'd be able to hold on tight enough?" she thought aloud. 'Well that's no problem, there're plenty of feathers back there to hold on to: it'll be a breeze!' Elysia thought confidently, letting out a string of sure chatter.

"You really think I could do it?" Carla asked her, half wondering if the avian titan knew what she was doing. Elysia nodded with that big smile of hers, and spreading her wings out, crouched down ready to take off: "WAIT!-" Carla shouted, Elysia stopped, "Uh? How about we give it a go another time? I think I need to pluck up my courage first..." she sheepishly smiled, before sighing in regret and coming clean: "...Seriously Angel; it sounds like an exciting idea, it really does, and I'm sure it must be very different up there in the sky compared to down here on the ground, but I-..." She hesitated slightly, "Look, I'm willing to give it a try, just-, when I feel I'm ready for it, okay?". Elysia regarded her with a disappointed rueful look, but smiled weakly, and nodded in understanding; she didn't want to force Carla to do anything she didn't want to do. But at the back of her mind she was sure once she got her up above the clouds, and got her to see the world from way up in the sky, she'd very quickly forget her fears.

Seeing the look of disappointment on her fair white face, Carla stroked her jaw, and smiled: "Hey come on, cheer up: there're still lots of things we can do together down here on the ground". 'Like what?' Elysia regarded her with a slightly old fashioned look, and trilled in non-serious curiosity: "Well? I always used to enjoy cloud watching when I was little. Oh that reminds me, I was browsing the book shop the other day, and I found an interesting book on how to predict the weather by telling which clouds are which" she told her: Elysia snapped her head round and stared at her in amazement: ' _Seriously?!_ No way! Why'd you need to teach _me_ about the clouds when I can control them! I'm one of the Tempus gods! _A weather goddess_ for crying out loud! Surely you know how I can-

It was then Elysia's eyes widened in astonishment: she realized she hadn't shown Carla _what else_ she could do, besides turning invisible and flying. Regaining her control over the weather had not been all that difficult; once she learned how to fly using her wings, controlling the winds to keep her airborne, the rest came naturally (with a little help from Javorin). Summoning and controlling the weather through a corporeal form was vastly different compared to wielding it in her elemental form: in terms of mental concentration and calling upon the sum of her power; Elysia found she could focus the weather more accurately, and into a more concentrated localization. Creating intense bursts of a wide variety of weather: from rain, fog, snow and hail, to intense thunder and lightning storms; from gentle breeze's that stir dandelion seeds up into the air, to howling raging hurricane winds that could flatten houses and fell trees. Needless to say, much of her weather-control practice had to be done far out beyond wall Maria, when the Scouts were not present, and the Garrison were not patrolling along the top of the wall; there had been quite a few days where the citizens of Shiganshina and the surrounding region had observed some strange yet spectacular weather fronts blowing past the outside of the wall.

Gazing back at Carla, a wide smile broadened across Elysia's face as she puffed out her chest, held her head up high and started strutting with long proud strides: "What's up with you all of a sudden?" Carla couldn't help but laugh, as Elysia looked like a rooster boldly flaunting across the farmyard; 'Oh just you wait Carla... ' Elysia smiled with complete surety as she faced forward with a proud smile, 'Have I got a treat for you today!'. "Is there something you want to show off? A new kind of flying trick?" Carla asked offhand, assuming it was one of the many flying stunts Elysia had been keen to show her during their meetings. 'Nope! _Waaaay_ way better!' Elysia thought with excitement.

The avian titan trotted along a little further, until she recognized the layout of the giant trees: the meeting place wasn't too far now, as she crested a tall sloping rise and descended down into a broad glen. But as she carefully made her way down the slope amid the giant trees, something at the bottom of the glen made her train of thought come to a halt, and compelled her to stop. "What is it Angel?" Carla asked in concern, seeing the look of confusion on her friend's face: with a hushed warble, Elysia unfolded one wing and pointed to the sight below: turning herself and Carla invisible at the same time.

Approaching closer, but being careful not to stir the leaf-litter too much: Carla and Elysia both watched as two wall cult Pastors rode into the glen atop two huge black horses. One was broad in the chest with slicked-back pale ash blond hair, and pale blue eyes that looked like frozen ice: the other was slightly leaner with black hair and dark brown eyes, so dark they almost looked black. Though they were different in appearance, they both wore the same expression: cold and serious. Something about them didn't seem right, and what were they doing here, this far from the road? No one besides Carla and Elysia knew of his place, so why would anyone have any reason to come here? With a small knot in her stomach telling her these two were up to something, Carla frowned as she invisibly watched, and listened.

Elysia was confused as to why these humans were here too; she didn't know why, but she had a bad feeling in her stomach: it wasn't a physical pain, but it felt bad, as if a hand were reaching in and twisting her insides into knots. She didn't like it, it didn't feel right...No, _these humans_ didn't feel right: their expressions were so different to Carla's; they looked unfriendly, devoid of happiness and compassion. She didn't know why but she wanted to fly away out of here really badly, but being this close she couldn't take off without kicking up the leaf-litter and giving away her position: so she remained still, and watched as the two humans turned to face one another.

"So? What news of the Hafer property? I haven't had time to be filled in on all the details since arriving yesterday" The blond pastor spoke frankly. 'Hafer? ...' Carla frowned: she recognized the name; some wealthy farmer that lived in the central valley north of Shiganshina, who apparently owned the biggest tracks of land in the whole region. "We successfully purged the property of its occupants and buildings: all witnesses have silenced and disposed of accordingly, Hafer escaped the initial purging and took to the forest, our brothers are hunting him down as we speak, as well as checking the surrounding forest for any 'vermin' that might have made their homes here" the other pastor replied casually.

Carla felt her stomach turn to ice: ' _all witnesses have silenced and disposed of accordingly?!_ ... What?!-' her mind spun with dread. Elysia too didn't feel easy at all hearing that.

"Good, we should be able to get started on the construction of the sanctuary by the end of the week" the blonde one replied: "Judas asked me to come here to oversee it: he wants you to oversee the temporary depots and half-way houses; make sure nothing happens until we can find more suitable locations to place them permanently"

"Very well..." the other Pastor nodded offhand: looking around, he spoke in a more relaxed manner "...No one is here you know? We can speak freely". "I know..." the blond one turned to him, slightly relaxed, "What is it?". He hesitated a little before saying: "...I spoke to father the other week: he wants to know what's going on in the cult; he wants to know, is it time yet? I didn't know what to tell him, I simply said I'll confer with you"

The blond pastor dropped his gaze in thought for a moment, before stating in a frank tone: "...There never seems to be a good time..." he gazed back at him, "Judas is ambitious: he won't be willing to yield: after all, as far as he is concerned we are but an inconvenience, a 'shadow royalty' that has no place in his walled world...I don't think now is the time to implement the plan; not until these new 'expansions' are complete, and things have died down in the interior"

"I understand that, but father-

"-Will just have to wait..." the Pastor frowned, sighing in disappointment: "...Believe me, I don't like having to wait like this either: but we have no choice. Until the cannons atop the wall are removed, we have to remain as we are. Understand?"

"...Yes. Of course," he nodded reluctantly,

"When you return to Sina: tell father we have everything in hand; it's just a question of finding the right moment to slip away" the blond pastor smiled,

The black-haired pastor was about to say something else, when the sound of galloping horses began to echo down the glen: Carla and Elysia watched as three hooded riders dressed all in charcoal and black and wearing eerie-looking white face masks approached and stopped before them. "I trust you have results to show?" the black-haired pastor addressed them coldly: "Indeed brothers, we have successfully purged the last of the outcasts from the Hafer property" one rider replied as he reached behind him, and opened a black cylindrical box that was buckled to his saddle: pulling out its content and holding it up for them to see.

Carla quickly covered her mouth to stop herself from screaming, as the colour drained from her face and her stomach dropped entirely: Elysia's feathers all stood on end in equal shock and horror at the sight before them. The rider was holding a severed human head: an older gentleman who had probably been in his forties or fifties, his dead glazed-over eyes stared off into space, while his skin was a grim pale colour, and a few drops of blood dripped from the neck. Carla felt the breath in her lungs shaking as she tried to keep herself composed: she and Elysia may be invisible, but they could still be heard; stealth was the only thing keeping them safe at this point.

"Ah, excellent," the Blond pastor nodded with approval, "Alright, return to the depot and dispose of him: you two will return to the hunt and inform them to finish up their sweep and head back. We'll be overseeing our brother's work up at the property: make sure your back after dark". "Yes brothers" they nodded: the rider placed the head back in the box and buckled it shut, taking off out of the glen; the other two riders turned their horses around and rode back the way they came, while the two pastors turned around, and also left the way they came in.

Several tense minutes passed as Carla and Elysia waited to make sure they were far enough away that they couldn't hear them: and then Elysia turned visible again, quickly letting Carla down onto the ground as she staggered over to the nearby tree and leaned against it, trying to calm her spinning thoughts, as well as her stomach. "Was that-... _a head?!_ A severed head he was holding up?!" she panicked as tears welled up in her eyes: what had she just witnessed? Who or what were those riders dressed in black? And what was the pastor's connection to them? None of this made any sense: but one thing was for sure, whatever had just happened, it was seriously bad.

Elysia was totally stunned, she didn't know what to do or think: that was a dead human (head) she just saw: no aura, no spirit, no energies that indicated it was alive; it was part of an empty shell. Of course she'd seen dead humans before: for there had been a few occasions she had been a cold wind that blew across battlefields and places of slaughter, simply passing through with no second thought. Looking back on it, she _hated_ herself: back then she gave no consideration to it. But now, _seeing death_ in person and smelling the horrible metallic smell of blood in the air; actually feeling the gravity of it: she felt sick, disgusted, and horrible for having no sense of mind to pay attention and care sooner. Suddenly, she felt something warm on her cheek steadily creeping down to her chin: with the bend of her wing she wiped her cheek, and was surprised to find water dripping down her face from out of her eyes.

"Oh, Angel..." Carla suddenly got her attention, leaning down to see what was wrong, Elysia was taken aback when Carla took out her handkerchief from her pocket, and started gently wiping her face: "Please don't cry, I don't know what we just saw, but it's okay, their gone now..." she cooed, trying to sound brave, "As long as I'm here you'll be okay, alright?" she smiled weakly; Elysia didn't know what to think: but she trusted Carla to know what to do, and so she uneasily nodded with a weak chirp. Taking a moment to try and gather her thoughts and compose herself, Elysia frowned as she wracked her brain on what to do: then, she suddenly remembered what that blond pastor said:

 _Return to the hunt and inform them to finish up their sweep_

'Return to the hunt? ... Their hunting more people?!' she realized, her dread spiking tenfold: she started squawking at Carla in frantic panic, trying to get her back up onto her shoulder. "Angel? Angel what's wrong?!" Carla panicked. Elysia simply leaned right down, and pressed the side of her head to the ground; "What? Wait what are you trying to say? You want to leave?"

'YES! We need to leave right now if we're to have any chance of catching up to them!-' Elysia mentally exclaimed. Seeing the serious frown on her face, Carla quickly got back on her shoulder; but before she could say another word, Elysia unfurled her wings and took off up through the trees. Carla screamed as she held on for dear life, but Elysia paid no attention as she climbed above the canopy and levelled out: Carla quickly turned herself around to face forward, still clinging to Elysia's flank plume as her knuckles turned white. "OH MY GOD!-" Carla squealed as she saw the forest whizzing by below them, "Angel! Angel please go back down! This is too high up!" she pleaded, trying to shield her eyes against the wind.

At the back of her mind Elysia felt really bad, she'd make it up to Carla later, somehow (if she was still friends with her): but right now, she _had_ to find those riders and stop them somehow, someone's life was depending on it. Summoning her power to read all the ambient auras of the forest, Elysia soon spotted the two riders as they joined a larger group galloping eastwards: much to her relief, she could see the three radiant auras of Javorin, Herne and Hecate only a few miles away. She was about to telepathically shout out to them, when a small cluster of human auras between them and the riders immediately grabbed her attention. Looking straight ahead, she spotted a small group of children heading west...

'Oh no!-' Elysia panicked, ' _They're heading straight for them!_ '

* * *

Meanwhile, down on the ground:

"Uh? ...Guys?" Belle pointed towards a steady incline, as the distant sound of galloping horses fast approached them. "SHIT!" Ash looked all around in a panic, drawing his arrow back in readiness to fire, "-we got no cover!"

"But we can't outrun them!" Lucius panicked, "They're too fast!". "Then we stand and fight!" Rowan frowned as he drew back his arrow, "All of you get behind us and stay down!". " _What?!_ Are you crazy?!" Poppy exclaimed in alarm, "Well do you have any better suggestions?!" Rowan shot back; "I'm sorry to say it but he has a point" Dale regretfully concurred, "We got no cover here and we can't outrun them: our only option is to fire our arrows at the horses so they fall, and hopefully trip up the ones behind them". "Will that even work?!" Fox panicked: "In theory?" Dale shrugged nervously, "I dunno! I'm thinking on my feet here!"

"Well think faster because here they come!" Ash frowned as he aimed his arrow: the riders reappeared over the crest of the incline, this time in greater number. Upon spotting them they immediately started galloping towards them; "You know what to do!" the lead rider called out, "Dead men tell no tales!". The Willum and Copper kids got behind the Celt kids and held onto them: their instincts screaming at them to run: "I hope you guys know what you're doing!" Bemadette nervously stated. Glancing at one another, Ash could see the fear in their eyes as they readied their bows and took aim: they _didn't want_ to do this, they didn't want to fight; but they didn't want to die either. There was no alternative, it was either fight to win or be killed, the harsh reality of the nature of the world, staring them all in the face, and deep down they knew if they blinked, they were dead.

As the riders drew nearer, Ash took a deep breath: "S-steady..." he trembled, but held his ground as tears streamed down his face: Ashlyn and Hazel started crying as their arms trembled too, but no one moved as the riders bore down on them, and were now in striking distance...

"FIRE!-" Ash shouted as he released his arrow; it sailed through the air and struck the lead rider square in the shoulder: his body flung back in the saddle from the force of the impact, but he didn't fall.

But in the same instance all the other arrows were fired, and missed their marks (hitting the riders instead of the horses), the canopy up above them exploded in a hail of broken branches, leaves and splintered wood as something enormous crashed down to the ground. As it landed with a THUD! The kids all leapt and scrambled out of the way, as something huge and white swung over their heads, missing them by a foot. Looking up, they were amazed and horrified to see it was a giant white bird with an angry human face: over seven meters tall with an impressive plumage, it held its wings outstretched as it hissed loudly at the riders, who, with arrows embedded in their torsos and limbs, started turning around and taking off back the way they came. The creature gave chase and ran after them up the incline, squawking and crying with shrill ear-splitting screams: at the same time, a figure jumped off its back and landed in the ferns some distance away; terrified, the children all took off in the opposite direction.

* * *

Carla hadn't realized what Angel was doing, until she spotted the children down on the ground with their bows drawn, and saw the riders galloping straight towards them. Before she could even say anything, Angel was dropping down to the ground at an unbelievable speed, crashing through the canopy and landing with a sharp bump: if it hadn't been for her long hackles and flank plume to cushion the force of the impact, she would have broken several ribs for sure. As Angel spread her wings out and hissed at the riders, Carla jumped off and landed in a patch of ferns: quickly scrambling to her feet, she glanced over at the children, only to be taken aback as she recognized all of them. "Ash, Rowan, Dale? All the-" her mind reeled as she realized it was all the Grayson, Willum and Cooper kids, everyone minus Ariana, "What are _they_ doing here?!" but before she could call out to them they all bolted and took off the other way.

Jogging back over to Carla's side, Elysia chirped with satisfaction: 'Well they won't be coming back any time soon...'. "Angel! You scared them off!" Carla exclaimed in disbelief, 'I know, I did good right?' she smiled down at Carla, pointing in the direction the riders bolted, "Not them! _The children!_ Those were my neighbors kids and you scared them!". Glancing up, Elysia could just about see the children disappearing into the dense undergrowth some seven hundred yards away: 'Oh crap!' she huffed in annoyance as she facepalmed with the bend of her wind. "Okay, follow me but _stay back_ and turn yourself invisible!" Carla ordered, "I have to check to make sure their okay" she added before taking off, trying to keep sight of them as they put more distance between her and them. Hanging back by a few meters, Elysia started jogging, keeping pace with her as she ran through the undergrowth: glancing over her shoulder to make sure the riders weren't following. Reading the ambient aura's, she saw they had stopped over the other side of the incline, some way down into a shallow hollow, but not so far away they couldn't come after them again; and worse, they seemed to be regrouping. 'You might want to hurry up Carla, and get those kids outta here!' Elysia swallowed hard as she turned herself invisible.

* * *

At the same time, a short distance ahead:

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!" Gale panicked as she ran for dear life,

"A BIG FUCKING WEIRD BIRD THING?! I DUNNO _JUST RUN!_ " Belle shouted as she overtook her.

The kids ran with everything they had: they didn't care where they were going or how their lungs were starting to burn with exhaustion, just as long as that giant creature wasn't chasing after them. "Hey look! I see a house up ahead!" Clay pointed to a clearing in the trees, where in the middle a small cottage stood, with a stables and log bin on one side. "And look! The door's open!" Jaye pointed to the open front door, "-Maybe they'll let us hide!" Josefa added, "Quit talking and just run!" Rowan barked. Making a bee line for the cabin, the kids burst through the front door and looked all around the spacious interior for anywhere to take cover. "Look! A basement!" Clay pointed a trap door in the floor of the dining area, and without hesitation the kids all scrambled to grab the handle, lifted the door up, and jumped down into the dark basement with Ash being last one down: slamming the door shut behind him.

"Great! Its pitch black down here!" Belle fumed, with most of the others whining in agreement while they all tried to catch their breaths. "Hang on, I got a just the thing!" Clay panted as he reached into his pocket, and pulled out the pair of flint stones and one small candle he always kept handy. Feeling around for Hazel, he shoved the candle into her hand, and started knocking the stones together, creating small sparks with each strike; finally one spark caught the wick and the candle flame grew. "Nice going Clay" Lucius patted him on the back, "Where we can we get a pair of those?" Lucy asked offhand. "My dad's got a load of them back home: I'll ask him to spare you guys a pair... If we ever get out alive" he swallowed hard.

Looking around the basement, Shyla spotted an oil lamp sitting atop a small table, and handed it to Clay: after lighting the lamp, he held it up for a better look at the gloomy cobweb-ridden interior. "Guys..." Dale breathed in amazement as he pointed to something behind them, "Look". Stacked against the back wall on a large set of shelves, was a large collection of ODM gear, all lined up neatly with spare gas tanks, spare cable spools, and several rusted tool sets lying on the floor with a dirty old cloth; next to it, there were several large crates all staked up in four large piles, and what looked like a miniature cannon, aimed up at the basement's outside doors.

"What the hell is this place?" Ash breathed in amazement. "I dunno" Dale shook his head, "But I think we just found a way outta this" he smiled, "-Hang on..." Ash frowned as he held up his hand, "Do you guys hear something?". Straining their ears, the kids all fell silent: and sure enough, the sound of a pair of horses could be heard approaching, along with two male voices...

* * *

Pascal and West both stared at the front door in alarm; glancing over at West, Pascal mouthed: "You locked the door right?!" West nodded and mouthed back, "Both of them!". Seeing the numerous small footprints leading from the forest to the door step, and going inside, Pascal frowned as he reached for his knife and got off the cart, with West following suit as he reached for his knife too. "Cover me" Pascal mouthed as he took point and quietly headed inside with West at his back...

Looking around, they saw nothing had been disturbed: glancing down at the footprints, they led straight to the trap door. Glancing at one another and nodding in agreement: West crept over to the trap door, while Pascal reached for the musket that stood behind the front door. Quietly treading over to the door and taking aim: they both glanced at one another and nodded; West grabbed the handle and threw the door open, at the same time Pascal aimed the weapon down into the basement and shouted, "HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!-"

* * *

A long awkward silence uncomfortably stretched out as the kids stared up at the two men: all equally shocked and surprised as they gawked at one other.

"Wh-...What the hell?" the brunette haired man stammered in disbelief: "...What the hell are you brats doing in our basement?!" the ginger-haired man frowned angrily, "You better explain yourselves or there's gonna be trouble ya hear?!". Looking up at the ginger-haired man, Gale, Poppy and Belle suddenly recognized him: he too must have remembered them, as he lowered his weapon and raised an eyebrow in debrief, "... Hey wait a sec: don't I know you three girls from somewhere?" he pointed to the three sisters.

"Yeah!-" Belle suddenly piped up, half-relieved he remembered them: "We stowed away in your cart to avoid the wall cult, remember?!" Frowning in bemusement, the other man leaned down for a closer look: his eyes widened in amazement: "Holy crap, it _really is_ you three!" he exclaimed, "What the hell's going on?" the ginger-haired man frowned again, "What're you doing in our basement, and who're all your friends here?!"

"Uh? Pascal?" the other man pointed to the back door, "We got more company..." glancing behind him, Pascal stared out the window as a woman with long black hair tied up in a loose side-ponytail came running around the back porch, and carried on around back to the front. "... Oh great, what now?" he deadpanned.

* * *

Carla was beginning to panic as she'd lost sight of the kids: looking all around, she wanted to call out for them, but if those riders were nearby they'd easily hear her and she'd risk giving her position away; she needed help, "Angel, I need a better look, let me stand on your shoulder!" she glanced behind her. Sure enough, Elysia reappeared right next to her: she was about to scoop her up in her wing, when suddenly Carla fainted, and dropped to the ground unconscious. 'Carla?! Oh no what's happened?!' Elysia panicked as she bent down and nudged her with her nose.

" **Will you calm down? she's just asleep"** Hecate's voice echoed through her mind: Elysia went stiff with dread as her feathers stood on end; standing back up, she swallowed hard as Javorin, Hecate and Herne stepped out of the tree line and into the clearing: **"And a good thing too: we wouldn't want her to see what I'm going to do to you!-"** the goddess fumed as she stormed over to her. But before either Javorin or Herne could do or say anything to stop Hecate: Elysia stepped over the woman, unfurled her wings, puffed out her feathers in a threat display and hissed loudly. Hecate stopped in her tracks, and stared at her in disbelief as she growled: **"...You do** _ **anything**_ **to harm her and I'll fire a bold of lightning at your fat ass!",** 'what the hell am I saying?!" Elysia panicked in the back of her mind, 'She'll _curse me_ for sure!'

Javorin and Herne were equally taken aback for a moment: but Javorin was quick to step in and try to defuse the situation; **"Alright: Elysia,** _ **calm down**_ **, no one's going to hurt anyone. And Hecate? Come on, is this really necessary?"**

" **As if one of us hiding a human is bad enough:** _ **you**_ **being the overseer of mankind is one thing; but** _ **this?!**_ **-"** she pointed to the woman, to which Elysia hissed at her again: **"Alright start talking brat! How long have you been seeing her and how much about you does she know?!"** Hecate demanded **. "Oh like I'll tell you anything!"** Elysia brazenly hissed, **"How do I know you're not gonna turn her into a toad or something!"** Again, Hecate was stunned at the younger goddess's defiance and ballsiness: 'When did she learn to grow a spine?' she couldn't help but think offhand: **"-You'll answer me or I'll turn you into something** _ **worse**_ **than a toad!"** Hecate growled through her sharp teeth as she grabbed her by the scruff of the neck and tried to lift her up, but Elysia dug her toes into the earth and refused to budge. **"Come on ladies is this really the way to resolve this?"** Herne tried to break up the argument, but to no avail.

Shaking his head and heaving a heavy sigh, Javorin glanced down at Ariana, who was still seated in his palm close to his chest: "Guess it's a family thing huh?" Ariana offered a sympathetic smile, to which Javorin nodded with a sheepish yet apologetic smile. Staring down at the giant white bird titan, Ariana was amazed by all the iridescent colours in her feathers: "Wow, she's really pretty" she smiled, "So what's _her_ name?": Angel: Javorin spelled out, : She's our 'little sister', she's young but we care for her deeply:

Noticing the unconscious woman between her feet, Ariana stood up in his palm and pointed to her: "I think we should get her somewhere safer, you know? In case someone accidentally squishes her?". : Yes, That's a good idea: Javorin agreed. While the two goddesses were still telepathically slinging insults at one another, Javorin discreetly summoned a levitation spell, and floated the woman from out between Elysia's legs, bringing her around to the back of the cottage, safely out of the way. Kneeling down beside her and letting Ariana down so he could use both hands: Javorin watched as Ariana gently grabbed the woman by her shoulders and rolled her onto her back.

Ariana stared at her in astonishment as she recognized her: "Mrs Jaeger?!" she exclaimed in disbelief.

* * *

Inside the cottage, the kids and gentlemen remained silent as the thundering footsteps approached, rattling the windows and making everything vibrate. Something _big_ was moving around outside, but what? Suddenly, a loud angry hiss echoed off the nearby trees; the kind of hiss an owl makes when threatened. Then, another set of giant footsteps could be heard coming around to the back porch. Staring out the back window, frozen in place as fear crept up their spines; both Pascal and West gawked at the sight before them. The black haired woman: was now floating in the air encased in some kind of strange blue aura, drifting near the porch as she softly landed on the grass. And then, a sight neither of them would forget... A giant pair of feet covered in strange black markings walked by and stood before the building: the gigantic figure then bent down, and they saw most of its body in full.

"..I-is th-th-that-...A-a t-t- _titan?!_ " Pascal squeaked in sheer terror, the colour draining from his face as he trembled in his boots: "-I-I-I th-think is it!" West swallowed hard as he too tried to keep it together; behind them, the kids gawked with their jaws practically slamming against the basement stairs and their eyes were the size of dinner plates as they stared up at the huge behemoth outside. But what nearly tipped them over into an all-out panic, was seeing Ariana step out of the titan's hand, and approach the woman.

With her back turned to the cottage she didn't see them, and with the door locked and windows closed she couldn't hear them; since they couldn't see the titans head (and thus were out of its line of sight), they assumed it too must not be aware that they were inside. Grabbing West's arm with a vice-like grip, nearly making him jump: Pascal slowly began backing down the stairs into the basement, dragging West down with him. The kids all backed up to give them some room, as Pascal grabbed the door, and slowly closed it shut. Once down at the bottom, everyone began to quietly freak out.

" _Oh my god_ what the shit was _that thing?!_ " Clay hissed as he grabbed both sides of his head, and nearly started tugging at his hair. "That kid..." Pascal swallowed hard as he wiped the sweat from his brow, "-Was a titan; I think?". "What?! A titan here inside the walls?! How the hell's that possible?!" Gale squeaked, clasping her hands over her mouth to stop herself from screaming. "Forget how it got in, _it had Ariana!_ And it's about to eat that lady too!" Hazel panicked.

"Hang on a sec-" Pascal stepped over to the other side of the basement, next to the doors that led up outside; next to the door frame there was a small window with a curtain drawn across: drawing the curtain back and glancing outside, Pascal's entire frame hitched and the hairs stood up on the back of his neck as he froze in place. "What is it?! Oh god it's not eating them is it?!" West panicked: "...It's not eating them..." Pascal stated in an unnervingly calm voice as he turned round to face them, his face completely drained of colour and his eyes wide in fear; "...It's not the only one, there are _three_ more out there". " _Three?!_ " Everyone exclaimed in a whisper: "...A black and white one, one that looks like an animal of some kind...and one-, that looks like a bird but has a human face, and-, is completely white"

West stared at him in astonishment, as flashbacks of the tomb and huge white feather began to play over in his mind: "Are they okay?!" Ash demanded, " _Tell me is my sister okay?!_ ". "Wha?-, your _sister?!_ " West snapped back to reality, "She's standing out there with that woman, that thing ain't doing anything right now but-," Pascal hesitated, trying to wrack his brain for a solution whist trying to keep it together, frowning as he tried to think straight: "...It might only be a matter of time, before it gets hungry". "Then we gotta do something!" Dale pleaded, " _Please!,_ you got all this gear, we need to _do something!_ " Belle tugged on West's shirt.

Glancing over at one another in dread, neither Pascal nor West had the faintest idea what to do: using ODM gear to pull off a heist or outrun the MP's was one thing, but taking on _four titans_ at once? That was _suicide_ , they weren't Scouts in any way shape or form: any other time, if someone had asked them if they'd take on a titan for money, they'd laugh so hard they'd burst. It was _ridiculous_ , they'd both get eaten in no time at all, there was no way either of them could do this. But looking at the terrified faces of the children, and seeing the tears well up in their eyes as they pleaded for them to save their sister/cousin/friend; Pascal began to feel horrible: but at the same time it was stupid, why stick out his neck for these brats?

"Mister? ..." Shyla spoke up quietly, gently tugging on his shirt, "If you're scared, it's okay: we'll help you", "WHAT?!" Pascal and West both exclaimed, "We know how to use ODM gear too, and we're real good at it: if we all work together we can save Ariana and the lady" Shyla explained: "-ARE YOU INSANE?!" Fox grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her, "Those titans will eat us if we step outside!" he angrily exclaimed. "Then you should reconsider joining the Scouts, because that's a possibility you'll have to face" Shyla stated in a calm monotone; Fox gasped in shock, as did everyone else, "...This world is very cruel, but that doesn't mean we have to be cruel to survive it: not by leaving our friend to die. You can all stay down here and hide, I won't think badly of any of you: but I'm going to save Ariana" She stated as she picked up an ODM gear and started slipping on the straps; "HOLD ON!-" Pascal exclaimed in disbelief as he snatched the straps from out of her hands "Are you _crazy_ kid?! You'll die if you try to take those beasts head on! _You don't stand a chance!_ I'm sorry but your friends a goner!"

"If I die, then I die" Shyla frowned up at him, "At the very least I can distract them long enough for one of you to run out and grab her and the lady, and get them down here before the titans realize what's happened; besides, what if the titans realize we're down here, and they tear the place apart to try and get us? We'll be dead anyway if we stay put". Everyone stared at her for a moment, completely taken aback by her logic: "Uh Pascal? ..." West glanced out the tiny window, "That big one out the back? He's still just standing there: the kid and the woman are still on the ground and the other three haven't moved. There still might be a chance to save them, but only if we act now"

Knowing this was about to turn into every level of crazy imaginable, Pascal nearly pulled his hair out as his face contorted into a look of pure frustrated anger, and cursed under his breath as he facepalmed and dragged his hand down the side of his face, trying to keep it together as his instincts screamed at him to cut his losses and get the hell out of there: "... _Fine_..." he scowled in ire, "-But, you brats own me _big time_ for this!" he glared daggers at them, especially Shyla: "Okay: West , grab a gear and suit up, you kids grab one of those crates back there, and do _exactly_ what I say"

* * *

Ariana sat next to Carla, watching in curious bewilderment as Shadow tried to break up the silent altercation between Midnight and Angel, while Boar simply paced around them, trying to grunt something in the way of a 'stop it'. This had been going on for a while now, and it almost looked like they were arguing about something; 'How do they know what their saying if they're not actually _saying_ anything with their lips? And Shadow doesn't have lips, so how does he know, or, how do _they_ know?' she thought offhand, glancing down at Carla: 'And what's Mrs Jaeger doing here? This is turning out to be a really weird day'

Suddenly, the doors leading down to the basement slammed open, grabbing the four titan's attention: but before any of them could react, several small white things flew out up into the air and exploded into thick clouds of white smoke. "-SHADOW!" Ariana yelled out as she scrambled to her feet, but as Shadow rushed over to her and Carla, another round of projectiles flew out and exploded in his face, making him jump back and clasp his face: it didn't hurt per se, but the smoke clouded his vision and caused him to cough. The other three titans stopped and rushed to help, but this time several small black canisters flew out of the smoke and landed on the ground: emitting a loud ear-splitting ringing noise that forced them to cover their ears and back away; at the same time, another round of smoke bombs were fired and went off right in front of their faces, blinding them. Over the loud din, they couldn't hear the sounds of a pair of ODM gear piston hooks being fired into the nearby trees, as a figure flew from out of the basement and disappeared into the canopy.

* * *

" **WHAT THE HELL?! WHAT IS THAT?!"** Herne covered his sensitive ears as he felt his eardrums throb in his skull, **"We're blind and deaf: someone's trying to get the drop on us!"** Hecate frowned as she stomped on the black canisters, silencing them. Summoning the wind to clear the smoke, Javorin saw the open basement doors but Ariana and Carla were nowhere in sight. Then, as the smoke cleared away, the four gods were taken aback to see a man standing at the bottom of the stairs, lighting the fuse to a small cannon: which was aimed right up at them...

 **"Oh shi-**

BOOOOM!

* * *

The explosion rocked the whole building, and the smoke filled the basement as the kids held their ears: "Okay! I'm going out there, you kids stay put and don't move 'till it's safe okay?!" West ordered as he fired his hooks up into the trees and flew up into the air. At the back of the basement, Ariana was kicking up a fuss with Hazel and Clay trying to retrain her, while Ash, Lucius, Gale, Belle and Bemadette moved Carla into a safe spot by the stairs; meanwhile the other kids helped each other to get into the ODM gear's weight-support straps. "What the hell are you guys doing?!" Ariana exclaimed as she wriggled free, "-and what are those guys doing here?!"

"Their names are Pascal and West, and their gonna get those titans away from here so we can make a break for it" Dale replied, "With Mrs Jaeger of course, we're gonna fly out on the ODM gear: which you'll need too-" he handed her a gear and set of straps: "Here, get strapped in, we don't know how long we might have!"

"ARE YOU _INSANE?!_ " Ariana yelled in sheer disbelief, "THOSE TITAN'S WON'T EAT ANYONE, THEIR MY FRIENDS!-..."Ariana gasped in horror as she realized what she'd done; everyone in the basement stared at her, not quite sure if they heard her right. "...What do you mean, they're your friends?" Ash frowned: knowing the cat was now out of the bag, Ariana facepalmed as she took a deep breath: "Okay, so what happened was..."

* * *

Outside, Javorin and Hecate had just barely missed the cannonball that flew right between their heads; smoke bombs and sound grenades were being fired at them left right and center as the two men on ODM gear flew rings around them: keeping their hands clamped over their ears and their eyes tightly shut to keep the smoke out, the gods could only track the men by sensing their auras. They were fast and maneuverable, but they were keeping their distance and actively trying to avoid landing any blows.

" **These two fools are keeping us pinned in place, keeping us away from the building"** Hecate mentally grunted, **"Who else is here?"**. Glancing over at the cottage, Javorin sensed the auras of Ariana, Carla and-, her cousins and friends? 'How did I miss _them?!_ ' he thought in alarm; **"Ariana, Carla and the other children are in the basement: they must be trying to draw us away so they can make a run for it". "Any suggestions?"** Herne frowned as he held onto his ears, **"Oblige them: allow them to believe they'll be okay"** Javorin stated. **"What about Ariana?"** Herne glanced up at him. Javorin thought about her for a moment: it was more than likely this was the last time he'd see her, after this fiasco there'd be no way her family would let her sneak off up into the forest again; hell, they'd probably never come up into the forest period. It was unfortunate to lose a friend like this, but it was probably for the best, and he _did_ complete what he originally set out to do; no other complications came of his blood being in her eye, and thus, it was safe for her to resume her life: **"...She'll be fine,"** Javorin stated, **"Come on, let's back out of here"**. **"What about Carla?! I can't just leave her!"** Elysia pleaded desperately, **"She'll be okay too, I promise, now come on we have to go!"**

Backing away into the tree line, the gods stomped on the sound grenades and watched as the men flew overhead, obviously trying to garner their attention as they whooped and hollered: "HEY! You dunderheads fancy a snack? Come and get me!" the ginger-haired one yelled, "No such thing as a free lunch, so get moving ya slow-pokes!" the other one threw in. **"Now what?"** Hecate frowned up at them, **"Like I said, oblige them"** Javorin frowned as he reached an arm up, and deliberately tried to grab them in a clumsy manner: **"Keep it slow and dumb, let them think they have the upper hand"** he added as he tried to grab them again, but to no avail as they flew between his arms and around behind him. "That's the spirit! Now come on! How about we take a stroll!" the ginger-haired gentleman nervously mocked as he and his friend flew away into the forest.

The four gods took after them, purposefully running with a lumbering gate; but being more concerned for Carla than anything else, Elysia turned and began running back the other way **"Hey brat! Get back here!"** Hecate ordered, **"Elysia! Don't!-"** Javorin tried to plead, but she wouldn't listen. "Aw SHIT!-" the brunette-haired man cursed, "I'll go after that one you stay on those three!" he barked to his friend as he turned and flew after her, "GOOD LUCK!" his friend called out as he stayed ahead of the other three gods; **"Great, now what?!"** Hecate glanced at Javorin with a stern gaze. **"Have a little faith in Elysia, she can handle herself better than you think"** he stated.

* * *

"-And then Eren woke me up and-, well you know the rest..." Ariana panted as her finished explaining the events of the night she met Shadow for the first time: "Ever since then I've been sneaking outta the house to go meet up with him in the forest every week, he even helps me hunt so I don't go home empty-handed!" Ariana pleaded desperately, "Look, I know I've lied to you all about sneaking out to hunt and _I'm sorry!_ But believe me when I tell you, _Shadow wouldn't hurt anyone!_ He _loves_ humans and he loves watching what we do! He knows how to write, he can turn invisible, make plants and trees grow, and _all kinds_ of other cool stuff you wouldn't believe! Please guys _I'm begging you_ , you don't have to be afraid of him! If he wanted to eat me he'd have done so by now, which he can't 'cuz he _hates_ the taste of human flesh anyway! ..."

Everyone stared at her, unsure what to say or think: terrified they wouldn't believe her, Ariana began to panic as tears welled up in her eyes and she started to sob: "Please..." she hitched, "- _I swear I'm telling the truth!_ He's my friend! _The same as all of you!_ And I only wanted to protect him from the military, especially the Scouts! He's so kind and gentle, and funny and smart, he wouldn't hurt a fly! Please I just-

"-I believe you..." Rowan hugged her, taking Ariana completely by surprise: "Please I-... _I believe you_ okay? Just don't get upset," he gazed at her with a concerned look, genuinely worried for her; "If you say he won't hurt anyone, then that's fine with me". "Seriously? Why're you getting so upset?" Jaye stared at her in bemusement: "Okay, so you lied about sneaking out of the house, but you wouldn't lie about something like _this_...That titan, he _really_ won't hurt us?". Ariana wiped away the tears with the back of her arm, and nodded as she sniffled: "Hell no: which is why we gotta stop Pascal and West from hurting him: I don't know what he'll do if they piss him off, I don't think he'll _deliberately_ hurt them, but-..."

Glancing at one another, Ash and Rowan and thought about it for a moment, and handed Ariana one of the ODM gear, "Okay, you better go after him and try and calm him down: If he'll listen to you, then you're our best chance at stopping this whole thing" Ash stated: "Rowan, Dale, help her into the straps" he glanced at his brothers, who obliged and started helping Ariana into the complex system of straps and buckles.

"Hold on a minute!-" A stern female voice made everyone jump out of their skins: the kids spun round to see Carla striding over to Ariana and kneel down in front of her, clamping both her hands on her shoulders. They'd almost forgotten about her, and were even more alarmed to see she was now awake, and giving Ariana the full mother-hen glare as she addressed her: "You'll do no such thing young lady! Do have any idea _how dangerous_ that is?!" she glanced over at Ash, "And _you!_ Sending your little sister out _alone?!_ How reckless can you get?!-" "But Mrs Jaeger I- , Ariana tried to plead, but Carla silenced her by stating: "- _You're not going after that titan_!" she ordered, "...Not without supervision you're not..." she added, calming down a little. The kids all looked at one another in shock and confusion: "Say what?!" Hazel squeaked. "I heard everything as I was waking up" Carla admitted: "...You're-, not the only the only one who ran into a titan that night" She admitted sheepishly: "...I-, kind of had an 'encounter' of my own; that 'bear' that saved me from those human traffickers? Well? It wasn't a bear at all...". "Huh?" Ariana stared at her in surprise.

"-HEADS UP!" West called out as he landed in the basement: "What're you all standing around for?! That bird titan's heading back this way! We got to move right now!" he glanced over at Carla, "-Oh good your awake" he sighed with relief, but before Carla could ask who he was and what was going on, West swept her off her feet, and with the ODM's hand grips in both hands, he fired his lines up out of the basement, "-Move it now kiddies!" and flew up with Carla protesting loudly for him to put her down. The sound of heavy footsteps running drew closer, skidded to a halt, and starting taking off away again. Glancing at one another, the kids realized they had to move: "Quickly! Get the gear on!" Ash ordered, and everyone racked their brains to try and remember how Bryson did it: "Dammit! Bryson made it look so easy!" Ashlyn huffed in annoyance.

* * *

"Put me down right now!" Carla fumed as she held on tight to the man: as much as she'd have wanted to wriggle free of him, doing so whilst being carried along while he was using ODM gear, would have resulted in a very bad fall; "You are kidding right?!" he frowned at her as if she'd lost her marbles, "Have you _seen_ what's chasing us?!" Several meters behind them, the giant bird-titan was chasing after them, chirping and squawking as if desperately pleading for them to stop. "-Look, I know this is going to sound crazy, but she _won't harm you!_ Just put me down and she'll stop chasing you!" Carla sternly told him. "What?! Are you off your nut woman?! That thing will _eat us_ the first opportunity it gets!" West exclaimed, "Oh really? Says who?" Carla challenged him, "Uh? Oh I don't know maybe _the Scouts?!_ Those over-proud fruitcakes kill 'em for a living, they know titans front to back: and if they say they'll eat you, _they'll eat you!_ Now pipe down and let me find somewhere high up to land"

Glancing down, Carla could see Angel had caught up and was now running parallel to them right below: knowing this man wasn't going to listen to her, she knew it was time to do something to get away from him; and she was already kicking herself in the head for what she had in mind. With a reluctant sigh, she called down: "HEY ANGEL! CATCH!" and with one hard push, she fell out of his arms. He panicked as he watched her fall, but his mind then did a back flip as he watched what happened next. In one move, the bird titan jumped forward, and the woman landed on its back, grabbing it's hackles and holding on tight as it came to a stop: acting on instinct, he fired his lines and swung back to where the creature was standing, with the woman confidently standing on its shoulder, giving him a stern gaze as he came to a halt and hung there in confusion. "It's-...It's not eating you?" he dumbly blurted out. "Of course she's not eating me! I told you she won't harm you!" the woman called back, "This is Angel, and she's my friend: so you can stop your nonsense this instant!"

The bird titan merely smiled and chirped happily, waving its wing as if to say hello: the man pressed his head to his forehead as his mind reeled; this was just-, so weird and surreal. "You named it 'Angel'? ... _Geez_ lady who the hell are you?!" he blurted out. "I'm Carla, and you are?" she smiled smugly, "Er? West"

Carla was about to say something else, when the sound of multiple ODM piston hooks firing off grabbed their attention as they fast approached them; turning back to see what was going on, Carla, West and Angel gawked at the sight of the kids flying through the trees on ODM gear, with Ariana leading the way. "MRS JAEGER?!-" Ariana gawked as she flew past, "-Stay put! We'll be back soon!" Ash added as they whizzed by into the forest, heading in the direction the other titans went.

Glancing at one another in surprise, Carla and Angel both frowned: " _What the hell?!_ " West gawked in astonishment: "Come on Angel let's go!" Carla held onto her hackles, and with a determined squawk Angel took off running. "-Hey wait!" West took after them, keeping pace as the titan begun to pick up speed: "What'd you plan to do once you catch up to them?!". "I don't know, I'm thinking on my feet here!" Carla glanced up at him, "You're _crazy!_ You know that right?!" West frowned, "Don't remind me!" Carla shot him a look.

* * *

As he flew through the trees at high speed, Pascal was still sweating bullets as he glanced over his shoulder and saw the titans were still following him: now that they were a good few miles from the cottage, perhaps it was time to give them the slip. Reaching for his pocket, he took out another three smoke bombs, held them behind his back so they were coated in the gas vapors from the ODM's exhaust valve, and with his other hand, pulled the fuses with his teeth; a spark lit on each one and started burning fast. He then lobbed them over his shoulder, and they exploded in mid air, creating an enormous cloud of smoke that the titans ran right into. In one fast move, Pascal shot his lines straight up into the canopy, and darted for a branch that was hidden by several other branches laden with leaves: squatting down and hugging the limb to try and hide as best he could, he watched down below as the smoke cleared, and the titans had come to a halt: they were looking all around, but didn't look up into the trees.

" **You see him?"** Hecate frowned as she sensed the man's aura in the tree right beside her: **"I see him,"** Javorin replied, **"He's trying to slip away, just keep your eyes at ground level and don't look up"**

They stood there for a long tense moment, as if contemplating what to do: and then, they walked off into the forest, and didn't double back. Pascal sighed with relief as he wiped his brow, and sat himself down: he wouldn't dare move until he was sure they were far enough away that he could make a break for it.

But then, the sound of more ODM gear could be heard approaching, along with the thudding of heavy footsteps. Swallowing the lump in his throat, Pascal glanced down, and gawked as he spotted all of the kids flying through the forest on ODM gear, with the bird titan chasing after them: but even more unbelievable, the woman was standing on its left shoulder, with West keeping pace on its right side. "What the hell?!" Pascal nearly choked, but his blood went cold when he spotted the other three titans.

Standing there stupefied, they turned and began running towards them. "SHIT!" Pascal cursed as took off out of the tree, and flew towards them at break-neck speed: he _had_ to stay ahead of the titans, and figure out what the hell was going on with that bird titan.

* * *

' _Just keep swinging! Just keep swinging! Just keep swinging!'_ Ariana repeated in her head over and over again; using ODM gear like this was nothing like what she had expected: she was using virtually every muscle in her body to, A, stay upright and maintain her balance, B, keep up her momentum and C, try to control her steering and avoid crashing into the trees, and it began to hurt as her joints began to ache in protest at the strenuous physical demand. The other kids were all equally taken aback by how much they had to work just to stay upright; and worse, they were all going so fast and they didn't know how to stop.

But all of that was quickly forgotten as the bird titan gave chase, steadily closing the gap between them: the three other titans were fast approaching too; Pascal sped ahead of them, spun a tight turn around a birch to fly parallel with the kids, and came up alongside to take point: "PULL UP!" Pascal barked as he shot his lines straight up, and swung up into the canopy. But to his utter horror, the kids just kept on swinging, and headed straight for the titans: "-NO!"

"SHADOW!" Ariana yelled out as she recalled her lines, and flew straight at the larger titan with long light brown hair: to everyone's amazement, he held out both hands and caught her delicately; the other two titans quickly reached out, and snared the other kid's lines, eliciting a cacophony of panicked screams as they spun over their heads. Eventually they lost all momentum, and dangled from the titan's hands like fish on a line.

* * *

" **... That was** _ **way**_ **too close..."** Javorin breathed a sigh of relief as he cradled Ariana in his cupped hands; **"No kidding, at that speed they'd have broken their necks for sure"** Herne concurred as he glanced down at the kids he was holding: staring up at him in a mix of amazement and dread.

When they saw them coming, Javorin could tell right away what Ariana had planned to do: the confidence and surety radiating from her aura told him she planned to prove to everyone that he and the others were no threat. And although their own auras were emitting fear and doubt, the other kids, for the most part, had confidence that she had told them the truth: the proof just needed to be in the pudding; and he made up his mind to help her with that. As she flew at him, he almost panicked: Ariana had been moving so fast he was terrified that simply catching her would result in a serious injury; quickly thinking on his feet, he summoned a levitation spell in record time, which slowed her down just enough that he could catch her, and swing his hands away so as to halt the momentum gradually, rather than suddenly stop, which would have been equivalent to crashing into a wall.

Seeing how fast the other kids were moving as well, Herne and Hecate saw there were too many to catch all at once, so instead, they caught their lines and swung them up over their heads: allowing them to swing back down and come to a stop.

Gazing down at the exhausted five year old in his palm, Javorin smiled with relief as she gazed up at him with that big silly grin on her face. "Thanks buddy" she panted. 'It's okay: that's what friends are for, right?' he mentally smiled.

* * *

"Are you okay?!" Carla yelled out to the kids in a panic, as Angel came running up and stopped in front of the other three titans. Glancing up and down at all of them, Carla gasped when she saw the larger two looming over her: for a moment she almost froze in fear, but with Angel at her side, she felt she could handle this (albeit she had no idea what might happen now). West had stopped further back than her, too scared to dare approach. Up in the canopy, Pascal watched the scene unfurl in a mix of disbelief and panic, carefully making his way over to where West was hanging by his lines.

"Hey Mrs Jaeger! ..." Ariana stood up in the larger titan's palm, and was taken aback to see her standing on the bird titan's shoulder: "...Whoa, that's _definitely_ not a bear!"

Carla couldn't help but smile and laugh, "...Are you okay?" "I'm good: tired and outta breath, but good..." she called back: glancing down over the edge of Shadow's palm and addressing everyone else: "Hey guys! This is Shadow! And this is his family! Midnight, Boar and Angel" she pointed to each of the titans, who then proceeded to put the kids gently down on the forest floor. Carla blinked in surprise, 'Wait- she _knew_ about Angel beforehand?'; "Hey Angel, put me down a sec'" she discreetly tapped her shoulder with her foot, and Angel obliged, leaning down far enough that she could jump and land safely.

Getting back up on their feet, the kids all watched as the titans kneeled down, and Shadow placed Ariana back on the ground. "See? He won't hurt you". Gawking up at the titan in question, and then back down at Ariana, Ash pressed his hand to his head as he felt his mind reeling: "I don't even-... _Holy shit_ you weren't kidding when you said he was _big!_ " "I know right!" Ariana beamed, "-Hey big guy! You think you're pretty big?" Shadow nodded with a happy moan: "Yep, he knows it!" Ariana smugly nodded, before looking around, and realizing two people were missing, "...Hey, where'd Pascal and West go?"

Shadow pointed behind them: turning around, they saw the two men dangling from the trees like a pair of deer caught in the light of a hunter's lamp; "...If you two have been hanging there long enough, then you know there's nothing to be worried about!" Carla frowned at them, "Why don't you come on down and introduce yourselves properly?" Both Pascal and West glanced at one another nervously, before lowing themselves down to the ground and recalling their lines.

"So uh? I take it Angel was the one that saved you from those human traffickers that night?" Ariana asked sheepishly: "Pretty much," Carla sighed with a small smile, "And, what you said about your eye turning blue, Shadow really did that?" Ariana glanced up at Shadow for a moment, before shrugging: "It's kinda complicated, but basically, his blood can heal any injury"

"Whoa, he _told you_ that?" Belle blinked in surprise, Shadow waved his hand, and the markings on his hand glowed blue as the words materialized out thin air, and glowed as if they were made of light: In a way, yes: taking everyone completely aback. "What the-, he just made _words_ appear outta thin air!" Dale gasped, "And that's not all he can do!" Ariana smiled as she patted Shadow on his knee.

"Uh? Excuse me? Do you guys mind telling us _what the hell's_ going on?" Pascal interrupted, as he and West stood several meters away, still on edge and unwilling to come any closer. Glancing over at them, Carla shook her head and sighed in exasperation: "We better go over and talk to them, I don't think it'd be fair to force them to do anything their not comfortable with" she glanced down at Ariana: "Yeah your right" she nodded in agreement, "Hey Shadow, keep an eye on everyone for minute huh? We got some things to sort out over here" she thumbed over her shoulder to the two men.

* * *

As Carla and Ariana explained everything to Pascal and West, the gods turned their attention back to each other. **"Well, this has certainly turned out to be an interesting day"** Herne smirked, **"And I think now's a good time to straighten out a few things, right Elysia?"**

Knowing there was no point in making excuses, Elysia sighed and admitted: **"Look, I was gonna tell you guys about Carla,** _ **I swear**_ **, but-,"**

" **But what?"** Hecate frowned at her; annoyed, Elysia scowled as she got up in her face: **"** _ **I knew you wouldn't be pleased with it!**_ **I dunno what the hell your problem is but you don't get to tell me what I can do with my life or my powers! I** _ **saved**_ **Carla from human traffickers the night we broke out of our tombs, and she's been my best friend ever since! We** _ **do stuff**_ **together, we** _ **talk**_ **together, she's been teaching me all kinds of amazing things, and today we saved these kids from a bunch of murderers who would've killed them for sure!** _ **How's any of that bad?!**_ **I don't know why you don't like humans Hecate, but that don't mean you get to treat me like shit just because** _ **I**_ **like them! Okay?"** she ruffled her feathers as she backed away, calming down a little, but still riled up: **"...Carla's okay with me: if she wanted to tell anyone about me I think she'd have done it by now. She's been sneaking away from her family to come and see me: this secret friendship thing goes both ways you know? That's why we both look out for each other; the same way you and Ariana look out for one another, right?"** she glanced up at Javorin, who merely smiled in reply.

Hecate frowned at him, and sat herself down against a giant tree: **"...** _ **You knew**_ **right from the start, didn't you?"** she glanced at the three of them with an icy stare: Javorin gave her an apologetic look, and after a long awkward silence, her own expression softened a little: **"...Am I really _that_ disagreeable?"** she sighed in defeat. **"You don't make it easy on yourself"** Javorin approached her, and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder: **"...Look, what's done is done, and although things could have transpired very differently, can you honestly say anything really bad has come of all this? Elysia has learned much about the humans this past month, and from a reliable source to boot; can** _ **you**_ **have done a better job? I know I couldn't,"**

Hecate stared at him in confusion, but didn't say anything as he continued: **"...Listen, for whatever reason we have yet learn, this curse does not allow us to assume human form, (which, suffice to say limits our options considerably). But even if we were to disguise ourselves as humans and blend into the masses of Shiganshina, and teach Elysia about the humans in their own world, it wouldn't be the same ... Every time I died and was reborn as a human, I was a different person every time: I lived a life and gained** _ **experience**_ **from that life, and over the eons it imbued my power with the spirit of humanity, and the strength needed to do what I needed to do to fulfill my duty as a god. But every time I came back into existence, I** _ **knew**_ **I was Javorin the god;** _ **not**_ **the human, not entirely. I could remember** _ **all**_ **of my past lives and I** _ **knew**_ **the powers I wielded: but humans? They only have** _ **one life**_ **to live, and they are their own person for the entirety of their lives: for good or evil, for better or worse; they are a dynamic and ever-changing being that experiences so much over the course of that one life..."** His let his gaze drop as sadness filled his vivid blue eyes, **"...I will** _ **never**_ **get to experience that: and regardless of how much I know about them and how they think, the fact I am a god means I can** _ **never truly be**_ **one of them. And I am not going to insult them by pretending to know what it means to live a mortal life... If Elysia wants to remain friends with Carla I have no problem with that: what better way for her to learn about the humans than from a human first hand? And she's gained a lot of valuable insight for it"** he smiled.

Hecate stared at him in surprise for a moment (though she didn't let it show on her face), before passing a deep sigh: **"... Well? As the overseer of mankind: I guess if _you_ approve of it, I don't have much say in the matter do I?"** she glanced at him with her poker face: before coming clean and admitting what was really on her mind: **"...Look, Javorin; It's not that I hate humans: it's just-, I lived long enough to know that nine times out of ten, they tend to get a lot of things wrong, and sometimes it means me and the rest of my siblings having to come in and set things right again..."** she regarded him with a more serious look, **"There's** _ **a reason**_ **my father tricked them out of being immortal,** _ **there's a reason**_ **they only have** _ **that one life**_ **: and I don't have to remind you _why_ , do I? You were **_**there**_ **when it happened..."**

Javorin looked away, he knew what she was referring to, and knew she had a point. **"...But"** she sighed: he glanced back at her, **"That was the day I realized you were the right god, for the job of being humanity's caretaker; not because you tried to plead for them, but because you were willing to do what needed to be done to ensure the balance of the world remained in equilibrium: for** _ **their sake's**_ **, as much as ours. They hated you for it: they called you evil and cast you out into the burning sands of the wastelands. And for many years you endured their wrath and ignorance; but in all that time you didn't plead for mercy or fight back: you let them believe what they wanted to believe, because you knew they'd never understand the real reason** _ **why**_ **they have to die** _ **...**_ **I admired you, and I still do: not because you showed mercy, but because you knew how to be cruel when it was necessary"** she let her gaze drop in rueful thought: **"... I chose to stay behind, and be one of the lower god because I believed this world, as imperfect as it is, always had** _ **something**_ _ **good**_ **to offer; but somehow, when the humans came along and you and your father stood up for them, despite all the shit they're capable of. That goodness I liked to see in the world, somehow, began to grow a little less; until one day I woke up and I couldn't seem to find it anywhere... That was the day, I wondered what was the point of all this? Why do you do what you do? Why do you have so much faith in them, when they hardly have any faith in us?"** she glanced up at him.

Both Herne and Elysia glanced at one another: neither of them had seen Hecate like this before; and deep down, Elysia began to feel really bad for the way she'd behaved earlier. Javorin merely gazed at her with a knowing look in his eyes: like a father teaching his child a valuable life lesson, he knew and understood _why_ she was asking the questions: whether she could find and understand the answer was up to her. But being who he was, he was willing to help, and so with an understanding smile, he sat down beside her and put an arm around her shoulder. **"...I think, you've spent** _ **far too long**_ **being what you think you're supposed to be: why not try something a little different? Like, having a friend or two?"**

" **Say what?"** she stared at him weirdly, **"Look, you're asking a valid question, and you want to know the answer right?"** he smiled: **"That's** _ **kind of the point**_ **of asking the question in the first place, isn't it?"** she sarcastically frowned at him. **"Well? I'm afraid it's one those questions that doesn't have a straight forward answer; you're going to have to figure it out for yourself"**

" **What? By helping you babysit the brat?"** she thumbed over to Ariana. **"Actually, I had someone a little more, 'compatible' in mind,"** he glanced downwards. Following his gaze down, Hecate was a little surprised to see Ariana's three brothers gazing up at her: their fear ebbing away, and steadily being replaced with a sense of wonder as they cautiously approached. **"At this age, there are** _ **countless**_ **possibilities for them to become anything; you say humans are only good for screwing things up. Well, what if you had the opportunity to teach them how** _ **not**_ **to screw up in the first place?"** he pointed out: Hecate looked at him surprise, **"Think about it, if you can teach them about the equilibrium of the world, and how it is important for both** _ **us and them**_ **to work together to maintain it, Then that's one, or** _ **three**_ **less humans you'll have to worry about when their grown up; and besides, isn't that what the Night roamers** _ **original**_ **duty was? To** _ **remind**_ **humanity of the balance between good and evil?"**

Hecate stared at him for along moment, scrutinizing his words, before her expression hardened again: **"...Yeah..."** she sighed in defeat, knowing he was right: **"...I** _ **do**_ **remember vowing** _ **something**_ **along those lines when I swore to protect this world from all evil..."** she then raised an eyebrow at him, and heaved a heavy doubtful sigh: **"...You** _ **seriously think**_ **having the brats tag along will do me any good?"**

" **Will it kill you to try?"** Javorin pleaded, **"Besides, what have you got to lose? Would it really be so bad to let someone into your life, and be** _ **there for you**_ **as a friend?"**

" **Why? I have you, Shorty and the feathered brat? We're friends aren't we?"** she pointed out stubbornly.

" _ **You know**_ **that's not quite what I mean,"** Javorin gave her a look, **"And besides, I think it couldn't hurt for you to have a** _ **different perspective**_ **on things, and having a human friend can certainly offer that. You claim that humans have nothing to offer but their ignorance and stupidity, and yet these children and this brave woman have risked much for us, all for nothing in return, and at cost to their own safety. How is that ignorant and stupid?"** he gazed at her in a more serious manner, **"For too many centuries you have lingered in the shadows of the world, carrying out your duty from a safe distance where you don't have to get involved directly. You fought for the humans and protected them alongside me and the rest of our kin, and yet you do not know the first thing about them besides their failures and negative qualities... You** _ **claim**_ **to know them, but how much do you** _ **actually know?**_ **"** he glanced down at the children.

Looking down at the three brothers, and seeing the looks of wonder in their eyes, Hecate felt uncomfortable: she didn't like where this was going, and it began to show on her face. As much as she wanted to wriggle out of this, she knew she couldn't; Javorin was right on every point and she knew it: **"...Tell me..."** she sighed, letting her ice cold poker face melt into uncertainty, **"...Am I a coward, for not wanting to know them better?"**

Javorin's gaze softened, **"...I think, you are someone who has forgotten how to follow the principle of her own elemental power,"** he offered: Hecate stared at him in completely surprise **: "My elemental power?"** she echoed. **"Yes. Your elemental control is over water right? Well, water is the element of balance and change: no matter how much it is shaken up, it always finds its own level again. It is patient, sitting atop mountains for hundreds of thousands of years as snow, before melting and trickling down into streams and rivers, and eventually flowing out to the sea: it can carve out vast landscapes and shape the environment through its rivers, floods, tides, rain and glaciers, not because it is powerful in great quantity, but because it is persistent in the tiniest of trickles. And above all, it is able to transition between the sky, the ocean and the land as vapor, water and ice, changing accordingly to the ambient conditions, and reverting back again where needed...No matter how much life shakes you up, find your own level and stick with it: be patient like the snow, be persistent like the trickles, and be open to change according to what is required of you..."**

Hecate stared at him in amazement, of all the things she expected him to say, she hadn't quite expected that: but more profoundly, she couldn't believe she'd forgotten _that_ wisdom. All gods, regardless of their strength, had power over one of the four elements: it was part of the great equilibrium of the world, and each element held a certain meaning and purpose that imbued every god and goddess with the qualities needed to fulfill their duties; and in Hecate's case, her's was the element of water, the most dynamic and flexible of the elements. So why was she so stubbornly rigid like this? Why was she so opposed to wanting to learn more about the humans, and trying to see their better qualities? She knew why, she knew _all the reasons_ why, but had it clouded her mind to such a degree that she could no longer see past their sins? Had she really been so detached from the human world that she hadn't stopped to look long and hard for the goodness in them? If she had been a human, it would be understandable: and forgivable to become disillusioned by humanity's more undesirable traits; but she was a goddess, one of many who had sworn to remain upon the earth to ensure the world remained in one piece. She had no excuses for her disillusionment; part of her duty was to regard the human's impartially. She may have her own opinions of them, but she was never to be seen treating them _less_ than any of the other gods, just because she didn't like the fact that they could be capable of great evil.

Glancing back down at the children, she decided to hell with it: she had no excuses for her attitude and behavior, and although she was many things, she would never let it be said that she wasn't a goddess who didn't abide by her family's council. If she was going off course in her duties, she had to get back on track, and if having to get back on track meant getting involved with the humans, then so be it. Glanced back at Javorin and weakly smiled as she passed another sigh of defeat: **"...Damn you Javorin..."**

" **You** _ **can**_ **do that you know?"** he smirked, " **Damn me that is, though it might not be a good idea in the long term... So, have I succeeded in persuading you to give it a try?"**

" **Like I even have a choice: if these brats are going to be visiting us every week I'm never going to hear the end of it am I?..."** she gave him an old fashioned look with a small smile, before glancing back down at the brothers, who were now standing next to her leg, tentatively testing how close they could get to her before she looked at them again. Sure enough, they froze under her gaze and waited for her to look back at Javorin again: **"...So? How do you get them to come to you?"**

" _ **What?**_ **Seriously Hecate they're not chipmunks!"** Herne laughed: **"Look, just do what I'm doing"** he smiled as he gestured to his hands, where three of the girls were sitting in his palm and inspecting the markings all over his arm and hand. **"Just let them come to you"** Javorin patted her on the shoulder. It felt silly, but Hecate obliged, and laid a hand down on the ground, holding her palm open: she didn't expect it to work for a long while; she didn't exactly exude a friendly welcoming aura. But to her surprise, the boys ran up and leapt into her hand and started trying to climb up her arm: using her other hand to cup them, she brought them up to her face and stared at them in confusion: **"...What do I do now?"** she glanced sideways at her cousin: Javorin, Herne and Elysia couldn't help but laugh, to which Hecate frowned in annoyance; this was going to take a while.

* * *

"...And, that's pretty much it" Ariana sighed, finishing up the last of her end of the story. Carla was both amazed and astounded, while Pascal and West just started at her in bemusement for moment, before Pascal heaved a deep sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose: "...Look kid: it's a great story for sure, but I don't know if I even believe _half_ of what you said. So, for the sake of trying to avoid aching my brain any further I'm just gonna take your word for it, okay?"

"Meh, that's fine" Ariana shrugged: "I guess it is kinda crazy looking back on it all now; I hadn't really noticed to be honest" "Ah but you're still young," Carla smiled, "things like that are easy to miss at your age"

"So? Are you guys keep them a secret? You're not gonna tell the Scouts on them are you?" Ariana asked apprehensively. Pascal stared at her for a moment, before a sly smile crossed his lips and a cunning glint seemed to light up in his eyes: "...Funny you should mention that kid, because we got a secret of our own we'd like you to keep; one that we'd prefer the MP's didn't know about". Carla frowned, she didn't like where this was going: "What secret?" she demanded, pulling Ariana closer to her side. "You were in the basement of our home: you saw all the 'stuff' that was down there, didn't you?"

"The ODM gear?" Carla raised an eyebrow, "Yes, I saw it; and I frankly I'd prefer _not_ to know _why_ you have so many gears, or what you do with them. I don't want to go looking for any more trouble today if you don't mind" she frowned, making it clear in her tone she wasn't kidding around. "Hey that's fine by us," Pascal smiled, "That saves us a fortune in bribery money: however, the brats _are_ gonna have to give them back; unless their willing to buy them, the merchandise ain't for sale"

"I wanna buy one!" Ariana piped up in excitement, taking them both by surprise: "I've been saving up to buy my own gear! If you guys are ODM gear traders then you're just who I'm looking for!"

"What?!" Carla exclaimed, giving her the mother-hen look: " _Absolutely not!_ You nearly broke your neck using that thing!" she pointed to the gear she was wearing: "As the responsible adult here, I _forbid you_ to do any business with these gentlemen!" she folded her arms: Ariana was about to argue back, when West interjected, "-Actually, she's going _to have_ to buy it I'm afraid", he pointed to the various parts of the device: "The mechanism's main valve's been knocked out of place from the force of landing in your friend's hand, the wires to the hand grips are half-yanked out of their sockets, and the flow valve on the left tank has been knocked loose. I'm sorry, but if you damage or break it, you buy it" he shrugged with a sheepish apologetic look.

"Indeed" Pascal grinned as he stepped forward, "So unless you got three hundred gold coins to pay upfront, you're gonna be spending a few sleep-over's with us until your folks can scrape the money together" "Now Hang on!-" Carla frowned as she forced Ariana behind her. "Excuse me?" Bemadette interrupted, "I couldn't help but overhear: You said the mechanism's main valve's been knocked out of place, the wires to the hand grips are half-yanked out of their sockets, and the flow valve on the left tank has been knocked loose?"

"Yeah?" Pascal regarded her with a skeptical look: "What of it?"

"I'm an apprentice blacksmith, and I fix ODM gear for a living (among other things): I'll do you a deal; if you let me fix and clean up _all_ the ODM gear in your basement and have them all in mint-working condition, would you take that as payment for the busted gear?"

Pascal and West glanced at one another skeptically, "...How _old_ are you?" Pascal asked offhand. "Seven" Bemadette shrugged, "Hmmm..." Pascal thought about it for a moment: "Nope, sorry kid, it's one thing to be pounding horseshoes, but this is _ODM gear_ we're talking about: it's as complex and cutting edge as technology gets around here"

" _Complex and cutting edge?!_ " Bemadette scoffed, " _What the hell are you talking about?!_ Learning how to disassemble, clean and properly maintain ODM gear is hardly cannon science! Even _an idiot_ can do it: but to _really_ get the best results requires someone with a keen eye for the finer details. Something _you two_ obviously don't have, otherwise these gears wouldn't be in such poor shape to begin with. I mean, when was the last time you _actually_ cleaned them? If your gonna be selling them to potential customers, you don't wanna give them something that's gonna fall apart on the first line-shot: and if that happens and they come demanding their money back, and they just 'happen' to be the kinda guys that like to use their fists instead of their brains? Well then that's bad business for you two..." she smirked darkly, before beaming an innocent smile: "So what do you say gents? Have we got a deal?"

Pascal and West both looked at her feeling as though they'd been backed into a corner: she was right on all points and they knew it; knowing there was no room to worm his way out of this, Pascal reluctantly conceded, and held out his hand, "...Fine, deal". "That's great!" Bemadette smiled as she shook his hand, "And it just so happens, I always keep my tool kit handy" she reached for her oversized back pocket, and pulled out a large roll bag full of tools and two small tins of lubricant oil and metal polish; "Which way back to the cottage?" she asked offhand.

"Oh boy..." West tried to think as he ran his fingers through his hair, "We must have covered a fair few miles: but I think it's back that way?" he pointed off into the forest. "Why don't we just follow the titan's footprints?" Ariana pointed to the giant footprints that had been left in the soft earth. Rolling his eyes and feeling like an idiot for missing that, Pascal huffed impatiently: "Well come on then? Let's get going!" and without waiting for anyone to answer, he fired his lines up into the trees and took off. Ariana readied her lines to shoot, but Carla stopped her, "Oh no! We're walking back, no more shenanigans today!" "But it's _so far_ , it'd be easier to go by ODM gear!" Bemadette whined. "Or, if you ask nicely, I'm sure you can get a ride" Carla smiled, gesturing to Shadow and the other titans.

Hearing that as her cue to let her get up on her shoulder, Angel scooped Carla up in her wing, and deposited her on her left shoulder: Carla maneuvered to sit down, only to find Lucy, Lucius, Ashlyn and Hawk sat amid her flank plume: "Oh hello, I see Angel let you up here" she smiled. "Mmmm, it so fluffy and soft" Lucy purred as she buried her face into the feathers, "And the colours are so bright" Ashlyn stroked one of the long hackles, "She's _amazing_ Mrs Jaeger". "Yes," Carla smiled up at Angel, who smiled back in delight, "She is isn't she?"

* * *

Before long, the four titans were walking at a steady pace through the forest with eighteen amazed, nervous and hyped up children, all hitching a ride on them. Angel led the way with Carla sitting on her shoulder, and Lucy, Lucius, Ashlyn and Hawk riding behind her, Shadow followed close behind with Ariana sat atop his shoulder, and Gale, Poppy, Belle, Fox and Shyla sitting snugly in his cupped hands. Midnight followed next, feeling a tad unsure and uncomfortable with Ash, Rowan and Dale sitting on her right shoulder, holding onto her hair to avoid falling off: while Bemadette, Josefa and Jaye sat in her cupped hands; and bringing up the rear, Boar trotted along with Hazel and Clay sat atop his head, holding onto tufts of his mane-like hair. Ahead of Angel, Pascal and West flew through the trees on their ODM gear, leading the way back to the cottage.

"You know at this rate, we'll be back far quicker than if we were on foot" Lucius observed as he watched the forest pass by; with their giant strides the titans could certainly cover a fair distance. "I know! That's why Shadow's always good at getting places quickly, he just takes twelve steps and he's there!" Ariana called back.

"Don't you guys wanna take a rest already?" Ashlyn called yup to Pascal and West, "It's real comfy here!" "Hell no!" Pascal grumbled, "I've had enough craziness for one day thank you very much!"

"Hey! I'm the first human to ever ride a titan and not get eaten! How many Scouts can claim _that_ privilege?" Ariana smiled. "You may be the first, but we're you're brother's to that makes us the second (times three)!" "Third!" Clay called out; "Forth!" Josefa and Jaye replied, "Fifth!" Ashlyn and Hawk joined in. "We're first of the Willums to ride a titan!" Belle proudly announced, "The First Coopers!" the twins cheered, "The first apprentice blacksmith!" Bemadette piped in; Fox and Shyla both glanced at one another, and smiled, "The first Bennet's!" they both pumped their fists in the air.

" **Oh hell"** Hecate deadpanned with a sour look, **"This had better not be a regular thing"** : **"Just go with it"** Herne waved off, **"Besides, someone's got to keep the mood happy with you around"**

"So? What's with the weird markings?" Gale asked offhand as she ran her hand along the ones on Shadow's wrist, "I've never seen anything like these before" "Dunno," Ariana shrugged, "Shadow doesn't know how they got their either: but they must be for something, right?"

Her brothers and cousins knew she was lying: they knew the markings too, and knew where they had seen them before; at the back of his mind, Rowan breathed a sigh of relief, at least she knew how to keep the family secret. Though, he did feel bad for the Willum's and Coopers, not being able to tell them the truth. But after everything that had happened today, after what they had encountered and survived, would they really turn on them?

Glancing over his shoulder: West saw Angel staring up at him like a little kid who'd just seen a shop window full of candies and sweets for the first time: she chirped up at him as she tried to keep up with him. "What's with her?" he frowned in bemusement, "I think she's a bit taken with the fact you can fly without wings" Carla chuckled, "Oh yeah?" West raised an eyebrow.

* * *

" **Well you gotta admit, that ODM gear is a cool piece of 'technology'"** Elysia chipped in, **"What else can the humans make like that?"**

" **Plenty of stuff"** Javorin smiled, **"Too much stuff"** Hecate deadpanned, before lightening up a little, **"...But, I guess the ODM gear's an interesting development: the scouts are certainly proficient at using it"**

" **...Umm?..."** Elysia spoke up sheepishly, though she kept facing forward, Hecate could sense her mind's eye was glancing back at her: **"Listen, I'm-, sorry for being a jerk earlier: I kinda over reacted". "Kinda?"** Hecate raised an eyebrow: **"Brat,** _ **do you know**_ **how many people have stood up to me like that?"** ; **"... How many?"** Elysia swallowed hard, **"... You're the first..."** she admitted reluctantly: **"...There was a time long ago, when my reputation was such that no one** _ **dared**_ **to approach me, for fear of what I'd do if they spoke out of turn in my presence. I never did of course, a lot of the time there was no call for it; but still, it got rather out of hand when people who were terrified out of their minds would throw their loved ones before me as an 'appeasement' or 'sacrificial offering' to ensure my wrath wouldn't find them...That was one of the few times I actually felt lonely..."**

Elysia glanced behind her and met Hecate's gaze; her face, instead being cold and concealing, was softened into a rueful kind of regret: **"...You got balls brat, and the reason you found them, is because you had** _ **a reason**_ **to stand up and use them. I don't know if this whole, 'being friends with the human's' thing is going to work out for me in the long term; but for someone who's never been up close to a human in her whole immortal life, never mind** _ **actually bothered to give a damn**_ **about them in the first place? You certainly have the knack for being able to make friends with one..."** She regarded her with a small yet honest smile: **"I guess you have to be a 'people person' to be good at things like that: but whatever happens, wherever life leads you and Carla, just make sure you don't make any choices you'll regret in the long run**. **She's only got one life to live, so make it count for** _ **her**_ **sake, okay?"**

Elysia nodded, and turning back around to face front again, she made a mental note to remember that.

* * *

"Ah, we're almost there..." West smiled as he recognized the layout of the trees: "Which means home is just through the next few hollows" Pascal smiled, relieved they hadn't got far to go now.

As Javorin flicked his right ear, the sound of distant voices made him stop abruptly; the other titans stopped too, and the humans instantly began to grow concerned. "What is it Shadow? Why've we stopped?" Ariana asked him: Shadow nodded in the direction of the cottage, and flicked his ears back and forth to indicate he'd heard something. "Oh great, what's up with him?" Pascal deadpanned: " _Shush!_ " Ariana hushed him: "He heard something! Be quiet!"

" **What is it bro?" What'd you hear?"** Herne frowned as he came around Midnight's side and stood next to him: **"I heard something up ahead; listen..."**

The distant sound of a horse neighing echoed through the trees, along with the sound of a man shouting; everyone froze and listened, straining their ears to locate where it had come from. Another neigh echoed towards them, and Ash was the first to pinpoint it: "That came from up ahead" he whispered.

"That's where the-

But before West could saying anything further, he and Pascal gasped in alarm as Angel jumped up with her wing outstretched, snagged their lines with her primary feathers, and yanked them down out of the tree above: tucking them under her wing, but allowing them just enough room to maneuver around, and poke their heads out of the fold of her wing: "What the hell is the meaning of-

But Pascal was quickly silenced as Hawk covered their mouths with his hands, and glanced over in the direction the sound had come from: "There's someone at _your_ place: be quiet or they'll hear us!"

"Shadow, turn invisible" Ariana stood up and reached for her bow and quiver. The titans all vanished from sight, along with their human's passengers: who were all in awe and slightly unnerved at the fact that they were now semi-transparent. With Shadow now taking point, the titans quietly maneuvered through the hollows towards the cottage: their footfalls hardly making any sound as they treaded through the undergrowth. Carla bit back her fear, as the memory of that severed head and those wall cultists came back to haunt her: the children too began to get a really bad feeling about this.

As the clearing came into view through the trees, everyone was alarmed to see the masked riders congregated around the cottage. A number of them were on horseback and keeping watch around the perimeter of the clearing, while the rest were dismounted and inside the cottage, searching it top to bottom. Pascal and West were sweating bullets as they watched them through the windows, rummaging through their stuff.

Approaching closer, Javorin summoned the wind to gentle blow towards them, so as to remain downwind of them: the smell of blood wafting off their clothes instantly sent a chill down his spine, and upon reading their auras, he could tell these humans were bad news. All their energies radiated ignorance, arrogance, pride, superiority, naiveté, utter unwavering loyalty, blind illogical religious belief, and a sick sense of enjoyment at seeing others suffering. He frowned in anger: though he loved humanity and understood its nature inside and out, it didn't mean he had to like the bad side of it, and there _were_ exceptions when it came to his benevolent nature. Now within only several meters of the cottage, the titans and their passengers watched silently from the gloom of the shadows. Amid the hubbub of activity, one rider caught Ash's attention in particular: he was seated on the front porch by the door, having a wound in his shoulder being tended to by another two riders. Glancing down at the arrow he held in his hand, his eyes widened in alarm: it was _his_ arrow, the one he fired as they charged them. _This was the same rider_. He managed to stop himself from panicking, and kept it together as one of the riders exited the cottage with an ODM gear in one hand: "Nothing but stolen ODM gear sir" he stated.

"Traders huh?" the wounded rider smirked behind his mask: "How many?"

"Only two by the looks of it: we didn't find any evidence of anyone else living here"

"And the children?"

Ash and the other kids felt their stomachs drop,

"Long gone" the rider shook his head, "...But, we found something else sir: something-, we _don't know_ how to explain"

Getting up off the porch, the wounded rider and his medics followed him around to the back of the cottage, where the grass had been trampled flat, and four huge sets of footprints had been left in the soft ground. The gods mentally facepalmed as they realized they'd forgotten to use a concealment spell to hide their tracks: while the humans merely gawked down at the footprints in a mix of horror and panic. The riders stared at the footprints for a long moment, before the wounded rider strode back around to the front of the cottage with his comrades in tow.

"I've seen some pretty elaborate scare tactics, but _titan footprints?_ That's a new one: original, but _stupid_ to say the least..." the wounded rider scoffed, "Whoever the occupants are, make sure to come back here after dark and see if they return; if they're trading in stolen ODM gear this close to Shiganshina: that can only mean they're stealing from the Garrison and MP's in the city. Low-level traders are useful in one capacity or another, so be sure to mark this property down on our red list: I want to know _exactly_ who they are, _and_ if they know those 'children'..."

"Very good sir" the riders nodded,

"We're taking a great risk simply by being out in the daylight, having to clear out the regular vermin is one thing: now we have to contend with the fact there are Celts in these woods" the wounded rider held up the arrow, and inspected the quartz head: "... How many hunters are there in wall Maria that make arrows with stone and crystal heads?"

Ariana stared at the rider in horror: that confirms it; these guys _are_ the dark riders for sure,

"We've got ten depots and seven half-way houses already in place along the main southern road and surrounding forests, the other fifteen near Shiganshina are almost complete: and with the new sanctuary we'll be building on our newly acquired land, we'll be set to start a new purge within as little as a year" one of the riders pointed out, "After all the purges we conducted in the far north, surely there can't be many places left for them to hide?"

"You forget," the wounded rider gazed over at his comrade, "Those purge's yielded _nothing_ and _no_ successful kills: they already knew we were coming and cleared out _long_ before we got there. For over a hundred years we've been hunting those _wretched parasites_ , wiping out their existence from the walls, and every year that's gone by they've been getting wiser to our tactics; god only knows where they are now, but they can't hide forever: sooner or later they'll slip up, and then we'll get them all..." he stated in a stern yet cold voice: turning to one of the other riders, he ordered: "Head back to the new sanctuary site and file my report. Tell our brothers back in Sina I want the budget for the new hunting teams approved, and I want it to clear in the _next five weeks_ ; _twenty additional_ depots and half-way houses, in addition to three hundred more Disciples. _If there are_ Celts in this region, I want them found and _wiped out_ , understand?"

"Very good sir" the rider nodded, "Will you be returning later then?"

"Don't wait for me," the wounded rider placed the arrow in a small bag beneath his cloak, and returned to his horse, "I still have ten more miles of forest to clear out: this whole area used to be Hafer's property, which means any soul living here is no longer welcome: so unless they received their eviction notices and already cleared out, they must be _purged_ "

"The only place left on this side of the property is that woodcutter's cabin near the river" one of the other riders thought aloud, "I think the couple living there have ten children, don't they?"

"They _had_ ten children" the rider smirked as he mounted his horse, "We already purged that place earlier this morning: so you're free to return"

"Very well sir," the rider nodded as he returned to his horse and mounted up, "In that case I'll see you later!" he waved goodbye as rode off down the old dirt road. "Let's move!" the lead rider ordered, and after remounting their steeds, the riders all moved as one into the forest, heading in the opposite direction.

A long tense moment passed as everyone waited for them to be far out of range: then, the titans turned visible again, and cautiously stepped into the clearing; kneeling down to let everyone get off. For a moment they just stood there in a mix of dread and relief; relief for having been invisible, and dread at having overheard what they heard.

"Holy shit-" West gasped with an uneasy smile, "... You weren't kidding about them turning invisible" he looked at his arms and hands, relieved to see they were solid again, and not semi-transparent.

Pascal walked up behind Ariana, and grabbed one of the arrows from out of her quiver: holding it up to inspect it, he saw the head was carved from a pale purple crystal. "... Quiet a pretty little thing, for something that's designed to kill; wouldn't you say? ..." he glanced down at her with a knowing look. Ariana nervously met his gaze: she realized he figured out what she was, and there was no use in trying to explain it as anything else. Her cousins and brother's all looked at him in alarm, quickly wracking their brains trying to figure out what to do. "Guys? What's wrong?" Bemadette suddenly noticed the looks on their faces: "What's he talking about?" Fox frowned in confusion.

"Isn't it obvious?" Lucius interjected apprehensively, "Their Celts" Lucy stated; the silence was deafening, as Ariana and her kin stared at them in horror. "...What's a 'Celt'?..." Carla innocently asked, they all snapped their heads round and stared at her in surprise. "...Y-, _you don't know_ what a Celt is Mrs Jaeger? ..." Ariana stared at her in amazement. "...Um? Well no, should I?" she replied worryingly.

"Allow me to enlighten you," Pascal smiled as he stepped up beside her, idly waving the arrow around: "The story goes: way back, long before the titans ever showed up, there used to be _all kinds_ of breeds of people, all over the outside world, and one of them were the Celts. But when the titans showed up and chased us behind the walls, for some reason the king back then ordered them all to be wiped out," he stated as he put the arrow back in Ariana's quiver, "Dunno why of course, no one knows the real reason why they were exterminated. But, the story goes the survivors all escaped to wall Maria, and have been living in the wild places of the forests ever since" he glanced down at the kids, "...I take it you brats must be the last of your bloodlines? It wouldn't be surprising, given it's been over a hundred years"

"Are you going to rat us out to _them?_ " Rowan scowled as he pointed in the direction the riders had left; Pascal gave him a deadpan look, and sighed: "Kid, those guys _know_ we trade stolen goods, and they _know_ where we live: we're as vulnerable as you are now" He folded his arms, "Besides, _hardly anyone_ knows the Celts never mind actually _heard_ of them: maybe once people might have been familiar with the name, but now? _No one_ in the interior knows of them or the fact they ever existed, some people in wall Rose have only heard of them as myth, and here in wall Maria their hearsay and rumours. Not to be taken any more seriously than the word of a crazy old cat lady"

"In short," West clarified as he squatted down to meet Rowan's eye-level, gently placing a hand on his shoulder "You've got nothing to worry about as far as _we're_ concerned. We're just trying to quietly live in peace and keep our heads down, the same as you. So don't sweat it, okay?" Rowan stared at West in a mix of confusion and surprise, of all the things he had been expecting, he hadn't expected this: "...No one's heard of us? But-, our uncle said we must never reveal our true identity's to _anyone_ : our lives depend on it"

"Hey, you ain't the only ones who're trying to survive you know?" Pascal sighed, "There're people all over this walled world who're trying to live with more freedom than the law allows. For _all kinds_ of reasons: the fact you're the last of a dying breed doesn't make _you_ any more special than them. So don't go crying your eyes out over the fact you're marked for death by some idiots who think the world would be better off without you; because there's _a whole slew_ of us out there, the world would rather see dead for the fact we're more free than they are, and prefer to _be ourselves_ rather than get swept away by the status quo"

The kids gazed at Pascal in surprise: Rowan in particular was stunned, and was at a loss what to say; there are _other people_ in this world like him? Who had to hide who they really were, or risking being punished for their differences? It was eye-opening to say the least.

Curious as to how they figured it out, Ariana turned to the Cooper twins and asked: "...How did you know we were Celts?" Lucius and Lucy glanced at one another, and explained: "Actually, we've known for a little while now," Lucy admitted, "We found a book in Bryson and Claude's bookshop on the hunting traditions of Maria some time ago, and it mentioned that the Celts made their arrowheads out of crystals and stone. When we came over to your house last week to drop off that delivery list to your dad, we saw a bunch of those arrows sitting on the desk in his study" Ariana stared at them in amazement: "But if you guys knew, why didn't you say anything?" The twins glanced at one another, and shrugged with a smile: "Because? We don't care what you are: _you're our friend_ Ariana, and that's all what really matters to us"

"Come on" Gale chipped in, "Does it _really_ matter what other people think of you? It's _your_ life, you should be allowed to live it the same as us"

"And besides, Pascal's got a point" Shyla spoke up: "We're _all_ trying to survive this world one way or another: maybe we could do it better if we all help each other?" she gazed up at the titans, "We're bound together by secrets now anyway: so maybe it'll be easier if we share the burden of it together?"

"Actually? ..." Carla thought about it: "That doesn't sound like such a bad idea" "So? You _really_ don't mind the fact that we're Celts? ..." Hazel asked her worryingly: seeing the look of anxiety in her eyes, Carla knelt down before her and held both her hands gently: "Hazel, listen to me: _I couldn't care less_ about what you are or where you and your family come from. All I care about is making sure you get back home okay, and that _no one_ hurts you or your family. Your aunt Freya and I have been friends for a number of years now, do you _really think_ after all this time I'd betray her just because she has a different heritage than me?"

"I don't know?" Rowan admitted ruefully, "... Our uncle said you can't put too much stock in people who're not one of us: people these days are usually out for themselves; be it for money or food or freedom, some people will sell out their whole families for a fast coin if they could. The world _is_ cruel, and it doesn't tolerate difference well; that's why we have to hide at all costs; otherwise, people like those in the wall cult will kill us and our families"

"The wall cult?" West frowned in bemusement, "Why would the wall cult come after _you?_ And just _who the hell_ were those riders anyway?"

Glancing at one another, Ariana sighed as she reluctantly explained: "... We Celts call them the dark riders: their part of the wall cult, their own privet army who they call the 'Disciples': they're the one who've been wiping us out for the last hundred years. _No one_ outside the cult knows they exist, and that's because they kill _anyone_ who sees them, and their always careful to take the bodies with them so there's no trace for anyone to find"

"They hunt us, _and_ anyone else the wall cult doesn't like. They usually hunt at night so they can remain unseen, but-, those guys we saw were out in the _daylight_ ; I don't understand why?" Dale frowned as he wracked his brain for a plausible explanation,

"But why would the wall cult go out of its way just to wipe out a whole other breed of human?" Pascal raised an eyebrow,

"The story goes, as our uncle told it," Ariana explained, "That we Celts possessed something the first king of the walls was scared of, something that posed a threat to him and his rule; It's said that we posses 'the memory of memories', whatever that means? He said he'd tell us about that when we're older"

"Fine. Whatever," Pascal shrugged: after all the craziness he'd seen today, he was unconcerned with how peculiar it sounded, "Basically their bad news"

"But then- ..." West thought aloud, "Those stories we used to hear in the capitol: about people out in the country disappearing on the roads at night?" he gazed as Pascal with a worried look in his eyes: "...What if it was _them_ all along?"

"...You might have a point there..." Pascal sighed with a concerned frown as he folded his arms: "Looks like they weren't just stories after all?"

"Wait, the Disciples hunt in _the interior_ too?" Ash blinked in surprise:

" _Apparently_..." Pascal regarded him with a serious look: "Growing up, we used to hear stories: _rumours_ of people traveling the country roads at night, being 'spirited away' by some unseen ethereal entity; leaving no trace anything or anyone was ever there. Of course most people just brushed it off as horseshit, some ghost story into scaring disobedient brats into doing their chores. But the thing is, those rumours have been around since forever, and they never really seemed to go away. So part of me always wondered if maybe there was something to it? Of course _I_ thought it could be some criminals who'd perfected the art of kidnapping poor folks to sell on the black market; but the people that went missing were rich _and_ poor alike, which doesn't jive with the kind of criminal's dealing in human trafficking. But if it's the _wall cult_ that's been responsible all this time, then it kinda makes sense: given how secretive and shady those nut-jobs are, I wouldn't be surprised if _that's_ how they really subjugate the masses"

"-Wait a sec, let me get this straight," Carla held up her hand, trying to keep up with the conversation as her mind reeled: "You're saying, those riders we just saw, they're _part_ of the _wall cult?_ "

"You _only just_ figured that out?" Pascal deadpanned; "Mrs Jaeger I'm telling you the truth: those riders _are_ part of the wall cult, and they'll _kill you_ if you see them, even by accident!" Ariana pleaded. "It's bad enough we have to hide our true heritage from the world just to avoid them, now they know _we live here!_ ... How the hell did that rider get his hands on one of our arrows anyway?" she thought aloud.

"It's my fault," Ash admitted nervously, "When they found us again, I fired an arrow at that rider and I got him in the shoulder" his face contorted into a look of fear and dread, " _It's my fault_ they know we're here and now they'll-""-Wait a minute, Ash" Carla stopped him as she kneeled down to meet his eye-level, "You said they found you _again_ , have you ran into them before?"

"... Earlier, when we were looking for Ariana" Hazel explained, "We saw them in a clearing not far from here: they were chasing some guy and ran over him with their horses; we didn't see what happened per se but-, they did _something bad to him_ , and-..." She hesitated as the memory of the incident came back to haunt her, "... _I don't know what they did_ , but one of them had this black round box-

Carla's eyes widened in shock: could it have been the same black cylindrical box she saw earlier, the one with the severed head inside? Hearing this too, Elysia's eyes widened in shock and horror, and the other gods were quick to sense her aura shift in realization. "-He did something with it, I don't know what? But they tied him onto the back of one of the horses and rode off" Hazel finished explaining: "It's true, we all saw it" Gale sighed sombrely, "There was a big pool of blood where he'd been lying on the ground" "...Those 'Disciples': if no one knows they exist, who can we turn to for help? ..." Belle added in equal worry.

The gods all glanced at one another: they didn't need to read each others auras to know they were thinking the exact same thing; and needed no convincing otherwise.

Feeling guilty, Ash addressed everyone: "...Look, Mrs Jaeger? Guys?" he glanced at Carla, the Willum and Cooper kids "This whole thing sounds _crazy_ I know, and I don't expect you to understand all of it. But what happened here today: the things we've seen and escaped? Meeting Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel?" he glanced up at Shadow, who smiled down at him reassuringly: "I don't blame you if you want out of it: it's a _big_ responsibility keeping secrets; and it's not because I don't trust any of you. I just don't want this whole thing to get any more complicated than it already is. But-, now that the Disciples are here in the Marian forest, it's about to get _a whole lot_ more complicated: and its _way_ outta my hands"

Rowan then unexpectedly added: "... Being a Celt-, being _different_ isn't easy, and it _sucks_ that we have to be reminded of that every day. It's the reason I'm so angry all the time, because I can't be who _I_ want to be: and sometimes I lash out at the wrong people; and they get _hurt_ because of me" he glanced over at Ariana, who offered him a small weak, yet understanding smile.

It was then, Carla realized: "... _That's_ why you fell out with Ariana that night wasn't it?" Rowan snapped his head up in surprise: "...You were arguing about it, and that's why-" she gazed over at Ariana; the look on her face pretty much confirmed it. Standing back up, Carla addressed the Celtic kids with a sense of motherly protection and surety: "... Listen to me: I don't know which of your uncles told you all about your heritage and why you need to hide it: but as a mother and someone who _cares_ about her friends greatly, I _can_ tell you this; the world _is_ a hard place to survive, and your uncle wasn't kidding when he said there are cruel people who're willing to go to any lengths to get what they want. But that _doesn't mean_ _everyone_ is out to get you: most just want to get by as best they can, and they're not concerned with everyone else's business. It's true some people can do bad things for selfish and petty reasons: and some _are_ good people at heart, they just-, go about things the wrong way" She glanced over at Pascal and West, who were both somewhat surprised to hear her say that last part: "...But that's just it, its _some people_ , _not all_ the people in this world. So don't feel like everyone's out to get you just because you're different: and if other people can't see you for who you are then that's _their_ problem, not yours, okay? _Don't let them define you,_ just because they can't see who you really are" she smiled down at the children.

The kids stared at her nonplussed, even West felt a little impressed by her wisdom: after a moment of thoughtful contemplation, Ariana glanced over at her brother's and cousins: "...You know? Maybe we've been over-stressing about this too much? If people really don't know about the Celts anymore, then what have we got to worry about?"

"Hell, _I_ wouldn't know a Celt if one walked up to me in the street," Belle shrugged, "Seriously guys, your secret's safe with us okay? So don't go sweating over it: I mean we've been friends since _forever_ , and let's face it we've done a _shit-loada_ stuff that'd get us into way worse trouble"

"Oh really?" Carla raised an eyebrow as she folded her arms: "Like what?" "Uh-" Belle froze as she realized what she just said. "*Ahem!*" Pascal interrupted, "Much as it pains me to break up this tender little moment: _you_ young lady-" he shot a look at Bemadette, "-Have _your_ half of that deal to fulfill. Remember?" he tapped a finger on his ODM gear's right gas tank. "Oh yeah" Bemadette suddenly remembered: reaching for the tool kit in her back pocket, she smiled: "Okay, let's get started: everyone take off your gears and hand 'em over: this is going to take a while"

" _In the house_ if you don't mind!" Pascal pointed to the front door, "And once you're out of 'em, make yourselves useful and help us to tidy up the place: we got some packing to do" "Packing?" Poppy raised an eyebrow, "Where're you going?"

Leaving the humans to their own devices, the gods stood back up, and discreetly excused themselves by moving to the edge of the clearing: **"This day just seems to keep getting** _ **more**_ **interesting..."** Herne frowned in grave thought, " **So** **those riders** _ **were**_ **the Disciples"**

" **And it would seem they're looking to move into the neighborhood"** Hecate frowned as she folded her arms; **"You saw their aura's right? There's** _ **no way**_ **I'm letting those murdering bastards roam around free to do as they please"**

" **Agreed,"** Javorin glanced over at her in a serious tone: " **They're dangerous: they can't be allowed to prowl this forest killing innocent people indiscriminately"**

" **So what's the plan?"** Elysia frowned, **"How can we keep Carla and the kids safe?"**

" **One thing at a time kid,"** Herne assured her, **"We gotta have a plan first"**

" **...That rider..."** Hecate thought back to the conversation the riders had between themselves, **"He said they had depots and halfway-houses, and are building more; a supply chain do you think?"**

" **It** _ **has**_ **to be,"** Javorin concurred, **"The forest is vast and isolated in many places: it would make sense to have somewhere safe to stay, as well as keep supplies and food readily available for long trips out"**

" **And this 'sanctuary' they spoke of. Could it be their central headquarters for this region?"** Herne suggested **, "They said they're about to start building it: so they're not ready to fully move in just yet"**

" **Which means we still have time to-, what was it the humans used to say? Throw a spanner in the works"** Hecate smirked, **"I think perhaps, the old 'haunted forest' approach would be suitable for this"**

" **Maybe, but rather than rush in blindly, I'd like to know** _ **exactly**_ **who we're dealing with"** Javorin stated **, "Find out who the Disciples really are: find out how they operate, along with their strengths and weaknesses, and then hit them where it does the most damage. And at the same time, make sure they don't prey on anyone else"**

"Hey Shadow?" Ariana tapped him on the foot, "You might wanna do something about those footprints? You know, like cover them up with some bushes or something?" Smiling down at her with a nod, Javorin reached down and picked her up, **"If you can send out your 'spies' to do a little reconnaissance on this 'sanctuary site' that would be a good starting point"** he suggested as he walked over to the cottage. **"I'll get started on it tonight,"** Hecate replied with a discreet nod **"What're you going to do about the one's we just saw?" "I'll take care of them once Carla and the children are on their way back home"** he replied.

" **What can** _ **I**_ **do to help?"** Elysia asked in all seriousness: **"You want to help?"** Hecate glanced sideways at her: **"You control the weather: we might need some cover in the way of fog and rain" "You got it"** she nodded.

"Hey Angel!" Lucy beckoned her over, "Can you help us out here please?"

" **I just don't want them hurting Carla, or the kids,** _ **or**_ **Pascal and West"** she added as she trotted off to where the Cooper twins and Carla were standing: **"...Think she's still needs babysitting?"** Herne smirked, **"Not as much as I thought. Which is a bit of a relief I guess?"** Hecate smiled, before a more serious tone overcame her fair features: **"...You** _ **do**_ **realize though, we can't just forget about the Scout's either; nor our curses and finding a way to break them"**

" **I know,"** Herne sighed with a sympathetic smile, **"We'll make it work somehow: we're just going to have to get a little more organized; All-father only knows, we're going to be busy for the foreseeable future"**

" **Yeah..."** She sighed as she watched Ariana's brothers helping West carry several boxes out of the cottage. She noticed Rowan trying not to stare at her: reading his aura, she could see the anxiety and apprehension he had over the family secret being made known; but she could also see his longing to be free of his burden, and at the back of her mind she couldn't help but remember back to the time eons ago, when she too, longed to be her own goddess. When Javorin mentioned he had someone more compatible in mind for her as a friend, was _this_ who he meant? If so, he certainly picked well: as Hecate now found herself, becoming a tad curious about Rowan... **"...It's just a shame there are some things about humanity, me and Javorin _can_ agree on"**

* * *

A few hours later:

"Wow," West smiled as he scanned the ODM gears up and down in the crate, "They look like they just came fresh off the factory floor!" Looking over the gears with a critical eye, Pascal conceded that indeed, Bemadette had done a damn fine job, and held out his hand to her once again: "Well? A deal's a deal kid, and I have to admit, you got some _seriously good_ skills" "I know" Bemadette smiled as she shook his hand.

"So? Where're you guys going?" Ariana asked offhand as she gazed over at the fully-laden cart and wagon: everything that could be carried, including the ODM gears had been packed up either into a crate on the wagon or under the cart's tarpaulin. "Anywhere away from here: the whole reason we moved to this spot is because we thought we were far enough outta the way where no one was likely to find us. And now that those creeps know about us, we ain't safe: so that means we gotta find somewhere else to live and do business" Pascal explained as he packed the last few items onto the wagon.

"You know it's our fault you gotta move right?" Gale thought aloud in regret: "If we hadn't been running from those riders and found this place, leaving those footprints for them to follow, they never would have come here"

"Ah don't beat yourself up kid," West waved off as he readied the horses, "If those guys are moving into the area then it would've only been a matter of time before they found this place anyway: trust me, it would've probably made no difference..." he gazed back at the cottage nostalgically, and smiled: "...Still, it was nice while it lasted"

"Will you be okay?" Carla asked offhand, "Ah don't worry about us" Pascal waved, "We got a buddy in Shiganshina who can put us up for a while, until we can find a new place""My granny could put you up for free in our guesthouse if you're willing to help out in the bar and kitchen?" Gale offered, "Thanks kid but we only work for ourselves: we're _our own_ bosses, and that's how we'd like to keep it..." Pascal smiled as he headed back down into the basement, and re-emerged with a large metal can in hand; he headed inside the cottage, opened the lid, and started pouring a golden liquid all over the place.

"What's he doing?" Ashlyn asked offhand.

"We can't leave any trace we were here" West replied as he grabbed the reins of both horses, and led them away from the front porch, and into the tree line at the start of the dirt road about a hundred yards away, "You might want to step away from there!" he called back. Realizing what he was going to do: Carla grabbed Ariana and Gale by the hand and ran the other way to where the titans were standing: "-Quickly all of you! Out of the way!" she ordered; the children took off running after her, but before they could ask what was going on, they felt an intense surge of head hit their backs as the sound of a small explosion echoed through the clearing. They turned around just in time to see the whole cottage going up in flames, with Pascal calmly walking over to the cart and wagon, placing a match box in his pocket: everyone wandered over to the cart and wagon, and for a long time they just stood there watching the place burn.

As Ariana watched the dancing flames reach up into the blue sky, she couldn't help but feel a sense of responsibility for all this: after all, _she_ was the reason her brothers, cousins and friends had come out here in the first place, to look for her and bring her home. If it hadn't been for her, they wouldn't have run into those masked riders in the first place. Deep down she felt bad, but at the same time she resolved to make it up to them somehow.

Carla too, couldn't help but feel as though she'd inadvertently seen something she wasn't supposed to: as if she'd just caught a glimpse into a dark other world, one that lay right beneath the surface of the one she knew, and one that felt _far too close_ to home. If those dark riders and Pastors were part of the same cult, then there was a good chance she'd probably seen them heading to their church for their weekly prayers and sermons in Shiganshina: it was unnerving to think that some of those same parishioners, could have been any one of those riders; who could say? She didn't know. Carla knew the world was harsh and unforgiving, but today, she felt as though she had just seen a part of the really mysterious side of it: thinking of home, she thought of her son and husband, and wondered just how close that dark world was to them; how close within striking range were they to it? If they had to travel through the forest for any reason, and they saw those riders by accident, she would _never_ see them again: and there wouldn't even be any bodies to bury.

As a mother and wife, it was her duty to keep her family safe: it was her _responsibility_ to keep Eren safe from the dangers of the world, until he reached the age where he was strong enough to stand on his own two feet, and face the world as a man: and even then her work would never be truly done. But for now, she _had_ to give him the best chance possible.

But what about Ariana and _her_ family? The kids were still undertaking bush-craft and hunting lessons from their fathers, and they were due to go out back into the forest sometime next week. But what would they do if they knew the dark riders were our here? Would they pack up and leave? But if so where would they go? With the wall cult virtually everywhere all over the three walls, _nowhere_ was truly safe. And then there was the Willum and Copper kids, they at the very least would still want to come back to the forest to see the titans again; seeing the look of wonder and awe in their eyes at seeing them after their initial introduction, she _knew_ there was no way to dissuade them from their curiosity. But then, _all_ the kids would want to come back and see them again, especially Ariana: and while the titans could afford them a level of safety with their invisibility; who would make sure they got to the forest safely?

And then there was Angel: given everything that had happened today she'd expected her to be more frightened and traumatized; but instead, she handled herself surprisingly well. Maybe she wasn't so much of a kid after all? But still, there was something about her she could only describe as naive and innocent: and at the back of her mind, Carla couldn't help but worry if maybe she might end up biting off more than she could chew? Thinking back to what happened earlier, she realized she'd purposely taken off after the riders to stop them from attacking the children: she was willing to risk her life for them, and she did it without hesitation or a second thought. Carla couldn't help but smile: at least she knew Angel's heart was in the right place; and more remarkable still, was the fact she was probably the first human to ever fly (even if the wings were not her own: it was still an amazing albeit brief experience). How many people could claim _that_ privilege?

Heaving a heavy sigh, Carla knew she had her work cut out for her: so many responsibilities, so many to look out for; it was a challenge, but for everyone's sake's, she was willing to meet it head on.

"Well? This is where we part ways and say goodbye," Pascal sighed as he got up on the cart, while West climbed up onto the wagon and took the reins: "It's been fun, but we gotta get going"

"Will we ever see you guys again?" Ariana asked offhand,

"Hopefully not, and if you're ever in the 'bad side' of Shiganshina, don't ask for us by name okay? It's better if we'd never met to begin with..." Pascal replied, before glancing up at Shadow and the other titans, "And hey you big lugs! Let's not meet again okay? I've had enough _weird shit_ to last me a lifetime!"

Shadow waved his hand and spelt out the words, : Same here, I wouldn't stand to have such young impressionable minds cavorting with criminals :. Pascal burst out laughing: "A titan with sensibilities? _Holy shit!_ The Scouts would have a _panic attack_ if they ever ran into _you_ guys!" He then glanced down at the kids with a surprisingly honest look, "...But seriously, kid?" he gazed down at Ariana in particular, "If you think _you're_ responsible for all the crazy shit that went down today? You'd only be _half_ right: as bad as things got, a lot more good came out of it you know?" "It did?" Ariana blinked in surprise: "Well? In a way, _you_ saved our lives" Pascal pointed out: "If we hadn't been invisible and overheard that conversation? It's likely we'd have been paid a visit from those guys and blackmailed into doing whatever they wanted of us; and chances are, it would've worked out _far worse_ for someone else in the long run. So on _that_ line of logic: you could say you saved a lot more lives today... And on that note: if we ever do meet again? We owe you one"

"We may be criminals, but don't let it be said _we_ don't stick to our promises" West smiled, "Well? Anyway, take care of yourselves" he waved goodbye as he flicked the reins, and the horse began walking down the dirt road with Pascal following close behind, "You know, it's a damn shame you're already married, you might have made an honest man of me!" he shot a cheeky wink at Carla. "Somehow, I don't think that's even possible" she deadpanned at him, "You two stay out of trouble you hear!"

"Can't make any promises!" Pascal called back, "Take care and have a nice life!"

As the carts disappeared over the next rise, Carla glanced down at the kids, and back up at the titans: "I think? Perhaps it's time we all headed for home"

"Yeah" Ash sighed offhand, "I dunno about you guys, but I'm ready to do some chores" The children all voiced in agreement; Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel all bent down, and Shadow spelt out the words, : Given what's happened today, we'll escort you all back to the edge of the forest: "Thanks big guy" Ariana smiled as she climbed up into his free hand, and he placed her on his shoulder, followed by the Willum sisters.

* * *

The walk back to the edge of the forest closest to Shiganshina was relatively short for the titans: what would have taken a human at least three hours on foot, took only about half an hour for them; and with invisibility as a factor, they didn't have to worry about hiding along the roads. Stopping at the last crossroads before the forest met the open farmland and meadows, the titans let everyone down, and made themselves visible for their goodbyes.

: Don't worry about the riders, we have a plan to take care of them, and make sure they don't bother anyone else: Shadow wrote. "What've you got in mind?" Ariana asked offhand, : Something to ensure they don't _want_ to come back. You let us worry about them okay? You just concentrate on getting home safely: he wrote.

Bending down and giving her a farewell nose boop, Angel chirped at Carla with an apologetic tone, as if to say sorry, and to plead with her not to stop coming back; somehow, Carla seemed to understand this, and smiled as she stroked her cheek: "Hey come on this isn't goodbye forever, I'll come back again _, I promise_ ; we just need to lay low for a while okay? Just until things have died down. You understand, don't you?" Angel reluctantly nodded, but smiled with a sense of understanding, "There's a good girl" Carla kissed her on the nose, "I'll see you when I see you: you take care of yourself, and your family you hear?" Angel chirped and trilled something like a goodbye, and waved farewell to the kids with her wing. "You remember we told you where the green fens are, right?" Ash asked Shadow, "That's where our dads are taking us camping next week". "I expect to see you there" Ariana pointed a finger up at the giant. : Of course; now go on, off with you all...See you next time: Shadow smiled as he and the other titans got back up, and slowly vanished from sight as they strode away into the trees.

Once they were completely gone from sight, everyone turned and started heading for home. As they left the forest, they saw wall Maria come into view: dominating the horizon and looming over everything in sight, Belle turned to Ariana and asked, "...Hey Ariana, is this how it felt? The first time after meeting him and having to go home?" "What'd you mean?" Ariana glanced at her, as she stared out across the farmlands at the wall: "... I don't know, but that wall kinda looks a little smaller for some reason"

"...Yeah..." Josefa and Jaye both sighed, "It kinda does doesn't it?"

"The first time I came home after meeting Shadow for the time..." Ariana thought back to that fateful day: "I think I must have thought _every thought_ imaginable; there was _so much stuff_ going through my mind, I didn't know I could _think_ so much. I felt like I was on fire, that I could do _anything_ I wanted; I guess it's what gave me the courage to want to sneak out very week, just to go and see him again. I mean, something-, _someone_ that amazing, how can you just ignore it?"

"I know," Carla sighed admittedly with a small smile: "When I first encountered Angel, at first I was terrified and ran away: but then-, _I don't know_ ; something made me realize she wasn't a threat, which sounds totally weird if not a little disconcerting. But-, When I looked into her eyes, and saw just how _human_ she was? Something deep down just seemed to 'click', and I wasn't afraid anymore..." she gazed off up into the sky as she let her mind speak her thoughts: "...It's a strange feeling: letting fear give way to curiosity: it's not really something anyone can teach you how to do, I guess you either have it or you don't? And I suppose, it's one of those things that can only happen in the heat of the moment, when you're _actually there_ "

"... It's like killing an animal for the first time," Clay sighed as he gazed down at the arrows in his quiver, "You _know_ you're taking a life, and that life will help you and your family to live; but it still means that animal _has_ to die, and you don't know if you have it in you to kill it... It's not until you got it square in your sight and it's the moment to let your arrow fly, that you find out if you have what it takes to make that kinda choice, and be okay with it"

"Yeah but these are _titans_ we're talking about; _humanity's greatest enemy_ , and yet there are _four of them_ living here _inside_ the walls. They don't eat humans, they know our language, _and_ they can turn invisible!" Dale pointed out: "Among other things: but I can fill you in on that later," Ariana added quickly, " _My point is_ : this raises _a lot of big questions_ , and one's I don't think the answers are going to be easy to find, or understand for that matter..." he sighed, "Call me paranoid (and excuse the pun), but I can't help but feel like we've stumbled onto something _way bigger_ than ourselves"

"... You might be right" Carla nodded in concurrence, "But whatever it is, I just hope it doesn't cause more trouble than we're prepared to handle"

Changing the subject slightly: Ariana took a deep breath, and glanced at everyone: "... Listen guys, I'm really sorry for everything today: if it hadn't been for me, you all wouldn't have been out here at all, and you wouldn't have run into those riders and nearly got killed. If I hadn't been so selfish, _none of this_ would have happened"

"What?" Ash blinked in surprise, "Ariana, if we hadn't known those riders were out there, we might die next week"

"What?" Ariana blinked in surprise at him: "If we hadn't discovered their presence here in the forest _today_ , you wouldn't have warned Shadow and the others to keep an eye on us when we next go camping, and risk getting ambushed and killed. Despite everything that happened today, you and Shadow saved our lives: as well as you and Angel Mrs Jaeger" Ash smiled up at Carla.

Carla couldn't help but smile: "Oh, I don't deserve the credit: I was holding on for dear life wondering what the hell was going on. It wasn't until I saw both the riders and all of you down below that I realized what she was doing. I'm very proud of her for being so selfless and brave" She glanced down at Ariana, "And Ariana? Don't blame yourself for any of this okay? There's no way you could have foreseen any of this"

"You're not going to tell my mum on me, are you?" she nervously raised an eyebrow, to which Carla couldn't help but smile: "I think, telling your parents the reason you snuck off was to go play with a fifteen meter tall titan, is going to be a _little hard_ to believe all round"

"Hell, I don't think _anyone's_ going to believe us if we told them the truth: even those riders thought their footprints were fake" Hawk smirked, "... Shadow said he had a plan to take care of those riders: any idea what he was talking about?" "Dunno" Ariana shrugged, "But he's _really_ smart, and can do _a lot_ of cool things: if he says he's got a plan, he's got a plan; whatever it is I'm sure he'll make it work"

"Okay, so if his plan works and he manages to drive the riders out for good, do you think our folks will let us back up into the forest again, you know? To 'hunt' an' stuff?" Clay surmised with a knowing smile, "Our folks are okay with us going up into the forest as long as we all go together. But the question is how to make it _full-proof?_ I mean, our dad's are going to be expecting us to join them for the big game hunts when we're older, which means it'll be impossible to slip away to go meet up with them: so these little 'rabbit and game bird hunts' are really the only way we can get outta the house by ourselves with a valid excuse"

"Not to mention there's the Inn" Gale pointed out, "We got our chores to do around that place, and Aunt Miriam won't let us out unless it's our day off, _or_ we're helping Mrs Grayson with her deliveries" "And let's face it," Lucius sighed in disappointment: "If those riders are just killing _anyone_ who trespasses on their property: and people start to disappear, rumours are going to spread around the valley, and soon enough we won't be let out at all. Not without adult supervision at least"

"Well then," Carla smiled with a cunning glint in her eye, "You're going to need someone to supervise you when you go out to meet them, aren't you? ..." she smiled at the Willum sisters: "Gale: is your aunt Miriam still looking for a second delivery driver to cover her clients along the eastern forest road?" Glancing up at her in surprise, and realizing what she was hinting at, the kids all smiled in delight: "...I'll tell her we've got a new driver" Gale smiled, "But will it be okay with Eren and Mr Jaeger?" "Ah we've been talking about a second income for a while now anyway" she waved off, "Something _not too_ labor-intensive; although: navigating those forests roads _can_ take a long time, you could be gone a whole day just getting from one end to the next" she winked with a smile.

"Mrs Jaeger you're the best!" Ariana beamed: the other kids followed suit as they realized they now had a safe way back into the forest. All they needed to do was wait: and let Shadow and the other titans make the forest safe again.

* * *

High above Maria: gazing down from the clouds in his elemental form, Javorin smiled fondly as Ariana and her family made their way back to the inner gate. Of all the ways this day could have gone so wrong, it was both a surprise and a relief to know some good actually came of it. '...That was one hell of gamble, but thank the All-father it paid off' he thought in relief.

Ever since overhearing that meeting in the basement of that Inn, Javorin _knew_ that running into Ariana the night he awoke from that cursed sleep was no mere accident; just as Carla's encounter with Elysia was no random fluke either. There was _a purpose_ to these happenstances, a reason they were brought together; so going on his gut instinct, he decided to take a gamble, and allowed Ariana and Carla to forester their friendships with him and Elysia: at the same time putting some buffering space between them and Hecate (at least, until he was able to sweet-talk her into going along with his ideology for once. And he didn't feel bad about it: Hecate, in the past had tricked him into helping her plenty of times; it seemed only fair to turn the tables on _her_ for once. As family, having that sort of petty cousin rivalry came with the territory of being one of many gods and goddesses with many multiple relations; needless to say, it was complicated). Where this whole venture was going, he didn't know; but somewhere in the great secret workings of the universe, he could sense his hand was being guided by his ancient kin from afar. And although the uncertainly of the world was the will of those who came before him, he had faith that the answer would reveal itself in time. It was just a question of letting things transpire naturally, no matter how long it took.

Turning his attention to the valley north of the wall, and the land the wall cult now claimed as their own: he frowned as he watched the aura's of the riders move through the deepest parts of the forest, sweeping towards a small house just south of a river. '... No time like the present...' he thought, and with a powerful gust of wind, he plummeted towards them with the speed of a hurricane wind: his tattoos glowing with indignation as he summoned his power, and readied himself to bring his wrath down upon them.

'You're not the only ones who know how make someone disappear'

* * *

 **Well? the cats out the bag, and those kitty's are just going to keep coming out in the next chapter, as it'll be the grown-up's turn for meeting our four big lovies! hope you all enjoyed, and don't forget to R &R before clicking off :) Bye!**


	9. Chpt 8: The Storm

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Chapter 8: The Storm

841, March, The Marian forest:

Dawn:

The air was cold. So cold it was like a blade, cutting deep to the bone and freezing the blood: so still and silent that the songs of the birds echoed far and wide out of the deepest reaches of the forest. Amid the melting snow and ice, the frost covered everything in sight, glistening in the dim light of the overcast sunrise: the first daffodils of the year covered the forest floor in large clusters, bringing some much needed colour to the monotone landscape, while the last of the crocuses and snowdrops bloomed their last hues of the late winter. The cloud cover was so thick and grey that it turned the sun white and made it look as if it were shining in silver:

The forest was slowly waking up from another long winter's sleep: encased in an eerie cocoon of grey, mist, cold, and the sound of running water. Like the butterfly's that would fill the air come the summer, nature was slowly transforming itself for the shifting of the seasons. Still, quietly, and in its own good time.

Though, the same could not be said for the lone masked rider, and he forced his steed to gallop as fast as it could go: "-FASTER YOU STUPID BEAST FASTER!" he screamed: his voiced laden with fear, dread, and utter disbelief; while the blood of his comrades dripped from his cloak, and stained the frost and snow with specks of deep crimson. Seven hours ago, he and his fellow Disciples had set out to investigate the disappearance of twenty five of their comrades only the week before: but when they got the location of the alleged disappearance, they very quickly found out _why_ they went missing, and realized that _they_ had become prey...

He was the only one left now...

He had to get back to the others, _he had to warn them at all costs_ : for he had seen the creature that had been stalking the Disciples all winter long; the beast that had hunted the others before him, and was now chasing him. As the sun began to peek over the eastern side of wall Maria, he recognized the layout of the trees, and realized his campsite was just up ahead; and for a moment, as he listened to the silence of the forest, he allowed himself to breathe a sigh of relief... But it was short-lived as he rounded the next giant tree: and yanked the reins hard as the scene before him turned his stomach to rot...

The entire campsite was in ruins: tents torn and ripped to pieces, provision carts broken apart and lying scattered everywhere, the remains of the campfires dusted about as if they'd been thrown up in the air and scattered all around, with some of the dying embers still burning red. But worse, was the blood and ripped up uniforms; splattered all over the frosted ground in streaks and drips of crimson and burgundy, the biting metallic smell hung in the air mingled with the cold: while the tattered and torn uniforms lay all over the place, soaked in their owner's blood. And on the sides of the giant trees up to fifteen meters above the ground: giant claw marks testified to the beast's rampage in this place of slaughter; several meters long, and dug deep into the wood, whatever this beast was, it was truly _a monster_.

But more disturbingly, was the fact there were no bodies anywhere; this beast had already had its fill.

The rider dismounted, dizzy and disorientated, and leaned against the side of the giant tree as he vomited: he was well and truly at the end of his tether, wracked with fear, horror, and at a loss what to do now: he couldn't think straight for the fear of being picked off too; _what was this thing?_ How was it doing this without getting caught or sighted? Why was it feeding on them? And why hadn't they found any other human remains anywhere in the forest? _Why was it only hunting them?_

As he hyperventilated, his breath suddenly hitched in his chest, as he was suddenly overcome with the crippling feeling of being watched by something terrible; suddenly, his horse nickered before galloping off back the way they'd came, leaving him without a quick means of escape. Frozen to the spot in fear, the rider slowly turned around to where he felt the eyes where: and there, standing in the dark shadows of the trees, was a huge humanoid mass of pure darkness over fifteen meters tall, like liquid or cigar smoke, it seemed to 'flow' through the air as it gazed down at him with fierce violet eyes that glowed like fire.

He didn't have time to scream as the mass lunged down at him with its long sharp claws...

* * *

It didn't take Hecate long to consume the last of the Disciples: as she wiped the blood from her lilac lips, she rematerialized into her titan form, and casually gazed down at the former campsite. Holding one hand up, she made the sign of a certain charm symbol, and recited the incantation to go with it:

" _Inveta-Io, Asseau-menn-velor, fre-qua-en-salou: let it be known that evil was vanquished in this place of death, let those who did wrong against their fellow man find redemption in the eternal realm, and do not linger to haunt the living: Esass-nihmm-olure-wessva-knol: let this place be cleansed of its wounds, and let the forest reclaim what was once taken in falsehood and blindness"_

As her mind's voice echoed out into the spirit world and into the soul of the forest itself: the spirits manifested out of the trees and undergrowth, flickering like tiny green and yellow candle-flames as they floated down into the clearing, and began to dance around the carnage in a clockwise circle. Working their strange magic in voices no human had heard for many ages: the forest all around seemed to come to life as the blood soaked into the earth, and fresh grass and other plants began to sprout and grow amid the remains of the campsite, until hardly anything could be seen and the spirits drifted back into the trees, whispering to the goddess as she watched them leave.

 _Daughter of the moon and death_

 _Hunter of all evils in the world_

 _Consumer of darkness and corruption_

 _Guardian of the shadows_

 _We praise your name and give thanks_

 _No evil will linger here_

 _And none shall come to hunt those who honor us_

With a courteous bow, Hecate silently walked away and headed for the nearby waterfall just several hundred yards away. Taking a few minutes to wash the blood off herself, and perform a cleansing spell to banish the scent and aura of death surrounding her: she made herself ready for the day ahead, fresh and sweet with the scent of rain water. As she got up to leave, she noticed a small root cave some two hundred yards further down the stream, with something pale standing out against the gloom inside; wandering over to investigate, she noticed it was a small box wedged between a few large roots. Prying it out with the tips of her claws, she gingerly opened it and found a large rolled up parchment tucked away inside. Using the tips of her claws like a pair of surgeon's tweezers, she gently unrolled the paper, and studied at its contents.

It was an old map: large and fairly detailed, depicting the forest and surrounding farmlands near Shiganshina, with the names of the various villages and hamlets listed; it had multiple dotted lines in different coloured inks between the different areas of the forest (trails and pathways no doubt), and various red crosses in what looked like little clearings among the trees, each with a number of deaths, horses lost, and provisions and carts destroyed. It was a map listing the locations of where the Disciples had 'gone missing'.

'So?' Hecate thought offhand: 'you finally decided to get your act together, and investigate your comrade's disappearance's, hm? ...' she grasped the parchment in her hand, and burnt it to ashes with her purple flames: 'As if _that_ will make any difference,' she thought darkly, 'So long as you continue to inflict your rule upon the people of this region, you will _not_ be welcome in these forests'

Turning herself into her shadow form, she melted into the darkness of the forest and moved swiftly like a fish through water: heading for the grove of giant trees.

* * *

Sometime later, mid-morning:

As the sun reached up high into the blue sky, the day had warmed up into a pleasantly clear spring day, with enough heat to thaw the last of the snow, and stir the hibernating animals from their long winter sleep, prompting them to go foraging for their first meals of the season.

As she rematerialized and strode into the grove, flicking her long black hair from out of her face, Hecate blinked in surprise when she saw Javorin reclining against his favorite tree, enjoying the sunshine; albeit he looked rather worn and tired: **"You're back early"** she thought aloud as she sat down on a large root next to him: **"Which can only mean the Scouts had to call off the expedition; when did you get back?"**

" **Last night, not long after you left"** he sighed as he repositioned himself into a more comfy position, glancing down at the daffodils amid the roots with a distant look in his eyes; Hecate knew that look, which could only mean one thing: **"...How many this time?"** she asked frankly, deciding not to go beating about the bush.

" **...Twelve dead and six wounded"** he sighed regretfully, **"That's three less than last time"** she offered a small smile, trying to sound encouraging, **"It's all the same to them, and frustratingly difficult for us"** he replied in a slightly drained tone.

" **Like that's anything new. As far as their concerned we'd be fair game, remember?"** she pointed out.

" **Actually, I've been thinking about that"** he replied, perking up slightly,

" **Thinking about what?!"** Elysia chirped as she came gliding down into the grove, and stuck the landing right in Herne's hollow. The god of the hunt followed after her in his sky lark form: changing back to his titan form ten meters above the ground and landing on all fours. Bouncing up out of the hollow towards them, the weather goddess perched herself on a root next to Hecate while Herne galloped over to their sides: **"Indeed"** he grinned, **"You haven't had an idea in a long while, let's hear it"**

" **Before that, let's take care of business first;"** he stated as he sat right and crossed his legs, **"How did this morning and last night go?"** he glanced at all three of them in a more professional manner,

" **Not bad at all,"** Hecate smirked smugly, **"Those additional hunters that were sent down from wall Sina? Turns out they were here to investigate the 'disappearances' from the other week. As if the other eight before those didn't matter,"** she deadpanned,

" **What?** _ **Seriously?!**_ **"** Elysia gawked, **"We've been getting rid of those bastards since last summer and they only** _ **now**_ **decide to investigate it?!"**

" **Worshiping a false god is bad enough"** Hecate frowned, **"But it would seem** _ **nothing**_ **is sacred to these pieces of filth: not even the lives of their fellow Disciples... After all the losses they've incurred and the inactivity to try to counter it: it can only mean that** _ **someone**_ **somewhere covered it all up"**

" **Well if that's the case, then that works in our favor"** Herne pointed out, **"Their** _ **only now**_ **just learning about it, which means they should be forced to reconsider sending any more Disciples here"**

" **And with the investigation team now 'missing in action', it's sure to send a chill up the spine of whoever's organizing these hunts..."** Hecate added, before changing the subject slightly and gazing over at Herne, **"And, speaking of missing in action: how'd things go on** _ **your**_ **end?"**

" **Pretty fruitful I'd say"** Herne nodded with smile of satisfaction: **"We cleared out the last three depots, and last four halfway-houses last night: as of this morning, the Disciple's supply chain to the** _ **entire**_ **southern region of Maria is officially out of commission;** _ **permanently**_ **"**

" **And we made sure they wouldn't come back to rebuild them any time soon"** Elysia smirked **, "Herne made sure the bears and wolves would keep an eye on those places: along with a few bad luck hexes for good measure"**

" **Meh, I'm not one to brag: I like to let my work speak for itself"** Herne smirked. **"Modesty ever begets you brother,"** Javorin couldn't help but smile: **"And how did your mission go Elysia?"** he turned to the avian, who puffed out her chest feathers proudly; **"Well? I'm pleased to say I found a good sized thunderstorm heading up from the south west beyond Maria: it'll be here by tomorrow, so that'll give me plenty of time to work it up into a proper tempest!"**

" **Very good, but remember to keep** **the rain to a minimum, it's the** _ **lightning**_ **we want;"** Javorin reminded her: **"The rivers are already saturated with melt water, and the southern Marian river is quite full as it is; if there is to be a downpour, make sure it falls** _ **before**_ **it crosses over the wall"**

" **I know I know,"** Elysia nodded confidently, **"Don't worry, I** _ **totally**_ **got this. Those summer storms I stirred up last year did a good job, right?"**

" **Well, they certainly had the desired result"** Hecate grinned as she remembered the chaos said storms created for the wall cult: **"Who knew a building site could go up in flames like that?"**

" **I know it's been a long winter, but I can still aim a lightning bolt straight"** Elysia stated: **"Don't sweat it: it'll be the best demolition work I've done yet! (And the wall cult will be tearing their hair out yet again, for sure!)"** She grinned.

" **Well then, come tomorrow we'll leave you to your own devices..."** Javorin regarded her with a courteous nod: before addressing all three of them; **"...We've made great progress these last eight months: pushing the wall cult out hasn't been easy, but now that the last of the depots and halfway-houses are gone, and the sanctuary's construction will be rendered dead in the water after tomorrow. The Disciples will be quite hard-pushed to want to attempt anything further in this region..."**

" **But?"** Hecate regarded him with a knowing look, **"I sense a 'but' coming on"**

Javorin sighed in a deadpan tone as he continued: **"...But: while this has been a great achievement for the people of Shiganshina, and the Celts hiding out there in the Marian forest. I came to a realization over where we go from here, in term of, what our** _ **priorities**_ **should be"**

" **Priorities?"** Elysia blinked in surprise, **"But-, we've** _ **got our priorities**_ **: we're keeping everyone safe from the wall cult, we're keeping** _ **Carla and the kids**_ **safe. And we're keeping the Scouts safe every time they go out beyond the wall. As far as our priorities go, I think we've been on point"** she pointed out **,** wondering where he was going with this.

" **Which brings me to what I've been 'thinking' about"** Javorin stated as he reclined against the tree, **"...During this month's expedition, I overheard two squad leaders talking and they motioned something that got my attention. These 'explorations of the outside world' they conduct: according to them, the Scouts incur an average of** _ **ten percent losses**_ **per mission, and around** _ **thirty percent**_ **of all new recruits don't survive their first year. Since we started tailing the scouts and helping them to survive each mission, they've lost a** _ **hundred and eight**_ **soldiers; that's an average of** _ **thirteen to fourteen solders per month**_ **. If we had the freedom to move around unhindered, we could've cut that number by** _ **three quarters**_ **at least; but, as things stand, we can only do so much, on account that we have to remain invisible"**

" **And** _ **you**_ **, in all your wisdom have been trying to come up with a way in which we can be more effective at keeping them safe without freaking them out,"** Hecate deadpanned, **"haven't you?"**

" **There really is no keeping anything from you is there?"** Javorin couldn't help but smile: **"...Okay, so I have** _ **two**_ **ideas: which, I'm** _ **still contemplating**_ **and am** _ **not**_ **a hundred present sure will work effectively or not, just yet, (I'm still trying to figure out all the details)"**

" **Okay, so what are they?"** Herne shrugged: Javorin hesitated a little, before he explained, **"...Well? Idea number one: we make ourselves visible to the scouts, and** _ **let them see us**_ **killing the titans: maintaining a safe distance of course, and making sure they can't get within striking range of us. I know this will have complications tied into it somewhere down the line, but if we can convince them that** _ **we**_ **mean them no harm. At the very least that will afford us a little more flexibility in being able to dispatch the titans effectively, and not risk putting anyone in danger"**

Herne and Hecate both glanced at one another as they mulled it over for a moment: they could see the advantage in that plan; it would mean not having to tread so carefully around the humans, especially if they were in the middle of engaging the titans whilst invisible: **"...Okay?"** Herne nodded, **"That** _ **does**_ **have a good line of logic, sort of?" "I can't say I totally agree with it"** Hecate sighed, **"But** _ **I do**_ **see where you're coming from...So what's idea number two?"**

" **Ah- ..."** Javorin frowned as he rubbed his forehead **, "It's** _ **a stupid idea**_ **now that I think about it"**

" **Try us"** Hecate smiled as she folded her arms,

" **We approach one of the soldiers, convince them that we mean them no harm, and try and get them to introduce us to the rest of the scouts as their allies"** he sheepishly stated, face palming in disappointment while Hecate's own expression fell flat into a reprimanding deadpan glare: **"You're right,** _ **it is**_ **a stupid idea"**

" **... Oh bro"** Herne sighed as he came up alongside his brother and reached a hand up to rest on his shoulder, **"You've been over-thinking again haven't you?"**

" **I kinda like the second idea"** Elysia smiled, **"If you pick the right scout, I'm sure it'll work"**

" **But it's no guarantee kid: not with humans as twitchy and wary as** _ **them**_ **..."** Herne sighed, turning back to Javorin: **"...Look, I** _ **know**_ **you can't stand to see them die like that bro:** _ **believe me**_ **I feel for them too: there isn't a single expedition we haven't come back from, and haven't recited a prayer in their names-"**

" **-I haven't"** Elysia interjected, **"I haven't tailed an expedition yet; when will I get to go?" "When you learn to let go"** Hecate stated frankly, **"When I learn to let go?"** Elysia echoed in confusion: **"Let go of what?" "Of** _ **them**_ **..."** Hecate gazed at her with a dubious look, **"When you can watch a human die, and learn to let go of them: then you'll be ready"** Elysia was about to retort when Herne stopped her: **"Ah-, probably best you just go with her on this one kid; trust me, you'll know what she means, in time"** Elysia frowned at him in confusion for a moment, not quite sure what he meant by that: but rather than drag it out into one big long complicated explanation, she decided to just go with it, and leave it at that.

" **...My point is..."** Javorin stated, getting back to the subject at hand: **"The only way I can see us being able to help the Scouts more effectively, is if we** _ **work together**_ **, us** _ **and**_ **them. Maybe not closely, maybe not directly; but what we're doing right now is** _ **just not working**_ **as well as I thought it would. And then there's the matter of our other priorities to consider"**

" **You said you'd been thinking about that, care to elaborate?"** Hecate asked offhand.

" **Trying to keep the Scouts safe aside. Forcing the wall cult out of the Shiganshina district has been an accomplishment: but this entire region is not the only part of wall Maria they occupy; there's everywhere else, as well as the heart of their organization in the interior of walls Rose and Sina. If we go elsewhere to start pushing them out, they'll only move back in here again and all our work will have been for nothing..."** Javorin explained, **"On top of that, we've hardly made much progress in trying to decipher our curses: every time we think we're onto something, we find out it's a dead end and we're right back to square one. And the tombs have not yielded much else either: other than the fact that whoever cursed us was not your run-of-the-mill wizard, witch or mage; this was someone who** _ **knew**_ **the magics they were wielding, and** _ **knew exactly**_ **what to do...In addition to that, with all the chaos manna being given off by the titans interfering with our telepathy, we cannot locate any of the other gods,** _ **if**_ **they are even within the walls at all? Or on the other side of the world? Either way, we don't know if we're the only ones who're cursed or not"**

" **It's a grim state of affairs for sure, but I don't see your point yet"** Hecate stated,

" **We may be gods"** Javorin sighed, **"But we are limited, and we can only concentrate on so many problems all at once; which got me thinking: there's only two choices in being able to stay on top of all this. We either pick one and focus on that together, or, we split up and handle each one individually"**

There was a long pause as everyone let it sink in for a moment: **"Split up?"** Elysia began to panic, **"You mean like, 'go our separate ways and never see each other again' kinda-split up?!"**

" **Oh calm down kiddo, you can't get rid of us** _ **that**_ **easily"** Herne cooed as he patted her on the shoulder reassuringly, **"He just means we might have to work different hours is all. I mean, we're still gonna touch base with each other, right? You know? Keep each other up to date?"**

" **Well of course** **"** Javorin tried to clarify: **"I mean, choosing a problem and handling it on** _ **our own individual**_ **terms; and yes, I think touching base** _ **would**_ **help keep us all up to date on each others progress, as well as stay in the know about what's going on in other places"**

" **So like, meeting up once a week? Or once a month?"** Elysia realized in slight relief, **"Probably, I don't know? But until we can find more gods and ask for their help, it's just the four of us"** Javorin added, before thinking about it some more, **"...You** _ **don't have**_ **to agree with me of course; I just feel that-, we can get a lot more done if we're all willing to pull our own weight and try to cover more ground"**

" **...It's a good idea..."** Hecate sighed offhand as she thought about it, **"However: did you consider that it might be a tad risky if we spread ourselves** _ **too thinly**_ **over a wide range? Pushing out the wall cult and keeping an eye on the Scouts is one thing: but like you said, we haven't even scratched the surface of our curses yet; we don't even know** _ **what magics their comprised of**_ **, never mind for** _ **what purpose**_ **they were cast for in the first place. And, that chaos manner has me really bothered: we don't yet know if screwing up our telepathy is the** _ **only**_ **problem it presents; and we can't risk experimenting with it in case we trigger something by accident"** she paused a moment as she let out another dubious sigh: **"...I'm not saying your idea doesn't have any ground to stand on:** _ **it is**_ **a good one, and we're all capable of doing our own thing; even the brat here is competent enough to handle herself without screwing up"**

" **Uh, thank you?"** Elysia raised an eyebrow, not quite sure whether to take that as an actual compliment (she hated the fact Hecate could be so vague at the best of times).

" _ **I just think,**_ **"** Hecate continued, " **Despite our powers being intact: it's still too early to start getting ambitious; yes it's been nine months since we broke out of those tombs,** _ **and yes**_ **I'm well aware nothing else has manifested since then. But we know** _ **next to nothing**_ **about what's happened to us, and to push ourselves and our powers to try and cover more ground might incur more problems than actual solutions ..."** she then softened into a more sympathetic tone, **"...I'm not saying it's an idea that won't work: I'm merely saying-, perhaps we should keep it as an option for if things get difficult, and we** _ **need**_ **to split up. You know? If the situation calls for it?"**

Javorin let his gaze drop as he contemplated it: **"...I guess your right"** he thought aloud: **"...But if something happens, and we have to rethink everything from scratch, you'll promise me you'll be honest with me?"**

Hecate stared at him as if his brain just popped out of his head and Herne fell over on his side in a fit of laughter, while Elysia just stared at him, not sure at all what to say. Realizing what he just said, Javorin facepalmed so hard that he created a powerful gust of wind that blew everyone's hair and feathers back. **"Oh All-father!"** Herne laughed as he got back up and patted him on the back, **"You've been working** _ **way too hard**_ **bro! You need to go back in that tomb and sleep for another thousand years!** **Let that brain of yours get some beauty sleep!"**

" **I don't think honesty will be much of a problem for me"** Hecate narrowed her eyes at Javorin: still amazed he actually said that. Blushing in embarrassment and covering his face with both hands, Javorin tried to stifle the giggles that threatened to overwhelm him, **"Oh cheer up! Even us gods are allowed to have senior moments-"** Herne assured him, before realizing what he just said, and doubling over in hysterics yet again. Javorin lost it, and broke down in convulsions of laughter as he fell over backwards against the tree, while Hecate rolled her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose, wondering _how and why_ she got lumbered with _these_ two idiots; Elysia stared at everyone dumbly, wondering what was so funny. **"I don't get it?"** she blurted out innocently.

" **Because we're gods, get it? We're** _ **immortal**_ **? So, we should be getting a load of senior moments at our age!"** Herne laughed as he tried to get his breath back. **"Or** _ **not enough**_ **in our case!-"** Javorin howled hysterically, falling over his brother while Hecate deadpanned at them. Since their vocal chords couldn't produce viable sounds that could be formed into coherent words: their laughter came out more as an ugly guttural roaring laugh, one that echoed far into the forest and would've sent chills up the spine of anyone who heard it. Fortunately though, no one was around, and for that one moment neither of them cared as they enjoyed the hilarity.

Hecate was about to interject another dry quip, when something caught her eye: **"As much as it pains me to break up this little 'senior moment'? You two idiots might want to straighten up; we've got company..."** she pointed to the black fork-tailed hawk that was flying this way. Recognizing the bird immediately: Herne's excitement piqued he scrambled to get back up, and ran over to greet the bird as it swooped down to land on a large protruding root: **"Evernight! Great to see you again! Is it that time of the week again already?!"**

" _Indeed"_ the hawk replied in its own secret voice: the one only the gods and spirits could hear and understand: _"The man-fledglings await you"_

" **Well then you better get back to Falken, and be sure to tell the ravens we're coming..."** Herne smiled, and without another word the hawk took off back the way it came, flying swiftly through the giant trees: **"Race you guys!"** the hunting god smiled as he transformed into his sky lark form and took off after the hawk: **"-Hold up!"** Javorin laughed as he turned into his hawk form, and quickly gave chase, **"-Wait for me!"** Elysia called out as she changed into a pure white dove, and tried to keep up with them. Not being one for indulging in childish behavior, Hecate heaved a deep sigh as she transformed into her raven form, and took off flying at her own steady pace.

'Honestly?' she deadpanned in dry thought, 'the human brats are enough of a handful'

* * *

Elsewhere in the forest:

"How're those tents coming along?" Tyto asked offhand as he inspected the kid's handiwork: "Nearly done dad, we're just packing up the last pieces," Ariana replied as she gathered the wooden tent poles, while Ashlyn rolled up the dark green canvas tarp and Dale gathered up the pegs and ropes: depositing them in a large backpack.

Having spent four nights out in the forest, learning how to read animal tracks, finding north without a compass and learning how to conceal a tent from sight (among other things): it was a relief to finally be going home to a warm bed and readily available food. The thaw had come unusually early this year, and with the weather having warmed up to a nice mildness that kept the worst of the cold at bay, Tyto, Evrard, Falken and Eraman decided to chance the first spring camping trip of the year with the kids. It wasn't as bitter as it had been during the winter, but they still brought their fur blankets and jackets along for extra warmth.

The winter had been long and hard, but it proved to be the perfect test for the children to attempt their first proper winter hunts: and over the past several months they had began to show some real improvements, and blossom into their own particular fortes. Clay and Hazel, both proved to be exceptionally skilled with a bow and arrow, with Clay being able to hit his mark even under the most difficult of circumstances; Ash, Rowan and Dale proved to be the best at setting traps: knowing how to conceal them and understand which trap was good for catching which particular animal. And Josefa, Jaye, Hawk and Ashlyn had proven to be excellent stalkers: being able to track an animal over a good few miles, and then kill it at a good range before it realized what happened.

But it was Ariana that proved to have the sharpest nose and the keenest instincts (no surprises there, as far as her siblings and cousins were concerned): she had a knack for being able to sense what was what, and discern between different smells to get a good reading of the quarry and/or terrain; in addition to her own stalking skills, which by now, everyone was thoroughly of the opinion that it was a gift: her uncanny ability to sneak up on anything or anyone was astounding, and the fact she could now sneak up on her father and actually surprise him proved that she was a capable hunter (much to her brother's annoyance, as they could no longer get the drop on her anymore: much to everyone else's amusement).

"Ah Evernight," Falken smiled as he held up his gloved hand for his hawk to land on, "Where did you sneak off to? Trying to get a nice fat rabbit eh?"

"And you lot have been awfully quiet," Eraman gazed up at his ravens, who were all perched on a stout branch above his head, curiously watching him pack his things away, "Are you waiting for your treats?" he smiled: all at once they all perked up with a happy chorus of " _prruk-prruk-prruk"_ , and flew down to the ground as Eraman got out his pack of deer jerky, the one he always kept just for them, and threw out several large pieces for them: "Well here you go, you earned it anyway" "Don't give them too much or they won't be able to get up off the ground" Evrard joked, "We need them for tomorrow's trip"

"Why can't _we_ come?!" Clay whined as he packed the last of his things away into his backpack: "We've proven we can shoot a deer, surely an Elk ain't no problem?" "Ah not this elk son," Evrard shook his head firmly, "He's an _eight-pointer_ ; a one of a kind once in a lifetime opportunity that only a skilled hunter can handle; he's too big and too strong for you" "He's right you know" Tyto nodded in agreement, "From what I saw last month, he's going to give us a run for our money come the autumn"

"Wait-you're not going to kill him?" Ashlyn blinked in surprise: "What? _Of course not_ , calving season's not far off and he'll be busy with all the cows" Falken replied as he tended to Evernight: "No, tomorrow we're just going to check out if he's moved into the dale near Eiche-Glen: if so, then we know exactly where to go when the elk hunting season rolls around" "We shouldn't be gone too long: it's a simple stalk and observation trip, three days at the most" Evrard added.

"And when we get back..." Tyto addressed the kids as he got out his hunting knife and pointed to the symbol on the blade, "You will begin the next stage of your lessons: we will teach you how to read our kin's language properly"

Though they were careful to hide their excitement, the children paid attention: after pestering their fathers all winter to show them how to read Celtic symbol-runes, it seemed their pressuring finally paid off. And there was a _good reason_ _why_ they wanted to learn it so badly...

As the last of the equipment and stuff was packed away, and everyone slung their backpacks, bow and quivers over their shoulders: the children and their fathers all gathered together and headed for the main road. "You guys take care of each other you hear?" Falken bid Evernight farewell as she flew up into a nearby tree, followed by Eraman's ravens: "See you guys tomorrow..." Eraman waved goodbye; but stopped when he spotted a dove, hawk, raven and sky lark all sitting in the same tree together, with Evernight and the ravens all perched together next to them, watching the humans intensely as they left the clearing.

"Those four birds are there again..." Eraman thought aloud as he adjusted his backpack on his back for a more comfortable fit: "I'm thoroughly convinced they used to be someone's pets" "Could well be?" Falken shrugged, "They followed us around all winter, and Evernight and the ravens haven't kicked up a fuss. Who knows?" As they walked behind him, Ariana and Ash both smiled at one another: they knew _who_ the birds were: as did the other kids, who kept it quietly to themselves, and waited for their chance to slip away. After a twenty minute walk through the bare undergrowth, the main road was finally in sight: as they approached the grassy verge, a large delivery cart came trundling along, with several familiar faces riding in the back and up on the box seat. "Hey guys!" Belle waved as she jumped out the cart and ran up to them.

"Ah hello Carla," Tyto smiled as Carla pulled the reins and stopped the horses: "Just getting started on today's deliveries?" "Only the one today" She smiled, "Though, it's all the way up in Grunenweg" "Ah, that'll be the Mayvels" Evrard remembered, "Ol' Whinny sure loves her sides of beef" "Indeed, she ordered double this time: said she wanted to stock up for the floods" Carla replied: "Floods? But the river's well within its limits, even with all the melt water it's hardly overflowing," Eraman frowned in bemusement. While the grown-ups continued to talk, the kids all shared a knowing look; with her eyes Gale gestured for them to get on the cart: Ariana nodded in understanding while Belle took that as her cue to start helping the others load their backpacks onto the cart. Tugging on her father's arm, Ariana discreetly asked: "Hey dad, can we go play?"

"Huh?" he glanced at the cart, then at the kids, and then back at her, "But Mrs Jaeger's going all the way up to Grunenweg, that's a four hour round trip" "It's okay, I still got some jerky left over" she shrugged with a smile, "Us too, we got enough jerky and biscuits left over to tie us over lunch" Ash added, "And I got water?" Hazel offered with an innocent. "It's fine really," Carla smiled, "I like to have the company on such a long ride" "Well alright" Tyto sighed, "Just be sure to come straight home when you get back; we need help packing the provisions for tomorrow"

"Sure thing, thanks dad!" Ariana and the others quickly clambered up into the cart and sat themselves down with the others next to the one grocery box. "Stay out of trouble, you hear?" Evrard pointed his finger, "Oh I don't think we've got any plans to go joyriding, have we kids?" she smiled, glancing over her shoulder at them: "No Mrs Jaeger" they all giggled. "Well, see you later Carla: and tell Alvin and Whinny I said hi"

"Sure thing Evrard" she waved goodbye as she flicked the reins, and the cart carried on its journey, heading up along the forest road, "So? Did you kids have fun camping?" Carla asked offhand. As they watched the cart disappear down the road, and listened to the voices for their children disappear into the distance, Tyto and the other fathers turned and carried on walking. "...You know? It's kind of funny: I never pegged Carla for being a delivery driver" Eraman thought aloud offhand.

"Well the pay's good, which is what she wanted: and let's face it those school books aren't cheap. Not that Eren's probably going to use them much, he doesn't quiet have the patience for reading. Armin though? Now _there's_ a kid that's got some real smarts" Falken thought loud "He must've read every book in his grandfather's house by now"

"Speaking of school books," Tyto sighed as he glanced at the others in a serious tone: "We need to discuss what we're going to do come the autumn: all the kids are of the proper age where they can attend school now: and if we're going to be staying in Shiganshina long term, we _need_ to weigh up whether to have them learn regular things like regular folk..."

Evrard, Falken and Eraman all glanced at him with mixed looks: thought it was unavoidable, they clearly felt uncomfortable addressing the subject; seeing the looks on their faces, Tyto sighed in exasperation: "...Come on guys, _we discussed this already_ , _and_ the reasons _why_ it would be a good idea to have kids attend school"

"Look, Tyto: I'm not saying it's a bad idea; _we all knew_ when we first moved to Shiganshina that we'd have to change our ways a little, to try to blend in an' such. And _I get why_ it's important for the kids to go to school, but-" Falken sheepishly hesitated as he scratched the back of his neck. "Having the kids learn about regular things _isn't_ a terrible thing" Eraman glanced at Evrard, "It'll help them blend in, help them to know what's what an' all that; know how to _go unnoticed_ better?"

"Evrard..." Tyto tried to get his attention, but Evrard just continued to walk, staring straight ahead with a stubborn frown: "At _the very least_ the kids need to know how money works, how to count and do sums properly, how to read a book without stammering, and how to write straight without getting ink all over the parchment"

"So? We taught them the alphabet and how to spell their names? They had hardly any trouble figuring out the rest," Evrard stubbornly pointed out, "That's _not the point_ and you know it" Tyto sighed in exasperation, "Look, I may not agree with how they teach history, but we can't-

"- _How they teach history?!_ " Evrard stopped suddenly and gawked at Tyto nonplussed: "... Their _entire concept_ of history is wrong! _And you damn well know it!_ _I will not_ have my son and daughter being taught a pack of blatant lies, being taught there's _nothing_ but what only exists inside these three walls, when _we all know the truth!_ How the hell will we get them to believe us if we're teaching them one thing and they're being taught the complete opposite somewhere else?!" he fumed: calming down a little as he continued: "Tyto, our culture is _dying_ with every year that passes: our children are _the only way_ our heritage and traditions will live on long after we're gone; it is _only through us_ they can learn the true ways of the world and how to survive it. And now you want us to destroy all that, by letting them be _brainwashed_ by the royal government's propaganda?! Why don't you take your knife and _stab me in the back_ while you're at it!" he stormed off down the road.

Tyto rolled his eyes and took off after him at a quick stride, while Falken and Eraman watched in silent awkwardness: "Evrard please!-" Tyto ran in front of him and stopped him: "...Where is this coming from brother? You weren't like this when we first discussed it; what's changed your mind all of a sudden?"

Evrard let out a long frustrated sigh, shaking his head and meeting Tyto's gaze with an apologetic look: "...The day before we left: you remember I went down to the market?" "Yes?" Tyto nodded. "...While I was passing by the church, I overhead a couple of the pastors talking in the doorway; they didn't seem to think anyone was listening as they had let their guard down...I heard one say there's talk going around in the interior. Apparently the royal government is reviewing a new decree for the cult to teach 'religious studies' in all schools. It hasn't been approved yet, but-...They seemed optimistic that it will be passed," he frowned bitterly.

Tyto and the others stared at him in surprise: "It-, sounds disconcerting, but-"

"-But what if it's true?" Evrard challenged him, "What if it's not just hearsay and rumour? If those wall-worshiping bastards are allowed into the schools, they will _poison_ the minds of every child they preach to, _including our own!_ And what if it's just a cover? What if it's the excuse they need to hunt those of us hiding in plain sight? What if they've sussed how to pick us out? They will target our children _directly_ , and Gia forbid, they _trick them_ into betraying us-"

"-Okay Evrard stop!" Tyto held up his hand to him, "- _This is ridiculous!_ Will you listen to yourself? You _seriously_ expect us to believe the wall cult would really go to all that trouble just to hunt _us_ down? As far as they know, we still live deep in the forests, how could they possibly pick us out from the many hundreds of people in this world? Do we have the word 'Celt' branded on our foreheads?..." he tried to reason with him; there was a long pause as Evrard stared off into space, his face reflecting his worry and doubt: "...I know it's difficult brother" Tyto sighed worryingly: "But we _cannot_ let fear dictate our actions. If we become scared we become paranoid, and when we become paranoid, that's when we're likely to trip up; and that's _exactly_ what they want. So don't let them get to you, _please_ "

"He's right Evrard" Falken placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, "You _can't_ keep doing this to yourself: _I know your scared_ , I'm scared too; but we know living among the regular folk and assuming their ways is the _only way_ to keep our family's safe. In all the years they've been hunting us, the wall cult have never thought to search the towns and villages, and it's worked thus far"

"I know it seems like I'm asking you to go against our principles" Tyto pleaded, "But _please_ Evrard: are our traditions so important that they take greater priority over the well-being of our children? If our kids don't know how to handle themselves out there in the rest of this walled world, then what hope do they have of surviving, if hiding in the forests is no longer an option?" he sighed in rueful contemplation: "... As much as I don't want it to be a possibility: there may come a day when we won't be able to hide any longer, when it may be necessary to step out into the open and confront the world head on...I pray and hope that day never comes, but in the meantime; I feel it would be _negligent_ to let our children grow up ignorant of the rest of humanity. Not understanding why it is the way it is, and assuming that the whole world is out to persecute them. If that happens, they will only retreat into the forests, and the dark riders will try to find them, and the cycle will never be broken. I'd rather sacrifice _some_ of our traditions and customs, rather than let my children go through life believing that humanity is comprised of nothing but bad people: if they do not experience humanity's more honorable qualities at least once, then _I can't honestly say_ I have been a good father..."

Evrard stared at him in surprise for a moment as he let his words sink in: he really didn't know what to think: "...Tyto...How can you say that?" he dubiously gazed at him: "After _everything_ they've done: after everything _this world_ has done to us and our kin; you _still dare_ to hope humanity can find redemption?"

"...I do..." Tyto sighed honestly,

" _But how?_ How can a society so lost and cruel _ever hope_ to find redemption? And from who? Our kin? _Our people's blood_ has been spilt in the name of 'maintaining the peace' within the walls: and for what? Because we remember what came before the walls? Because of a fable our grandfathers told us? If those 'regular folk' had _any_ redeemable qualities to begin with, this world wouldn't be in the mess it's in right now..." Evrard frowned at him angrily, "...I don't pretend to understand _why_ you believe what you believe Tyto, all I can say is that I _don't agree_ with it: humanity has _nothing_ left to show for itself, and we are on our own...There's no such thing as 'good people' anymore, even our neighbors would sell us out at the first opportunity"

Tyto stared at him in shock, but didn't say anything as he continued, "...If the children go to school and the wall cult get their way and teach them how to worship the walls? I will take Bestla, Clay and Hazel, and we will leave Shiganshina and return to the wild. _You_ may be willing the sacrifice our heritage for the sake of our survival Tyto, but I'm not" he stated, and started briskly walking down the road.

Tyto, Falken and Eraman all stared at one another in shock, before taking off after him "Wait Evrard! Let's talk about this sensibly!-" Falken pleaded, "Come on brother, now you're just letting that pig-headed stubbornness get the better of you!" Eraman concurred as they tried to keep up with him.

As the four men left the forest: perched on a branch overhanging the road, a hawk, a dove, a sky lark and a raven watched them curiously: never taking their eyes off them until they crested the next rise, and disappeared over a vast meadow; after which they flew off back into the forest.

* * *

"...Think their out of earshot yet?" Poppy asked offhand as she craned her head up high to look as far back down the road as she could: "I heard them talking, so I think we're good" Jaye waved off, "So where's Bemadette? She' still working on that 'secret project' for Breck?" Ash asked offhand.

"It's very nearly finished, she said if she worked on it today, it'll be ready for tomorrow" Lucy smiled, "She let us look at it yesterday, and you _wouldn't believe_ how awesome it looks guys!" "I think its incredible Breck came up with the design all by himself" Dale chipped in, "He showed me the designs a while back, and it looks amazing; I think it could really work you know?"

"I'm so bummed we got deliveries to do tomorrow" Ariana huffed, "I'd _love_ to see the look on Bryson's face when she presents it to him: and to _see him_ on his ODM gear when he tries it out. That'd be _sooo cool!_ "

"Well he's not going anywhere," Carla smiled dryly, "I'm sure there'll be plenty of opportunities to see him work his magic on that contraption" "You still don't like ODM gear very much, do you Mrs Jaeger?" Ariana smirked, "After _that_ crazy day last July? You can be sure you won't see _me_ using one of those things any time soon: or ever," she deadpanned, before regretting her choice of tone: "...Don't get me wrong kids, I like Bryson, he's a good man: and I'm sure he'll be delighted with his 'late' birthday present; It's just-, that day sort of left a bad taste in my mouth"

"We know" Ariana shrugged, "But it wasn't _all_ bad, right?"

"No..." Carla smiled, "...It wasn't"

As they traveled on, they carried talking and laughing about various things, whiling the time away in carefree abandonment: after a good half an hour they turned off into, what looked like an overgrown clearing, but was in actual fact the beginning of a smaller slightly overgrown logging road, one that hadn't been used in a good many years; their secret route to their secret place. The long winding dirt road soon brought them to a small clearing where they could go no further: Carla pulled the reins and parked the horses next to a giant log, and everyone got out and started walking down a smaller trail, heading through a gloomy area of the forest where the shadows were dark and covered most of the forest floor in twilight. After a twenty-or-so minute walk, they soon emerged into the grove of giant trees, passing the hollow where Angel's tomb was situated: looking around, it didn't look like anyone was home...

Ariana was the first to smell Shadow, as a smile crossed her face she whispered "Abin-suul": within a second or two, Shadow appeared out of the gloom of the trees and walked over to the group, followed by Midnight and Boar. Craning her head right back to look up at the canopy, Carla smiled as Angel appeared out of nowhere, gliding down into the grove and landing next to the group, being careful not to kick up the wind too much as she flapped her wings before folding them up.

"Hey big guy!" Ariana smiled as she jumped into Shadow's waiting palm, and reached out to stroke him on the nose as he brought her up to his face. "Angel..." Carla smiled as the avian titan chirped her usual greeting, and bent down to give her usual nose-boop on the head: "Have you been staying out of trouble?" she chuckled, to which Angel chirped something to the effect of: As if!

: I take it the camping trip went well? : Shadow spelt out, "Meh, same old same old" Ariana shrugged as she climbed off his hand and sat down on his right shoulder: while Gale, Poppy and Belle climbed up into his other hand, and Shyla and Fox climbed up to sit on his other shoulder. The four titans all sat themselves down in a semi-circle, allowing the children to climb up onto them, and take their usual seats in their hands, laps and on their shoulders, while Carla found her usual perch up on one of the large tree roots next to Angel, and sat herself down.

Since the previous summer, Carla and the kids had been meeting up with the titans on a weekly basis: with her delivery job affording them the perfect cover, they were able to meet up at least two to three times a week. Over that time, they had grown close to their giant friends: and they in turn had warmed up to the human's company. In particular, Ashlyn, Hawk, Clay and Hazel had taken a liking to boar: practicing their archery while riding the titan at full gallop, and learning to stalk animals together: both sets of siblings had really improved their skills, and on the rare occasion where time allowed, they even managed to squeeze in a hunt or two. Angel was drawn to the Cooper twins, and really enjoyed searching for them when they tried to hide in her massive plumage: Ariana was still Shadow's favorite human, although Gale, Poppy, Belle, Bemadette, Shyla and Fox had grown quite fond of the blue-eyed titan too; while Ash, Rowan, Dale, Josefa and Jaye had been drawn to the aloof and serious Midnight: trying to get the female titan to crack a smile had become a sport for them, and trying pester her with jokes and pranks had become a regular thing. But the titan took their shenanigans in her stride, and didn't budge an inch, much to their annoyance and amusement.

"So tell me" Carla asked as she stroked Angel's wing, "I know it's been a while, but what news do you have of the Disciples?" The kids fell silent as Shadow raised his hand, and with his tattoos glowing blue, spelt out: We have them on the run; and tomorrow, we intend to destroy the sanctuary once and for all: "Oh yeah, I nearly forgot about that place" Poppy suddenly remembered, "Word through the grapevine in the Black Stallion is that they've been trying to rebuild that place over the winter; apparently they've had all kinds of things go wrong for them"

"You wouldn't know anything about that, would you?" Carla shot Shadow a sly smile, : I couldn't possibly comment: Shadow smiled with a light chuckle. For the humans, being able to turn yourself and others invisible was _the least_ of the breathtaking powers the titans possessed. From being able to make plants and trees grow at will, to summoning shadows and darkness to put on light puppet shows and play hide and seek, opening up the ground to pluck out precious and semi-precious gems, and even creating miniature rain clouds to make rainbows appear in mid-air. The titans never failed to amaze, astound, impress and leave the humans in awe: their use of strange names and reciting odd verses fell short on the human's ability to understand what their importance was; all they knew, was that it was part of their peculiar rituals, and so didn't really question it.

"Ten pieces of jerky say's they're gonna burn the sanctuary down with lightning again" Rowan smirked as he idly fiddled around with one of Midnight's long bangs. : Now you've ruined the surprise: Midnight spelt out as she waved her hand in mid-air, glancing down at him with a mock reprimanding gaze: but unlike Shadow, her words appeared as purple light. "You gonna create another lightning storm Angel?" Lucius asked: poking his head out from beneath her flank plume. Angel nodded with an affirmative chirp, and as the markings on her face and her eyes glowed ice blue, she gazed up at the sky, and above the canopy a large dark cloud began to appear, growing bigger and darker as the wind kicked up, and the sound of rolling thunder could be heard echoing over the forest. "Okay Okay!" Carla tried to stop her, laughing nervously: "We saw the first time round!" "And got completely drenched" Lucy giggled; and with an understand chirp, Angel stopped, and the cloud dissipated into nothingness, with the wind dropping completely. "So if you're going to create a fire with lightning, we can expect a downpour tomorrow" Carla thought aloud, making a mental note to be prepared "We'll have to take the rain-cloaks along"

"Oh, I nearly forgot!-" Ariana suddenly remembered, "My Dad says he's going to teach us our kin's language when he and my uncles get back from their trip; you know? The marking's that're on your bodies?"

: Really? : Shadow blinked at her in surprise, : We _can_ read that to you know? :

"Really?" Ash gawked "Why didn't you tell us?", : You never asked: Midnight deadpanned at him.

"You know?" Dale thought aloud as he gazed down at the elaborate markings on Midnight's back, "I don't think we've ever asked you guys what these markings are for?"Shadow and Midnight both stared at one another in mild surprise, as if taken aback by the question: Angel and Boar both gazed at one another too. "You really don't know, do you?" Hawk realized, noticing the looks on their faces. : It's a mystery, but I think we'll work it out eventually: Shadow replied with a casual shrug.

"How will you do that?" Ariana asked. : Brains and instinct: Boar spelt out in golden yellow words, : And finding out what's important, _when_ it's important: "I don't quite understand what you mean by that," Carla asked in slight confusion, : All good things happen when they're supposed to: Shadow spelt out, : Some come sooner, some come later; but they all come eventually... I wouldn't worry about it. We'll handle it when the time comes: Everyone didn't know what Shadow meant by that, but they figured he had it covered, and so left the subject at that.

"...Well, anyway" Ariana changed the conversation, climbing down off Shadow, and addressing the rest of the kids: "Who'd like to learn some more Celt-style survival skills?""Oh what'd you guys learn this time?" Belle asked enthusiastically as she and her sisters climbed down to join her, followed by Shyla and Fox: "The usual stuff, only on this trip we learnt how to find north without a compass, learned how to read animal tracks, and learned how to hide a tent from sight; think you 'regular folk can handle that?" Clay grinned as he and Hazel got down off of Boar, and joined Ariana at her side. Lucy and Lucius followed suit, and after climbed down off their high perches, the kids headed off into the grove to begin their lessons with their 'instructors'. "Hey come on!" Jaye tugged at one of Midnight's bangs, "let's go make sure they stay on their toes!"; heaving a sigh and rolling her eyes, Midnight carefully got back up, and followed the kids to their designated 'training' area, with Boar and Angel following close behind.

: They've really improved these last few months: Shadow wrote, "They _have_ come along quite well, haven't they?" Carla thought aloud, "Not five months ago they didn't even know how to hold a bow and arrow; now Shyla and Gale can both shoot as well as them, and Belle and Fox can hide from anyone walking by"

Ever since that close call with the Disciples last summer: Ariana, her brothers and cousins decided to teach their non-Celtic friends the ways of their kin's hunting customs, and how to survive in the wild with virtually nothing to hand. So that if they ever found themselves out in the forest, alone and vulnerable, they'd know what to do to get home safely. After teaching them all that they already knew over the summer and autumn, they took the opportunity to learn new things from their fathers on their winter hunts and camping trips, and then relay what they'd learnt to them the first opportunity they got to go visit the titans. It was a rather basic system, and one that worked well: and the titans were obliging in helping them any way they could; Carla joined in on the lessons on occasion, learning simple things from identifying certain edible plants, berries and mushrooms, to recognizing how to spot concealed traps. She wasn't quite as committed as the children, but she could be a good learner when she put her mind to it. But by and large, she only came along to meet up with Angel and to keep an eye on the kids when they came to visit the titans. Until she knew for sure the Disciples no longer posed a threat, she wasn't willing to let them out of her sight.

As far as the other titans were concerned: Carla was amazed to how much the children had taken a liking to them, and she found herself being pleasantly surprised by their different characters and personalities. Boar was a bit of a big kid and a goofball, he liked to indulge the kids in their more wilder sides: horsing around and galloping off into the forest, leaping and bounding over glens and hollows, climbing and swinging through the trees at astonishing speeds, and playfully wrestling with bears, wolves and elk. There were times she was terrified one of the kids might get hurt, but he proved that he was always conscious of his surroundings, and never once did he let anything happen to them, or her: and the fact he was somehow able turn into animals delighted the kids to no end, as he would transform himself into all manner of amazing and wondrous beasts, and let them ride him around the forest.

Midnight was a lot harder to place, as her quiet secretive nature always had her wondering what she was thinking: her cold stern gaze would send shivers up anyone else's spine, but for Carla, she just struck her more as someone who wasn't into idly chit-chit, and was just content to sit back and let the kids do their own thing; nothing ever seemed to bother her, not even the kid's more sillier antics. Unlike Boar Midnight was much more laid-back and measured in her approach to things: she had the power to manipulate darkness as if it were clay and create elaborate shadows, and she could also control water and get it to do a myriad of different things; and the fact she could elongate her fingers into razor-sharp four meter long claws spoke of her more darker side. Carla was aware Midnight was more of a dark horse, and that she liked to maintain her privacy; though she wasn't a extrovert when it came to socializing, when she did have something to say she was usually matter-of-factly and to the point: except on the days when she was in a good mood, and willing to indulge in a little dry humor.

Shadow on the other hand, was a very easy titan to get along with: a proper gentleman with manners and courtesy in spades, Carla had enjoyed many pleasant conversations with him while the kids were either learning bush-craft or playing with the other titans. He gave off a friendly aura that was welcoming of anyone who gazed up into those striking blue eyes of his; it was as if they radiated with a warm loving magic that drew you in, and let you know that you were in good company. He had been the one to show them the tombs, and explain how they had been asleep for goodness knows how long: he also let them in on their endeavor to keep the Scouts safe on their expeditions, as well as 'take care of' the Disciples presence in the forest. He was rather vague when it came to his past, and what happened before he and the others wound up in those tombs; all he would say, was that humanity and the world was a very different place; one that had no walls, where people were more considerate of one another, and the titans never existed to begin with... whatever happened to change all that, happened in the time they were gone.

: You needn't worry you know: Shadow told her, : their strong, all of them; I see it in them: . As she watched the kids listen to Dale explain how to set a snare trap: Carla's mind began to ponder on all that had happened over the past several months, and she couldn't help but ask: "...Am I doing the right thing? Letting this all happen I mean?"

: You're doing what you feel is right. As a mother, it's natural to doubt and to worry; but that's okay, its part of what caring is about: Shadow assured her; Carla couldn't help but smile: though he wasn't talking with a voice, she could practically feel the reassurance radiating from those words as they hung in the air. Her thoughts then turned to her son, and something occurred to her that had been on her mind for a while now: "...Shadow, I wanted to ask you something... You know I told you how Eren loves to go down to the gate every time the Scouts embark on one of their missions? And how he loves listening to Bryson's stories about his time in the Scouts?" she smiled sheepishly; Shadow nodded in understanding as she continued: "...I'm beginning to think that's what he'll want to do when he's older: sign up for the military and join the Scouts I mean," she gazed up at him with a slight look of concern in her eyes, "If he goes beyond the walls, will you be able to protect him? Make sure he comes home safely?"

Shadow gazed down at her, his eyes softened into an unreadable look; in her gut Carla had a good idea what he was going to say: but she asked anyway, if only to confirm what she already knew. Shadow waved his hand, and spelt, : Carla, I cannot promise Eren's safety. Even if something changes and the Scouts become our allies; there are no guarantees that his chances of survival will be any different to theirs: he gestured to the children,: ...I'm sorry:

"No it-," she hesitated meekly, "its okay, I was just-, _curious_ is all..." Shadow gazed down at her with an understanding look, and added, : But listen, no matter where life takes him, no matter what he decides to do with the time he has. You are a good mother and you're doing a great job at raising him: "How do you know that?" She smiled, "You turn into a bird and spy on me in my own home?" : No : he replied, : I see it in you. You are a strong woman Carla, and your heart is very big, you care for everyone around you, and you are not afraid to step into danger to protect those you hold dear. On that note, I have a little something for you...: Shadow reached down towards the root that Carla was seated on, and as the tattoos on his hand and arm glowed blue, a small tree sprouted from the earth beneath the root, with something dangling from one of the twigs.

Grabbing it as the tree continued to grow, Carla saw that it was a pendant: carved from a white quartz crystal, it was a dove with a Celtic symbol-rune carved on its breast, perched on a nest with three chicks inside, and had a leather cord thread on. "What's this?" she smiled as she ran a finger over the intricate detail of the feathers,: Your spirit animal: Shadow explained, : the dove is the totem of motherhood and family; it is the spirit animal that is reflected in your soul, and is the guiding strength by which you live your life:

Carla wasn't too sure if she understood all of what he said ('What does the word 'totem' mean?' she thought offhand, but decided not to ask), but she understood that it was a great gesture of kindness, and the pendant was beautiful ('how on earth did he carve it?' she couldn't help but think). "Oh Shadow, thank you..." she smiled as she put it on, and gazed up at him, "But, what does this symbol mean?" she pointed to the tiny symbol-rune, : It is the symbol of your greatest strength, the one that is the guiding light in your life, and defines you, as _you_...it say's, Love:

"...Why did you make this for me? ..." she couldn't help but think aloud. : It's a thank you present, for being Angel's friend: he smiled, : Until you came into her life, she didn't really know a lot about humans. But because of you, she's learnt so much, and she's a better person for it:

A better person

At that moment, Carla's whole view of these four great giants changed on a deep and profound level: it was true she knew they were highly intelligent, intellectual and wise. But up until this point, that was all she thought they were; titans, and nothing really more. Words like beings, sentient, and 'a better person' were not supposed to apply. But now, as Shadow's words echoed throughout her mind: she gazed up at him, and for the first time, she saw something she could only describe as human in those strange bright blue eyes. Gazing over at Angel, as she helped Belle and Shyla try construct a hide out of pine branches and twigs: she realized she wasn't just a simple naive titan who was curious about everything, but a child who awakened to the world, and glimpsed at something she'd never experienced before. Looking back down at the pendant, she felt bad for considering her (and them) to be beneath her and the rest of humanity. These titans? They more human than some humans she could think of, and she couldn't believe she didn't see it sooner.

Gazing back up at Shadow, Carla smiled a sincere smile of thanks: heartfelt, and true; "...Thank you..." Shadow tipped his head in a courteous nod, and smiled warmly at her: "Hey Shadow!" Ariana came bounding up to his side, "We could use an extra set of hands, mind if we borrow yours?"

As she watched the titan get up, and follow Ariana around the giant tree to join the others, Carla smiled as she watched them work. Such an unconventional friendship, between such contrasting beings: human and titan; such a thing was considered impossible, _outrageous_ even. But here in this secret place deep in the Marian forest, it was real: and as she slipped the pendant beneath her shirt, Carla was thankful for having such good friends. "Hey Mrs Jaeger! Come on!" Lucy beckoned her to join them. "Coming!" she smiled as she climbed down off the root, and wandered over to see what was up.

* * *

Later that day, late afternoon:

With the hours ticking by, and that one delivery still to make, Carla and the kids stayed in the grove until gone past lunchtime, before heading back to the cart and setting off for their destination. With very little traffic on the road, the kids and titans continued their 'play date' together by following the cart close behind, and staying invisible while they continued to chat, joke, laugh and try to take liberties with their giant friend's size (much to Shadow's alarm, and Midnight's mild annoyance). Ash, Rowan, Dale, Josefa and Jaye indulged in using Midnight's long hair as rope swings to try and 'tag' one another, as well as Ashlyn and Hawk, who were riding on Boar's back and trying to avoid them, while Clay swung back and forth on his right tusk, trying to knock Hazel off her perch on his left. The Copper twins were riding Angel, and were (unusually) on their best behavior, preening Angle's feathers and combing her long hackles, stroking any stray feather back into place. Ariana, Gale, Poppy, Belle, Shyla and Fox where not as hyperactive as the others as they rode on Shadow's shoulders and in his cupped palms, the girls mostly whiled the time away by pleating Shadows long thick hair, while Fox mostly tried to jump up to and pluck leaves from out of the overhanging branches.

Up to Grunenweg they went, and back again through the eastern forest road, playing and chatting when no one was around, and as soon as someone came along, they'd all immediately fall silent and waited until they passed by, before carrying on as normal. But when they reached the last few miles of forest, just short of the crossroads, everyone was rather surprised to see a huge log lying across the road with a sign attached to it: "Wha?- ...That wasn't there when we passed by earlier" Ariana thought aloud. As they approached closer and Carla stopped the horses, they saw it wasn't a log, but a tree that had just been cut down: and the sign read 'detour', with an arrow pointing to a smaller road right next to it on the right. "Why would someone fell a tree right over the road?" Carla frowned, puzzled as to what the person who did this was thinking.

"You can blame my idiot son and his good-for-nothing friends for that!" an older gentleman gruffly stated as he emerged from the undergrowth with a large axe in one hand: "I'm so sorry ma'am, I should have this tree out of the way by this evening, my brothers are coming to lend me a hand: in the meantime you can take the eastern road" he pointed to the detour road.

"Will it go past the inner gate?" Carla asked offhand,

"If you follow it down for a couple miles, you'll come to a turning on your left, follow that road down through the giant trees, over the bridge, and up to the crossroads: you'll see the wall from there, and just follow the road accordingly" he smiled, tipping his cap to her. "Thank you sir" she waved goodbye as she turned the horses to the left, and carried on her journey. "Take care when you get to the river, it's close to over flowing!" he called after her.

Watching them for a moment as they disappeared down the road, the old man turned to start chopping one of the limbs off: but practically jumped out of his skin when he saw the tree was now lying alongside the road on the grassy verge, completely out of the way. Gawking at the tree with his eyes the size of oranges, he quickly glanced all around, but no one and nothing else was around; how the hell did it move by itself? And without making a sound to boot; quickly taking out the hip flask from his pocket, the old man uncorked it and started pouring the contents onto the grass: "Good grief! Emma was right! I _really_ need to start cutting back!"

Down the road, the kids were in hysterics as Boar trotted along smugly, rather proud of his little prank: "I don't know what you're all laughing for!" Carla tried to put on her best mother-hen impression as she tried to stifle her own giggles, "If he'd caught us, we'd have been done for!" "Oh come on Mrs Jaeger that was funny!" Belle snorted as she fell about Shadow's shoulder in stitches. "So? If the tree's out the way now, why're we continuing down this road?" Fox asked offhand. : A chance of scenery won't hurt: Shadow spelt with one hand, "he's right," Ariana concurred, "I don't think I've been this way before anyway"

They followed the road for a good two miles, as it sharply twisted and turned down into a hidden dale covered in giant trees, the roots of which formed large tunnels over the road: the cart passed beneath them, while the titans, being sure footed and very light on their feet, easily scaled the roots in effortless leaps and bounds, hardly shaking the earth when they landed back on the ground once they were out of the dale. The road then crested a small hill, before they came to the left-side turning the old man spoke off...

Only, it was _three_ roads branching off in different directions, and there wasn't a signpost anywhere in sight. "Oh great" Carla huffed in annoyance: "Well? Which way do we go?"

Looking all around, Ariana smiled as she pointed: "Hey Shadow, put me down a sec, I'm gonna go ask for directions!" Turning in the direction she was pointing, everyone saw a small house some fifty yards off the road, nestled in a thicket of hawthorn trees, with a small crooked path leading up to the front door. Placing her down on the ground, Belle, Gale and Fox stepped off with her (in Maria, it was common for most folks not to approach a strange house alone: you never knew who might be on the other side, and there was always safety in numbers). "Hang on, I'll come with you..." Carla said offhand as she dismounted the cart and followed after them. Noticing lights shining in the windows and hearing muffled voices, they knew someone was inside, they just hoped it wasn't some unsavory character. With the kids at her back, Carla knocked on the door, and didn't have to wait long before someone opened it...

"Hello how can I h-

But the gentleman stopped as he locked eyes with Carla, and she with him: they were both completely dumbfounded as they recognized each other immediately; the kids too were equally flabbergasted when they saw who'd answered the door. "Pascal!" they beamed.

"Wha-, _how the hell did you find us?!_ " the ginger haired rouge tried to compose himself, "Uh?" Carla wasn't too sure what to say at first, "... We didn't, we're a little lost and don't know which way to go" "You guys live here now?" Belle gazed up at the house, "We sure do!" West smiled as he leaned out of an open window above them, "Not a bad little place is it? How've _you_ guys been?" "Hey!-" Pascal frowned up at him: "We got customers coming tomorrow! Back to work!" he turned back to Carla, and leaning out his front door, looked all around: "... Those uh, _'big friends'_ of yours aren't around are they? Only, we can do without any more craziness from those guys" he deadpanned. "What're you talking about? We ain't seen them since that day last year!" West called down from the window, "-Speaking of which," he climbed out and sat on the windowsill, "We ain't seen hide nor hair of those Disciple guys either, did your big friends eat them or something?"

"Maybe?" Ariana shrugged with a sly smirk, "Who can say? I don't how they chased those guys out?" "I suppose they had something to do with that 'sanctuary' burning down as well?" Pascal folded his arms with a deadpan stare. "You know about that?" Fox blinked in surprise, "Kid, we may be trying to stay outta sight of the MP's, but we ain't a couple of bumpkins cut off from society: _we do_ go to the city to hear what being said down the grapevine you know?" " _What is_ being said down the grapevine anyway?" Belle asked, "We ain't allowed in the bad part of Shiganshina so we don't know about these things"

"What? Do I look like the town crier?" Pascal frowned, "It was nice seeing you brats again, but unless you want to by an ODM gear, would you _kindly_ leave now? We got a business to run!"

"Uh Pascal? Aren't we _at least_ going to invite them in for a cup of tea for their troubles? It wouldn't hurt would it?" West called down, "...Plus, I think these guys are rather please to see us again" he pointed to the side of the house; glancing up, Pascal nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel grinning down at them, with the other kids waving down at them from their shoulders. Glaring back at Carla, she merely shrugged with a sheepish smile, "Just fifteen minutes, I promise"

"Fine," he grumbled, "But the brats are getting water, I ain't wasting _the good tea_ on them"

* * *

A few minutes later:

Pascal stepped out the house, dressed in a scarf and jacket with two cups of tea in hand: on one side of the building West chatted with the kids, with Angel and Boar listening in, while Shadow and Midnight sat cross-legged just beyond the hawthorn trees, with Carla sitting on Shadow's knee. "Thank you," she graciously took a cup from him, "Want a seat?" "I'll stand thank you" he huffed as he took a sip from his cup. "... You seem awfully comfy with these guys since last we met" he commented, noticing how calm and relaxed she was. "They're actually pretty friendly once you get to know them" Carla smiled up at Shadow and Midnight:"You seem to be a little more 'placid' towards us too: any particular reason for that?" he asked offhand, "Well, it's been a good eight months since we last met, and given everything that happened and how it could have turned out differently? I figured there are worse people we could've run into that day" "You don't say?" Pascal deadpanned as the memory of the dark riders came back to mind. "Besides, they've been very diligent in keeping the Disciples out of the forest; since last year, they've been dispatching one hunting party after another" Carla glanced up at the titans.

Pascal frowned at her, "How many?" she pointed up to Shadow, who held up nine fingers; " _That_ many?" he blinked in surprise, "How many individuals in total?" : Around one hundred and fifty two by my count: Midnight spelt out. "Geez" Pascal stared off into space in amazement as he took another sip of his tea, "... No wonder they're getting so riled up"

"Who are?" Carla frowned,

"The wall cult," Pascal sighed, "We went to Shiganshina after-, _you know_. And laid low like we said: while we were 'house hunting' I asked around to see if anyone had heard any rumours, you know, anything _strange_ going on up in the forest late at night? Besides the usual gangs and poachers? Turns out something _was_ going down: apparently those 'dark riders' had been sighted by a number of people: the ones who were lucky not to get caught by them. They say that wherever those 'sanctuaries' pop up, those creeps usual follow soon after, and that's when people start disappearing during the night, especially out on the roads"

"Huh...Well that confirms _our_ suspicions," Carla thought about it as she took a sip of her tea, "We knew those sanctuaries must serve as a kind of 'base' for them: but while the titans have been busy 'seeing them out', they never saw them actually come or go from that place. Most likely because it's not been built yet"

"I guess? I dunno what you guys have been up to this past winter: and frankly _, I don't think I want_ to know..." He gazed up at Shadow and Midnight, who both glanced down at him as if to say: wise choice; "Anyway; their plans to built one on that farmland didn't seem to go so smoothly: as soon as the foundations were laid the whole building site was struck by lighting and burnt to cinders. Then the whole place froze over with ice right over the winter and they couldn't work on it until the thaw. Such an investment, and now all that money's gone down the drain. Apparently, the wall cult's been ripping their hair out over it since last year" Pascal smirked.

"...Wait a minute..." Carla suddenly realized, "How would word of _anything_ the wall cult gets up to, reach the ears of the criminal underworld?"

"Heh, you're sharp..." Pascal smiled as he took another swig, before turning serious, "...Actually, _there's a reason_ the underworld knows about what the walls cult gets up to, because they've been their customers and their masters for decades now"

"What?" Carla stared at him in surprise: "My exact reaction too," Pascal nodded, "I didn't believe it either: so I got in touch with an old buddy of mine who used to work the rackets in the guilds up in the interior: the guy's an old-time crook through and through, knows everything about everyone in the underworld, even all the way out here in Maria; the guy owes me a few favors so I called one in... Turns out, the wall cult have been buying, trading and blackmailing the loyalties of some of the biggest criminal gangs for _years_ now. The gangs kick up a percentage of their loot to the cult, with the odd slave or whore thrown in as interest, in return for protection from the MP's. And the reason the MP's haven't done anything about it? They're in on it too: the crooked ones at least, the cult pays them to turn a blind eye where necessary in return for payment. The _really_ corrupt ones are even willing to go as far as making certain individual's 'disappear' for a fee on the side: of course the legit ones are aware of this, but the reason they can't do shit is because they know they'll 'disappear' too, _or_ their families. Not that the royal government gives a damn, practically _all_ their families are some of the cults longest-standing worshipers: been attending the cult for generations, along with the majority of the other noble families in Sina. The cult keeps their pockets well lined in return for their loyalty and resources, as well as political and military connections... I tell you, I knew the system was corrupt, but I had _no idea_ it went _that_ far up the chain" he frowned,

"I-, ... I'm _shocked_. I knew the MP's were crooked, by _my god_ " Carla stared off into space as she tried to digest it all: and then she suddenly realized "...You don't seem very surprised"

"Heh" Pascal smirked as he took another sip of tea, "When you've been in the game as long as I have, nothing really surprises you anymore: human nature is what it is. Just trying to look out for number one"

"...Somehow, I don't quite believe that" Carla noted: "Oh really? And why's that?" Pascal smirked, "Because I don't think you're a bad person at heart," she explained; a little surprised to hear that, Pascal glanced up at her with his poker face as she elaborated: "You say human nature is about looking out for number one. Well? We never told our families about the two of you after that day, and we didn't ask for anything in return; plus, West is your friend isn't he? Or is he just the butler?" she smirked.

"West?" Pascal glanced over at him through the trees as he cracked a joke to the kids, "...He's the acceptation: we practically grew up together, like brothers in every way but blood; we learned how to survive the streets and make a living by dishonest means" he thought aloud as he reminisced on the past, "...I'd do anything for that kid: and I'd like to think he'd do the same for me"

"You think he wouldn't?" Carla blinked in surprise: "Hell no," Pascal smiled, "The kid's practically a choir boy, which is kinda 'not becoming' of a thief" he let his gaze drop as he spoke more honestly: "...No: I _want_ to say we'll always have each others backs? But when push comes to shove, when the chips are down and there ain't no way out but one: people do what they must to survive, even if it means treading over the one's they care about; I wouldn't take it personally of course, it's just human nature, and you can't fight what you're born to be"

"And _what are_ you born to be?" Carla gazed at him curiously: "...A survivor" he sighed, "We made it this far, I'd like to think we can stay in this nice green place until we die as old men..." he gazed up at the trees and smiled, "For the first fifteen years of my life we had nothing but darkness day and night over our heads, only glimpsing the sky maybe several times in all those years, and even when we finally got out, all we saw the night sky. But that was the first time we ever saw the moon, and we both knew there and then she was smiling down on us; that's when we promised each other that we'd get out of that life one day. And last year we finally did: we packed what we could, forged documents to get to Maria, and we never looked back..."

"You're lucky" Carla thought aloud, "There must be a lot of people where you come from, who're unable to achieve their freedom" "... _Too damn many_ " Pascal frowned, "And every one of them will die in complete obscurity: since no one has the heart or guts to give a shit" "That's not true" Carla tried to sound hopeful, "There _are_ good people in this world: it's just-, they can be pretty hard to find; you really got to look for them"

Pascal glanced at her with his poker face, and smiled offhand: "...Tell me, _you know_ what I am, and I ain't got a clean slate: I come from a world that's much darker and more dangerous than the one you live in. I've known people who'll kill you for the stupidest and pettiest of reasons, and won't give a damn about the people you leave behind. So what makes you so sure, that I'm a 'good person' at heart?"

"I suppose? ..." Carla took another sip of her tea, "It's because I don't hear any conviction in your voice...You tell yourself you're a bad person, because that's the world you grew up in, and you had to make bad choices in order to survive. But I think, somewhere in the midst of that darkness you _dared_ to hope for something better, and the first opportunity you got to taste freedom, _you knew_ it could be real: but you didn't want to say it aloud in case it was fragile and fell apart, so you kept to yourself, and waited for when you could achieve it, and only then could you be sure that it _was_ for real...So? No, I _don't_ believe you're a bad person at heart: I don't think _anyone_ is truly bad at heart. That day last year: you could've chosen not to help the kids, but you did: you could've chosen to hide from the titans, but you thought Ariana I were in genuine danger, and you risked your life to 'save' us. Fortunately it all turned out to be one big misunderstanding. But it could have turned out very differently"

Pascal stated at her, though he didn't let it didn't show on his face, he was amazed and taken aback by her wisdom: "...So that's how you see it..." he sighed; gulping down the last of his tea and stared off into the forest: "...What happened to _you_ in your life, to make you so hopeful?"

"Hm..." Carla smiled, "Honestly? I don't know? Life's not easy, and I've had my struggles just like everyone else: I'm nothing special, and I don't believe you have to be anything special to achieve great things in life; for the simple fact that we are all born to this world, and we are born free. I think compassion comes more naturally to the human heart, rather than greed or selfishness: I think we _all_ have the ability to know a good thing when we see it. Even if we don't know the words for it or it's just a feeling in our guts, if we're given the chance to discover those good things for ourselves without being told what's good for us, because it's what others want; then maybe everyone would find it a little easier to be compassionate to one another"

Pascal smiled as he glanced back over at the kids: "...Do me a favor will you?" he gazed back at her with his poker face back in place: "...No matter what happens to you in life: no matter what shit gets thrown your way or whatever happens to make you doubt yourself; _promise me_ you won't go back on those words. The world's fucked up enough with people not being able to find their own way in life, it doesn't need someone like you turning their back on 'those good things', just because life hits you were it hurts the most...if life strikes you down, I want you to get back up, you hear me?"

Carla wasn't entirely sure why he said that, but she could guess he was saying it from experience: it certainly sounded sincere in his voice. Sipping the last of her tea, she handed him the cup, and slid down off Shadow's knee. "You don't have to worry" she smiled, "I'm a mother, it takes a lot to strike me down" "Yeah everyone says something like that" he sighed, "It tends to be quite different when it actually happens" "Well? Hopefully, I'll be able to keep that promise" she replied, turning to the house: "KIDS! Time to go! ..." she called over to the children. "Listen, next time you're in Shiganshina, head for the Black Stallion, and tell them Carla said you can have one on me"

"Thanks" he smiled as he headed back towards the house, "You used to be a barmaid?" "For a time...-Oh, I nearly forgot: which road do we take back to Shiganshina?"

"Middle one, just head straight down to the crossroads"

"Thanks Pascal" Carla smiled as the kids climbed back up onto their titans, and they took their leave; stepping back inside the house and placing the cups in the kitchen sink, Pascal gazed out the window, as he watched the titans and their passengers turn invisible, while Carla was the only one to be seen as she disappeared down the road on the cart. "Well that was nice, seeing them again" West smiled as placed the wooden drinking cups in the sink; seeing the distant look in Pascal's eyes, West smiled with a cheeky glint in his eyes: "What? You starting to feel 'something' for her?"

"What? Hell no! She ain't my type!" Pascal waved off dismissively, "...I was just thinking: whoever her husband is, he's _one damn lucky guy_ to have a woman like her for a wife; her kid too, for a mother" he thought aloud as her words came back to mind: "...'good people'...They _are_ damn hard to find"

* * *

Shiganshina, early evening:

"What took you so long getting back?" Eren asked offhand as he held one of the horses by its lead rope. "Oh I'm sorry sweetie: it's just been one of those days" his mother sighed as she put the harness away, "You run into everyone you know and you can't help but stop to chat" she smiled.

"Must've been _a whole damn parade_ for acquaintances for you to be out so long," Miriam commented offhand as she strode into the livery, running her bony fingers over the wad a of money she was holding, counting out a certain sum, before depositing said sum on the cart next to Carla, "Your pay for the week: don't spend it all at once," she affirmed before striding out back to the Inn. "And what about you Ariana? Me an' Armin ain't seen much of you over the winter?" Eren turned to Ariana, who was helping Gale to muck out one of the stalls: glancing over at him with an apologetic look, Ariana sighed with a wistful smile: "...I'm sorry: dad's just really been pushing us with the hunting season: but, now that we're going into spring, and it won't roll around until autumn, we can spend some time together if you want?"

"That'd be great" Eren smiled offhand, "Say, when you get back from helping mum with her deliveries tomorrow, do you wanna come over to my place to play?" "Sounds great, I'll be there" she smiled. "Eren?" Grisha called from just outside the livery, "Coming dad!" Eren handed the lead rope to Gale, and took off out of the stables: "Tell your father I'll be home as soon as I'm finished up here!" Carla called after him, "Sure thing mum!" Eren called back. As soon as his footfalls were out of earshot: Ariana and Gale stopped working, and gazed over at Carla; "...So um? ...That 'thing' we discussed the other week, you know? About: introducing Eren to our 'mutual friends'?" Ariana awkwardly hesitated.

"I remember..." Carla sighed: knowing what she was referring to: "And, to be honest with you Ariana? I don't know," "You don't know?" Gale frowned in confusion, "You mean, you haven't made your mind up? Or no?" "I mean..." Carla turned to face them, "I'm not sure if it's a good idea to let anyone else in on our 'shared secret'? It's tricky enough keeping it under wraps between all of us as it is, and I don't think our 'friends' would approve of it, not before we bring it up with them and we discuss it thoroughly before agreeing on a decision... It's not that I don't think they'll scare Eren, or that he won't get along with them... It's just-, _I don't know_ if Eren has what it takes to keep a secret like that? So please, don't bring it up again; not until, as his mother, I'm _confident_ he's up to the task. You understand?" Ariana and Gale both nodded, "... Yeah, okay" Ariana quietly nodded.

Although it had its moments, ultimately, keeping a secret like this wasn't easy: not least because it felt as though they were going behind their family's backs. It was complicated enough, being best friends with the very creatures that humanity had come to fear and despise: the fact they had a mysterious past and strange powers posed far too many questions as well. And then there was always the risk that if someone new was brought into the picture, for whatever reason/s they might buckle and let their tongue slip. For Ariana it was frustrating and upsetting, Eren had been her best friend since she could remember, and she _knew_ he and Shadow would get along like a house on fire: having to keep the titan's secret from him and Armin felt wrong, not least because she believed she was betraying their trust. Ariana _knew_ why Carla wasn't willing to let Eren in on their secret, and as his mother her word was final. But at the back of her mind, she hoped and wondered if maybe Eren and Armin _were_ able to keep such a secret? But how could she be sure? Could there be a way to test them somehow? She made a mental note to talk to Shadow about it when they next meet up; surely a guy as smart and clever as him could have an idea tucked up his proverbial sleeve?

" _YOU SON OF A BITCH!_ GET _THE HELL_ OUTTA MY ESTABLISHMENT!-" Miriam's angry voice snapped Ariana out of her thoughts, followed by the sound of a door slamming open and glass breaking. Carla and the girls ran around to the front of the Inn, just in time to see Miriam and Gustav kicking a couple of shady-looking gentlemen up their asses, and landing them face first into the street, tumbling head over heels as Miriam threw a small pouch of coins at them. "You two idiots think I don't know _fake gold_ when I see it?! If I ever see your rat-assed faces around here again _I'll do far worse than kick yer asses in!_ "

As the two gentlemen quickly got back up on their feet and took off running down the road, from around the corner of the opposite street, a gang of large burly men strode over to the door where Gustav and Miriam were standing: this lot had trouble written all over their faces, and Miriam could see it right away as she locked eyes on them, and immediately went on the offense while Gustav headed back inside: "-And you lot!-" she pointed to them, making them stop where they were in the middle of the street: "You think I didn't see you talking to those creeps earlier?! I _know_ they're part of your gang and I know why you sent them here! If you think I'm some senile old woman who's business is ripe for the picking, _you're sorely mistaken!_ " she ranted as Gustav reemerged and handed Miriam her gun, before they could even react, she held the weapon on her hip and fired at the ground in front of them: they quickly beat a hasty retreat down the road as Miriam fired another shot at them: "And don't you _ever_ come back! Your lot ain't welcome here!" she added: heading back inside with Gustav, leaving some of the Inn's regular customers rather concerned, but not overly worried (the fact Miriam just used a gun was nothing new to them, they _knew_ she didn't tolerate trouble-makers in her establishment: and knew the consequences would be pretty much the same for _them_ too if they tried anything).

Wondering what just happened, Carla and the girls quickly ran to the service entrance on the side of the building, and entered the Inn's kitchen, just in time to see Miriam walk into her office and put the gun back on its mount on the wall by the door; glancing over at Lucile, Rosemary, Poppy, Belle, Shyla and Fox who were preparing the evening meals, Carla gawked in astonishment: " _What the hell_ just happened out there?!"

"Oh Carla darling, so sorry if we scared you," Rosemary apologized as Miriam locked the office door and pounded her fist on the counter top "-That's _the fifth_ _time_ this week those bastards have tried their luck again! _Five times_ they've tried to muscle their way in, and _five times_ they thought I was a complete fool!" she ranted angrily. "Well I think you pretty much dispelled _that_ illusion" Gustav commented nonchalantly as he entered the kitchen, picked a carrot from out of the vegetable bucket and started eating it: "-It's not just them!" she continued, getting up into his face, "-They were the forth! _The forth_ gang to try and offer their 'protection services' in as many months, and every time they wouldn't take no for answer unless I gave them the incentive to want to keep their piece-of-shit lives! _I mean seriously?!_ Do I have the word 'idiot' branded across my forehead?! _Where the hell_ have all these creeps started coming from all of a sudden?! _And it ain't just them!_ Last week I had to throw out two clients because they were pimping their whores from out of the guesthouse! _And one of them thought Bemadette and Mabel were for sale!_ " she paced around the kitchen like a wet hen, now well and truly in a rage: "Oh I remember that" Lucile nodded, "He was lucky to get out of the place alive after _you_ were done with him dear sister"

"We have _got_ to do something about this Gustav!" Miriam pointed at him, "Either keep Tyto and his brothers in the bar full time as security, or try and get a hold of someone who'll see these bastards off!" she stormed out of the kitchen and headed upstairs to her privet room: "I'll have a word with him when he gets back from his trip!" he nonchalantly called up the stairs.

"What?-" was all Carla could say: "I don't get it? What did those men want?" Ariana gawked in confusion. "Ah it's an old trick some criminal gangs use to get a steady income" Gustav explained, "They send their lackeys into a place of business, like an Inn or shop, and harass the proprietors to no end: then the gang steps in and 'see's them off', asking for a 'thank you fee' in return. Then they send a bunch of different lackeys in to do the same thing some time later: and it keeps on going until the owners ain't got no money left"

"It's been quite a problem these last several months" Rosemary sighed as she started peeling the potatoes: "That gang you saw out there? They were the fifth to try their luck with us; hopefully they've gotten the message"

"But-, that's terrible!" Ariana gasped, "Can't the MP's do anything about it?"

"Those good-for-nothing-crooked-as-fucked weasels?" Gustav frowned, "They get paid under the table by those kinds of gangs to leave them alone: and that pimp Miriam threw out? The one who thought Mabel and Bemadette were for sale? _I know him_ , his brother's a squad leader with the Shiganshina branch, and he's as _sick in the head_ as his brother: been covering his ass for years now; _everyone knows_ he's a creep, but they know they can't rat on him or he'll beat the shit outta them, _or_ get his MP buddies to arrest them for stuff they didn't do" "It's not a good position to be in" Rosemary sighed, "And since we threw him out, that gang's _really_ tried to pull one over on us" she turned to Carla with a tired smile, "but we'll manage: we've taken on far worse than them"

"...Oh, I nearly forgot-" Ariana suddenly remembered, "Is Bemadette around? only, I heard she's nearly finished Bryson's late birthday present and I wanted to see it before tomorrow" "Oh..." Rosemary sighed, "I'm afraid she's gone down into town with Mabel and Derek to see her mother; but if you're up early enough tomorrow, I'm sure she'll let you see it" "Thanks Mrs Willum" Ariana nodded.

"Ariana?" Freya poked her head in the doorway, "Here you are, I was wondering what was keeping you," "Ah, totally my fault, we got sidetracked" Carla apologized, "fair enough" she shrugged, "Time to head off home, dinner's on the table" "See you tomorrow!" Ariana waved goodbye as she ran out the door, to which the kids voiced their good-nights: "Carla-" Freya stepped inside and handed her a list with an apologetic look: "I'm _so sorry_ to have to heap this on you at such short notice, but we had an additional six orders come through this morning: all of which have got to be delivered by tomorrow. If you can handle it I'll be sure to pay you double for your troubles"

"There's no need for that" Carla smiled, "Though, I have got a sneaking suspicion it might rain tomorrow, so we might need to borrow the rain cloaks and boots" "Rain?" Freya raised an eyebrow, "But it's been dry all week? ..." she shrugged with a sigh, "Well whatever: will you be able to make the deliveries? If not I can get Bestla and Skadi to lend you a hand with the auxiliary carts" "No it's fine really, I can do it; it won't be a problem, right kids?" she gazed over at the children, who all voiced in agreement: "Well, alright then, and thank you Carla, you are a life saver" Freya smiled as she left.

* * *

The next morning:

"You smell that?" Tyto breathed deep, "...Seems like your intuition about that rain was right on the mark Carla" he turned to her as she and the kids loaded up the delivery wagons; there was so much stuff to deliver today that two wagons were required, with Gale being the second driver: "There's a storm coming, and it smells like a big one too" "Called it..." she smiled before changing the subject, "You guys going to be alright out there?" "Oh we know plenty of places to hide from the rain" Falken waved off, as he said his goodbyes to his children: "It's makes tracking impossible of course, on account it neutralizes all the scents, but we'll manage" Eraman smiled as he double-checked his backpack, before bidding his son and daughter farewell.

Gazing over at Evrard, who was seeing off his son and daughter, Tyto sighed in vexation as he checked his supplies: the red-haired giant was in a sour mood today, and it hadn't escaped everyone's notice. Discreetly leaning close to Tyto, Carla asked in a hushed tone: "Is Evrard alright? He seems a bit off today" "We uh," Tyto sighed sheepishly, "had a bit of a falling out yesterday: he hasn't really left it alone," he gazed over at him.

"But dad, do we _have_ to?" Clay pleaded in a hushed voice, "I mean, how do you know for sure if it's just a rumour?" "My decision is final" he stated firmly, "And your _not to breathe a word_ of this to your mother until I get back, understand?" he pointed a finger at him, "Dad, she's going to find out one way or another, even if _we_ don't tell her. And she's going to skin you alive!" Hazel deadpanned: "Besides _this is stupid!_ You want us to move just because _you_ don't like the idea of other people teaching us what's what?!" she hissed: "This discussion is over!" he glared at them both, making it clear the conversation was over: "We'll discuss this further when I get back, and then I want you both to start packing your things; you are _not_ going to school and that's _final!_ " he picked up his bag and strode away: "Come on boys we're supposed to have set off already!" he grumbled as started heading down to the bottom of the street.

"...I'll talk to him later" Tyto sighed as he looked around, "Now? Where's my magpie flown off to?" "Here dad!-" Ariana waved as she ran out of Gustav's forge with Bemadette trailing after her, carrying a large long object wrapped in a hessian cloth: "Bemadette was just showing me Bryson's late birthday present! It looks so cool!" "-That's nice dear," he hastened as he leaned down and placed a kiss on her forehead, "Now, listen to your mother and don't pester your brother's too much: I'll see you Friday night" he picked up his bag, slung it over his shoulder, and patted his three sons on the head, "Stay out of trouble you three!" "Sure dad" they replied.

Before long, the wagons were packed and Carla and the kids all set off with Tyto, Evrard, Falken and Eraman following close behind. "Farewell you lot-" Freya waved goodbye, "take care now!" "Well, see ya Mrs Grayson; I got a special delivery to make!" Bemadette beamed as she ran down the street towards Bryson and Claude's bookshop. Freya was about to head back inside, when she saw Mabel walking towards her, "Oh, hello Mabel, what can I do for you?"

Glancing down the street, Mabel sighed in disappointment as she caught sight of Tyto disappearing around the corner of the bookshop: "Oh, I see I missed your husband" "Oh, did you need Tyto for anything?" Freya asked offhand, "Well? Miriam does actually, she sent me to try and catch him before he left...I take it your aware we've been having a bit of trouble with some 'unsavory characters' of late?" "The gangs?" Freya sighed, "Yeah Carla filled me in last night, and the gunshots were a bit hard to miss; what about them?" "Miriam wants to talk to Tyto, about hiring him and his brother's full time, to act as security for the Black Stallion" Full time?" Freya blinked in surprise, "But Mabel, we _can't_ afford to spare our time anymore than we already can; between the delivery service, the market stall and the livery they can't possibly do it" "Miriam knows that, and she's willing to raise your wedges as compensation, but she doesn't really want to hire someone she doesn't know; she wants people she can trust and rely on, and Tyto and his brothers are as trustworthy as they come"

"MABEL! These carrots won't peel themselves you know!" Miriam's stern voice called out from the Inn's kitchen window, "Just-, tell Tyto to think about it okay?" Mabel added before running off back to the Inn; "What was that all about?" Derek asked offhand as he came out of the alleyway between the pub and the Grayson's house with a huge basket of fresh laundry in both arms: "More work as usual..." Freya sighed as she pressed her hand to her forehead in exasperation, before noticing the basket, "Oh I wouldn't put those out on the line if I were you Derek, it's going to rain later" she added offhand, and headed back inside. Derek glanced down at the laundry and huffed in annoyance; trust Lucile to do the laundry on a soon-to-be rainy day.

After bidding their fathers farewell at the inner gate, the kids set off for the central valley with Carla leading the way; gazing up at the sky, they saw how the south western sky was dark with distant thunder clouds. The smell of ozone was thick as it hung in the unusually warm air, and every now and then, the low rumble of thunder could be heard echoing over the top of the wall.

"Looks like Angel's conjuring up one hell of a storm" Belle smiled as she heard a distant thunderclap rumble its way through the sky: "Should be quite the show" Rowan grinned, "I just hope we're passing the sanctuary when it happens" "... Yeah I guess" Clay sighed quietly as he watched the country side steadily roll by, seeming rather dejected and down in the dumps; Hazel was just as depressed as she swung her legs back and forth over the back of the wagon. "What's got you two so down?" Ash asked offhand. Clay and Hazel glanced at one another, and then at him as Clay explained: "We overheard dad and uncle Tyto talking down in the basement last night...It's not good,"

Some thirty or so yards up ahead; Ariana scanned her eyes over the list of addresses they had to visit today: "Oh hell, we gotta go _all the way_ up to Flussetor? It's going to take _hours_ to get up there!" "Which is why we're going there first, and working our way back down south" Carla explained, "And then we have to go over the river to Eichenhain, and then all the way across to Wenigweg on the other side of the valleys" "It's going to be a long day" Ariana sighed offhand, "And we're not even going past the forest" "Ah but remember what Shadow said the other day? They're going to be busy, remember?"

* * *

Elsewhere, deep in the Marian forest:

" **You're over thinking again"** Hecate taunted with a sly smile as she sat down next to Javorin: the god was so deep in thought he nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw her sitting there: **"...Sorry, I was miles away"** he sighed.

" **What's got your goat** _ **this**_ **time?"**

" **What Pascal said yesterday: about the wall cult being involved in illicit activities and paying off the MP's to stay compliant"** he frowned: **"Oh don't tell me you want us to creep into the MP's station in the city and take** _ **them**_ **out too?"** Hecate sighed in exasperation as she pinched the bridge of her nose, **"That's a bit of a tall order, even for me"**

" **What? No!"** Javorin was quick to clarify: **"...I was just thinking; now that it's transparently clear that the wall cult isn't so much a religious organization, but rather a criminal organization masquerading as one. This means their reach into the fabric of this walled society is deep and insidious"**

" **And you think this is going to create additional complications in our efforts to keep the Disciples out: don't you?"** Hecate deadpanned. **"...I just realized,"** Javorin worried, **"If these cultist (the high ranking ones at least) are more like criminals than actual worshipers: they** _ **might**_ **resort to using criminal means to try find out who's been picking off their Disciples...I have a bad feeling, we might have inadvertently put innocent lives at risk"**

" **Hey,"** Herne interrupted as he came bounding along, **"I just picked up Elysia's scent moving this way, the storm too: it's almost at the wall"** **"We can fret over this later"** Hecate stood back up and followed the hunting god out of the grove: **"Right now we've got work to do"**

Javorin got up and followed them both, leaving the grove and turning into their bird forms; flying off to wall Maria.

* * *

Later that morning, back in Shiganshina:

"Whoa!" Bren smiled as he watched Bryson fly over the rooftops: "You said it" Hannes smiled, "I knew the guy had some skills, _but man_ , he practically _owns_ it!" "That's because he's a Scout!" Eren grinned as he and Armin watched in awe, along with the rest of the small crowd that had gathered to watch the 'demonstration'.

Over the street and rooftops, Bryson sailed through the air on his ODM gear: gracefully swinging and leaping with hardly any effort, pulling off the sharpest of turns and the fastest of jumps; shooting over every rooftop and chimney, missing them by mere inches. Standing outside the Black Stallion, Bemadette, Claude, Derek, Bren and Mabel watched in amazement, while Break had the biggest smile spread across his face: his heart leaping with pride and joy as he watched his brother fly again, and could practically feel the happiness radiating off him like heat from the sun. "...Bemadette, I really don't know what to say?" he nearly chocked: "Just say you'll let me pad your bill so you'll pay me extra" she grinned: Hannes, Mabel, Derek and Bren all burst out laughing while Claude tried to stifle his giggles: but Breck wasn't paying attention as he kept his eyes glued to his brother: watching as he pulled off an incredible 1440 degree spin, before landing graceful beside the Inn; the crowd erupted in cheers and hollers, patting him on the back and congratulating him on a terrific performance. "Does this mean we can expect to see you back the Scouts any time soon?" Hannes joked, "I don't see why not!" he laughed, "Wow, _I still got it!_ " he grinned with sheer delight.

"And the brace held in place too" Bemadette smiled as inspected the full leg brace attached to Bryson's right leg, "You felt no pain on the landing, right?" she glanced up at him, "No, nothing" he laughed, " _It actually works!_ " turning to his brother, Bryson hugged him tight: "...This is the _best birthday present ever!_ Thank you so much bro!" hugging him back, Breck smiled, "Well? I can't take all the credit, Bemadette was the one who actually built it" letting Breck go, Bryson suddenly scooped Bemadette up in his arms and hugged her too, "Indeed! Such a _remarkable_ talent for a remarkable young lady! Thank you so much!" "Aw come on, enough with the mushiness" she waved off.

"What's going on?"

Everyone stopped what they were doing as a couple of MP's walked up to them, "What're you doing with that ODM gear? Don't you know civilians aren't allowed to own military equipment?" one of the MP's spoke in a curt tone: "Ah yes, we're well aware of the penal code gentleman, but Bryson here _does_ have written permission from the military to retain his equipment" Claude quickly tried to explain with a nervous smile: "I used to be in the Scouts" Bryson explained as he produced a small envelope from his breast pocket: "When I was honorably discharged they let me keep my gear as a 'farewell' gift of sorts" he added, handing them the envelope; the second MP took it, opened it, and read through the contents of the discharge. After a moment or two, he nodded in agreement: "...Okay, everything appears to be in order: but I'm afraid ODM gear usage is not permitted within city limits: if you want to continue your fun you'll have to go somewhere outside the inner gate" he stated. "Don't worry officer, we will" Bryson nodded. "What's _this thing_ on your leg?" the first officer glanced down at the strange looking device strapped to the former Scouts leg. "Oh this? It's a leg brace: quite a remarkable feat of medical engineering, it helps our friend here to get around without feeling any pain: it even helps to support the limb when using ODM gear!" Claude tried to explain in a more upbeat tone, trying to disguise his nerviness.

"Oh really?" the officer eyed the device suspiciously: "...Looks more like unauthorized technology to me" he stated with a less-than-honest glint in his eye. The whole mood of the crowd flipped in a heartbeat, from upbeat to nervous: while Bryson, Breck and their friends began to grow uneasy: "Who made it?" the officer demanded in a tone that told them he wasn't messing around. Bemadette opened her mouth, but wasn't sure if she should tell him the truth or not: but before she had the chance, Gustav stepped out of the Inn's front door and stated, "-I'm afraid if you want the guy who made it, you're out of luck, he left for the interior last week" he smiled in an unusually upbeat tone that had his friends wondering what he was up to. Everyone but Mabel, Bren, Derek, Bemadette, Eren and Armin began to discreetly slip away and return to whatever they were doing before; not wanting to stick around to see what might happen next. "Oh really?" the officer frowned skeptically: " _He_ made this?" he pointed to the leg brace, "Oh yeah, _a real genius_ that guy: came up with the design for his old man; poor old guy can't get around much these days so he wanted something to help support his leg without a cane. You know how we old folks get? We try to keep our independence for as long as possible. Anyway, we got talking and I told him about Bryson here, and how he had an unfortunate run-in with a titan back when he served with the Scouts, so, he asked if he could borrow my forge to make him a brace all of his own, he even paid me upfront for the cost of the metal. And lo and behold, voila!-" he held his hands to the brace in a show of presentation; "The guy was _a saint_ I tell ya, never even charged Bryson a single coin for the work or time spent making it" he smiled proudly.

"Uh huh?" the officer frowned at him skeptically as he folded his arms, "So where about in the interior does he live?": "Huh? Oh, he didn't mention where specifically: just said he was from some town south of Mitras I think?" "And the name?" "Uh-, hmm, let me think..." Gustav scratched his head, "Jackson? No that's not it; Jameson? No that's our butcher; uh, was it Jacobson? It was definitely a name ending in 'son'. I'm sorry my mind's really starting to go these days-"

"-Augh whatever!-" the officer rudely waved off in annoyance, "Just be sure to dispose of that thing: people might start to think that kind of technology is permissible" he stated, "Uh? It's not?" Claude naively asked: "No, _it's not_ " he frowned, "...Have a good day folks" he deadpanned as he turned and started walking back the way he'd came, with his partner flowing closely behind. Once they were out of sight and out of earshot, Gustav's face returned to its usual grouchy frown, and a dark look came over his eyes as he turned to everyone present, and stated in serious tone: "If anyone comes asking about that brace, _you don't tell them the kid made it_ : understand?" he gestured to Bemadette, "As far as we're all concerned, some guy south of Mitras made it: got it?"

No one was quite sure what to say, but they knew better than to question Gustav when he used that tone, and so they all nodded in agreement. "Good" Gustav sighed. "I don't understand?" Bemadette nervously thought aloud, "How can the brace be an 'unauthorized technology'? It's helping Bryson isn't it? Why wouldn't that be allowed?" Gustav planted both his hands firmly on her shoulders, and kneeled down to meet her eye-level; his gaze telling her he was _dead serious_ : "You listen to me kid," he stated, "You did no wrong by making this brace, it's an engineering achievement and one you should take great pride in; but the higher ups, being what they are? They won't see it that way. I'll explain why when you're older, _I promise_ ; but for now, if anyone asks you about it, you _lie like a bastard_ and tell them someone else made it. Understand?" "But-" Bemadette hesitated, "I don't under- " _Please! Just promise me_ okay?!" "-Okay Okay I promise!" she quickly nodded; a bit scared and confused as to why he just said that, as he let go of her shoulders and stood back up.

"...Um? Bemadette?" Claude gently placed a hand on her shoulder with a reassuring smile: "How about Bryson and I go saddle our horses, and we'll go out into the forest together and we'll field-test the brace properly there. Does that sound good?" he asked, "Yeah, okay" she sighed, "Go get your tool kit then," Gustav tipped his head to the Inn's front door.

Armin wasn't too sure what just happened, but something at the back of his mind was telling him it was a matter of life or death; deciding to keep it to himself, he didn't say anything. As he turned to leave he noticed the two MP's had stopped halfway down the next street opposite theirs, and were talking to a couple of Pastors from the wall cult. One of them pointed towards him as they talked: no, they were pointing at _someone_ in the group, was it Gustav? Or Bryson? Or Claude? They were the only ones that spoke to them. What was going on? Whatever it was, it didn't feel right.

* * *

Sometime later in the day:

" **Okay you! Time to get to work!"** Elysia called out to the storm, as the winds steadily pushed it over the vast landscape, heading towards wall Maria. For the better part of the day since the early morning, Elysia had flown out far beyond the wall to summon the storm, and get it to follow her back to Maria: all the while using her power to build it up in strength and size, with the electrical charge now nicely up to a good high level, ready to discharge lightning as soon as they crossed the wall, and headed over the central valley.

Gliding beneath the giant thunderhead, she frowned in annoyance as she saw the rain was still only a steady shower, and not a torrential downpour: she _had_ to get rid of all the water accumulating in the clouds, or the rivers would flood as soon as the storm hit Shiganshina: **"OI!"** she yelled out, **"What did I say about that rain?! Let it out now!"**

But nothing happened: wracking her brain for every nugget of knowledge she had on weather magics, she then remembered a certain spell that usually did the job of getting any storm-front to comply: _"Hear me, spirits of the winds and sky! I Elysia, sister of the Tempest gods, cloud herder, rain caller, and child of the western winds: do hereby order you to yield and heed my command!"_

Suddenly, a bolt of lightning cracked through the air, missing her by several meters: the immediate thunderclap practically knocked her out of the sky and sent her tumbling uncontrollably for over two hundred feet before she finally regained control: but she didn't have time to wonder what just happened, when the storm suddenly erupted in a blaze of lightning and a deafening cacophony of thunder. Flapping her wings like crazy, Elysia struggled against the rising winds as she tried to gain altitude: 'what just happened?!' she thought in a panic, 'That spell should have worked! It's _never_ failed before!'

Finally getting above the cloud level and gazing down on the weather-front, Elysia gasped in horror at what she saw; the storm was quickly growing out of control; even by regular weather standards this _wasn't_ a normal storm anymore, as the clouds began to turn so dark they were almost black, and the lightning was erupting in every direction, even upwards into the atmosphere. Some kind of chaos manna was now tainting the weather, corrupting the manna that made up its energies, and filling it with unbridled rage and hate: so much so, that Elysia didn't know what to do. This was totally unprecedented, she'd _never_ seen this kind of chaos magic corrupt a storm like this before, and she was worried she wouldn't be able to control it.

" **I've got to get back to Maria! I've got to get help!"** she panicked as she started heading back in the direction of the wall: she _had_ to beat the storm, and get Javorin and the other gods to help her somehow: but then she suddenly remembered, **"Carla!** _ **I've got to find her and the kids!**_ **I have to get them ou-**

CRRRRACK-BOOOOM!

A bolt of lightning struck her tail feathers and set them ablaze, electrocuting her simultaneously: she went into an uncontrollable spin as she lost all consciousness; plummeting beneath the clouds, and disappeared into the storm.

* * *

An hour or so later:

"How's the brace?!" Claude called out as Bryson flew by on his ODM gear, swinging from tree to tree while he, Breck, and Bemadette watched on from down on the ground. "Splendid!" he called down to them as he perched up in an oak tree, "Just like old times!"

"So you've been saying for the past hour!" Bemadette called up impatiently, "My neck's getting tired, do you mind giving it a rest already?!" Shooting his lines and flying down to the ground, Bryson was still smiling like an idiot as he approached everyone: "This _really is_ the best birthday present ever!" "So you've been saying for the past few hours now," Claude sighed with an exasperated smile, "But I daren't say if you keep this up you'll run out of gas before you know it ol' chum" "He's right" Breck concurred, "You probably might want to give it a rest for today: there's always tomorrow?"

"Ah alright..." Bryson sighed as he went over to his horse, and loosened the reins that were tied to the branch of a tree: "Shall we?". Breck and Claude also returned to their horses and mounted up, with Bemadette being allowed to hitch a ride on the back of Breck's saddle. "Looks like it's going to rain soon," Bryson sighed as he looked up at the darkening clouds, "

I really don't want to be caught out in the weather" "Indeed" Claude concurred, "Let's go" And together, they headed up to the road, and started making their way back to the inner gate. As the sky grew darker, Bemadette noticed how the clouds were growing bigger and darker; she'd seen thunder and lightning storms before, but not one as dark as _this_ ; as thunder echoed across the sky, the first few specks of rain began to fall and hit her face, "Looks like we won't beat the rain guys" she thought aloud.

Turning a wide bend in the road, the sound of a roaring waterfall hit their ears loudly, but it was no waterfall: it was, what had once been a small stream, now overflowing and raging out of control; the small wooden bridge that stretched across it was wobbling dangerous as the water pounded it like sledge hammers. "That doesn't look safe!" Bemadette pointed to the bridge, "No it doesn't" Breck frowned, "We'll have to find another way around" Bryson stated as he turned his horse back: but as they rounded the bend again, the three men stopped when they saw a gang of twelve masked men armed with large knives blocking the road. "Give us the girl and the ODM gear, Scout!" their leader barked as he started walking towards them like a hungry wolf, his lackeys following in step.

Looking back at the distance between them and the flooded stream, Claude saw they had a good hundred yards; "Think we can make it?" he glanced over at the twins worryingly, "We're going to have to," Bryson frowned as he grabbed Bemadette off Break's horse and held her close as he reached for his gear's grips: "Take my horse, I need to get Bemadette to safety!" he stated as he took off up into the giant trees. "Right on ol' chum!"Quickly grabbing Bryson's horse by the reins, Claude turned his own horse around and took off after Breck as they galloped for the bridge with the men chasing after them. As the horses hooves hit the rickety boards the bridge's support beams began to give way, and just as Claude's horse reached the other side, the whole structure collapsed with a loud splintering crack: six of the men that were on the bridge disappeared into the white raging water as it keeled over and fell apart. Leaving the remaining men stranded on the other side; but the three friends didn't stop to look back as they crested the hill they were on, and disappeared into the forest.

"What the hell happened back there?!" Breck exclaimed; "I'd say we nearly got our throats slit ol' fellow! And Bemadette nearly ending up on the black market, along with your ODM gear!" Claude called up to Bryson, as he tried to keep a hold of both his reins and those of Bryson's horse as they galloped down the road. "Was it just me, or did anyone else not hear that one guy call me a Scout? I'm not wearing my wings, so _how_ could he have known I was a Scout?" Bryson called down. Breck, Claude and Bemadette all realized he was right, much to their alarm: "We can try to figure that out later, right now we got to get back to Shiganshina before the whole valley floods!"

"The _whole_ valley?!" Bemadette exclaimed in alarm, "That stream feeds down into the southern Maria river: if it's flooded, the main river won't take long to overflow; _we need to hurry_!" Bryson barked as he swooped down and smoothly landed onto his saddle, still keeping Bemadette tucked under one arm, as he positioned her onto the front of his saddle.

* * *

Elsewhere in the forest:

" _Goodness,_ " Tyto breathed in amazement, "I've never seen a storm like _that_ before: it almost looks evil!" he thought aloud as he watched the dark ominous clouds rolling over the wall: thunder continued to roll across the sky in one booming clap after another, and rain began to fall as a steady light shower, while down in the valley, large sweeping squalls shrouding the landscape in dark grayness, almost making everything disappear from sight. "Then it's a good thing we decided to call off the hunt and take shelter" Falken called out from the mouth of the cave they were hiding in, with Evernight perched on his arm: "Are you coming in yet?" "In a minute" Tyto called back as he approached the top of the ridge with his telescope in hand.

Upon smelling the ozone growing thicker and noticing the rivers and streams were starting to overflow, the four Celts decided to seek higher ground and wait out the approaching storm; said shelter was a small cave at the top of a large steep hill, one of the very few that rose above the forest and overlooked the whole central valley. Scanning his eyes across the vast landscape, Tyto saw a good number of the lower fields and meadows were starting to flood, as many of the smaller ditches and drainage channels were starting to overflow and couldn't cope with all the additional rain water. But it was the southern Maria River that was really starting to flood, as all the land surrounding it steadily began to disappear beneath the brown and white rapids.

"...Whoa..." he couldn't help but worry, "You guys _really_ need to see this!" he called out; Falken, Evrard and Eraman came running to his side, and gasped in amazement when they saw the rising waters: "...Whoa, that's bad" Falken breathed. "Whoever's in those wagons down there on the main road, they better get to high ground, and fast" Evrard pointed to the main road that cut through the middle of the valley: holding the telescope to his eye to get a better view, Tyto focused on said wagons, and gasped: "Th-... That's Carla, and _the kids!_ "

* * *

Down in the valley:

As they traveled along the road, Carla and the children were beginning to grow really worried as the fields began to flood, and the sound of the raging waters began to echo across the hills as the storm began to pick up momentum. Suddenly, a lightning bolt ripped through the sky with a resounding boom, and in a few seconds the rain began to fall hard and in great quality, pounding everything like hailstones, and soaking everything within several seconds. "Mrs Jaeger! We need to get to higher ground!" Ariana shouted over the loud roar of falling water, "I know!" Carla shouted back. Looking around through the dark grey mist, Carla could make out a prominent hill in the distance: "Over there!" she flicked the reins, getting the horses to pick up the pace as she headed for the hill, and glancing over her shoulder to make sure Gale's wagon was still in sight, which it was, and following closely behind.

"Will we be alright?!" Lucius shouted worryingly as he and his sister donned their rain cloaks inside the wagon: "Of course, we just need to wait it out!" Carla called back. "Where're we going?!" Hazel called out to Gale, "To that hill up ahead I think? It's the only high ground in sight!"

The horses trotted up the slope, following the curve of the incline as it went around the hill; glancing behind them, Gale was astounded to see the floodwaters were already a few inches deep on the main road, and would be too deep for the horses to traverse within the hour. As they continued onward, they soon saw a wooden fence appear out of the rain, and up ahead the road was barred by a large fancy looking wrought-iron gate with a sign board chained on to it. Glancing up the hill, Carla couldn't see any house, or any other buildings: but as an opening appeared between the squalls, she saw a large building site where the main house should be; she could see people moving about around frantically, and had seemed to have spotted them as they stared heading towards the gates. Glancing at the sign and reading what it said, Carla gasped in alarm as she realized where they were: property of the wall cult, no trespassing.

It was the land where the sanctuary was meant to be built.

"Who're those guys?!" Ariana pointed to the people that were now climbing over the fence and approaching the wagons: they were all dressed like ordinary people, if maybe a little too well dressed, indicating they all had a bit of wealth: but they all wore the same triple gold chains with the heads of the three 'goddesses' on the front, indicating they were cultists. Before Carla had a chance to ask them what was going on, two men grabbed the horses by the reins, and turned the wagon around: another couple of men did the same with Gale's wagon. "Hey! What're you doing?!" Carla demanded angrily, "Removing you from our land!" one of the cultist's spoke curtly, "We don't permit outsiders to tread upon our sacred ground!" his buddy added. "Let go!" Carla demanded, but neither of them paid attention.

Climbing down from the wagon, Carla approached the second man and tried the wrestle the reins from him, "I said _let go!_ " She shouted angrily, only to be punched in the side by the first man, and fell to the ground. "-Mrs Jaeger!" Ariana panicked, leaping out of the wagon and running to her, but was kicked hard in the side by another man as he came running down the hill. Seeing this, the other kids all swiftly leapt out of the wagons and were about to put up a fight, when suddenly dozens of cultists were on top of them, having poured out of the building site: they grabbed the children and held them roughly as they marched them back down the hill. A few of the cultists grabbed Carla and Ariana, dragging them by their ankles across the rain-drenched grass. Pushing through her disorientation, and seeing Ariana teetering between consciousness and unconsciousness, Carla's maternal instincts went into full mama bear mode and she was up on her feet in a heartbeat: taking the cultists totally by surprise as she delivered a couple of hard punches to the face and gut. "YOU SICK BASTARDS! She screamed, " _How dare_ you beat up a defenseless child! Have you no shame!?"

But Carla's rampage was quickly subdued as one of the cultists ran straight at her, and drop-kicked her to the ground hard: Carla rolled over as few times before coming to a stop. Although dazed, she glared daggers at the crazed smiling man as he walked over and kicked her hard in the side a few times, while Ariana and the other kids watched in stunned horror; "...All who deny the divine architect will be _punished_ in the fires and waters of their sins" he smiled, his terrifying rictus grin seemingly growing bigger, as his eyes reflected his insanity: "And it would seem, the floods have come to punish _you_ and your spawn today..." he turned to his fellow cultists, "THROW THEM INTO THE WATERS AND LET THEM BE PURGED OF THEIR SINS!" he cried in jubilation.

The crowd erupted in cheers of delight as the children started screaming in a panic: pleading for their lives, for someone, _anyone_ to listen to reason. Carla was grabbed by her hair and arms and dragged down the hill, as pain began to throb in her side: rendering her unable to fight back. The flood had now completely submerged the main road, and was steadily rising as its flow picked up speed: As they approached the water's edge, the crowd's disturbed enthusiasm began to boil over in a murderous cheer, as all at once the children were thrown into the rushing water, with Carla going in last.

Struggling to keep their heads above the icy cold water while still screaming and panicking, the kids all grabbed one another by the shoulders and collars of their sweaters and jackets, in an effort to try and stay together. Snapping out of her daze, Carla floundered about helplessly before Clay, Hawk, Rowan and Ash held her by both shoulders, keeping her afloat as best they could: "its okay! We got you!" they cried out. Glancing back at the cultists as they grew further and further away, they continued to cheer and holler in glee.

Carla _couldn't believe_ what had just happened: had they all completely lost their minds?! They just threw her _and seventeen children_ into a raging flood, without provocation and without reason, and were _happy_ about it; _what person in their right mind does that?_ And that's when it hit her like a ton of bricks: _none of them_ were in their right minds: that one guy in particular was totally out of it, and not one of them tried to stop it.

As they got swept along, the children were still panicking and crying as they desperately fought to stay buoyant: as she struggled to fight against the current, Carla caught sight of a large giant tree branch drifting towards them, and it looked big enough for all of them to climb up on: "Quickly!" she pointed to the branch, "Get on that tree branch! Right now!" without needing to be told twice, the kids all grabbed the branch as it came up alongside them, and pulled themselves up out of the water, dragging Carla up onto the fork of the limb. The pain in her side was bad, but she ignored it as she looked the kids over to check they were all alright and accounted for: "Is everyone here?! Are you all okay?!" "We're good, I think?" Belle sobbed as she held onto her sisters tightly. "Mrs Jaeger, what do we do now? ..." Ariana cried as Rowan held onto the back of her jacket tightly. "I don't know..." Carla gasped for breath as she looked around, "But I'll try and think of something: _please_ , just bare with me!"

* * *

Back up on the ridge, having just watched what had happened, the four fathers were now in an all-out panic as Tyto kept his telescope trained on the giant tree branch, and its lucky passengers: "Is that message nearly done yet?!" Evrard barked as he paced about the cave with Eraman, practically pulling their hair and sideburns out: his ravens squawking and cronking as they too were anxious. "Almost there! _Almost there! ..._ " Falken panicked as he tried to write as fast as he could, all the while trying to keep his hand steady, while Evernight watched curiously from his shoulder. Finally finished, Falken quickly rolled up the tiny piece of parchment and slotted it into a small wooden tube, corked it, and tied it to Evernight's back with a long piece of leather cord.

"Evernight, I know you're not supposed to go to our usual place, but you're going to have to make an acceptation this time girl..." Falken told the hawk as he got her to perch on his gloved hand, and led her to the mouth of the cave: joining Tyto up on the ridge, he pointed to the inner gate and told her "... Go home you hear me, _go home_ , and get us help! Now _go!-_ " he swung his arm up to throw her into the air, and the hawk took off through the rain and wind, heading straight for Shiganshina.

"The flood's taking them towards the southern river..." Tyto swallowed hard as he watched the branch follow the current towards the submerged lower farmlands. By now, practically the whole valley was being swept away in the deluge: buildings, roads, trees, animals, people; anything standing in the flood's path was swept away fast and mercilessly. All the while the storm raged without letting up, the rain was now pounding so hard that it felt like nails and tintacks on bare skin, the wind howled and screamed hard through the trees like restless banshees, and overhead the sky was so dark it was practically twilight, as lightning flashed through the sky and thunder continued to drown out all other sounds. As he watched the flow of the water, Tyto suddenly noticed something: "...Wait a minute, the current's taking them right over the river and towards the eastern side!"

"But," Evrard suddenly realized, "-That means they'll be swept towards the forest!""Then we better hurry if we want to save them!" Tyto barked as he put his telescope back in his pocket, and took off down the hill, "-COME ON!" without another word, Evrard, Falken and Eraman chased after him with the ravens flying overhead, keeping pace as they let the pull of gravity speed them up down the steep slope: "Any idea where we're going?!" Falken called out, "The eastern-most forest road! That's the closest to the river! We get there and head further east we should be at the edge of the flood!" Tyto replied, "Just prey we get there in time brothers!"

At the back of his mind, Evrard was beating himself up for what he said to Clay and Hazel this morning: if they died, he'd _never_ forgive himself.

* * *

Elsewhere, up on Wall Maria:

" **Something's** _ **really**_ **not right!"** Hecate tried to hold onto the wall as best she could in her raven form, **"I don't sense the brat's magics** _ **anywhere**_ **in that tempest!" "Neither do I!"** Herne concurred, turning to Javorin, **"Brother! Something's gone wrong! I don't sense Elysia anywhere,** _ **do you?**_ **"**

" **Hang on a minute..."** Javorin frowned as he scanned the landscape beyond the wall; although most of the storm was now over Maria, it was still rather turbulent out in the lands beyond. Using his power to read all the ambient auras, he soon saw Elysia's aura radiating out like a signal beacon, her fear and panic spiking wildly as she tried to reach out for help. **"-OVER THERE!"**

Turning into his elemental form, Javorin flew through the storm like a miniature hurricane: barging his way through the oncoming winds, using his power to shield himself and the others from the anger of the weather as it tried to blow them away and strike at them with its rain and lightning; but to no avail. For any mortal it was the most dangerous of gauntlet run imaginable: but for the gods, as they flew on the winds as wind themselves, it was a real nuisance. Gazing up through the clouds for a brief second, Javorin caught sight of a whirling mass of chaos manna, churning up the clouds and igniting more lightning down towards them: 'So _that's_ what's causing this mess?!' he thought in astonishment.

Soon enough, the bright white of Elysia's feathers began to stand out against the grey gloom as they made a bee line for her, and as they rematerialized beside her: they were alarmed to see her lying on her side with a broken left wing, and her long tail feathers gone: burnt off, and in their place was a mass of black singed afterfeathers; her whole face chest and side was covered in mud, and behind her was a long skid trail some forty five meters long: testifying to the crash-landing she'd obviously attempted and failed. As raindrops mingled with her tears, she squawked and screeched in a pathetic-sounding sob: obviously in pain, and in shock. **"...G-g-guys! ..."** she wailed.

" **-Hold on, don't try to move!"** Javorin knelt next to her to inspect her wing, while Herne knelt down by her other side to inspect what was left of her tail: **"What the hell happened brat?!"** Hecate gazed at her with a look of genuine concern in her violet purple eyes, as she wiped the mud off her face. **"I lost it! I** _ **lost control**_ **of it!"** she sobbed, **"I-I dunno what happened?! One m-minute the storm was following me, and the n-next, it's soaking up all this chaos magic and g-g-going completely berserk!"**

" **I don't understand,"** Javorin looked over the broken wing in alarm, **"Why hasn't your injury healed?!" "I don't know!** _ **It hurts!**_ **That's all I know!"** she cried as she tried to get the broken limb into a more comfortable position, but no matter which way she moved it, it only created more pain, which made her cry out some more. " **Hold on, let me try something-"** Hecate slashed her claws across her left wrist, and held her arm over where the break was: letting her pale purple glowing blood drip onto the injury, and be absorbed into the feathers and skin beneath. Within moments, Elysia stopped crying as the pain dulled into a comfortable kind of numbness, and the break healed with the bones in her wing clicking and cracking back into place; she breathed a deep sigh, dizzy as relief swept throughout her whole body, and she could finally relax. **"...Better?"** Hecate asked offhand, **"Much"** Elysia tried to get her breath back, **"What did you do?"**

" **I'll explain later, right now we need to get you back to the forest"** she replied as she wrapped an arm around the younger goddess's waist and lifted her up effortless, depositing her into Javorin's arms. **"** _ **How the hell**_ **do we get back through** _ **that**_ **with the kid in tow?"** Herne swallowed hard, gazing up at the storm as it continued to rage over Maria. **"Forget about me!"** Elysia stated vehemently, **"** _ **It's the humans**_ **that are in danger! With that much rain coming down the valley will be totally flooded by now! Carla and the kids are still out there somewhere!"**

" **I know, and believe me I haven't forgotten!"** Javorin told her in a serious tone, **"But with all this chaos manna clouding our minds eyes, we can't see more than several hundred feet ahead! First things first, we need to get back over that wall!"** he put her down on the ground, **"Can you fly alright?" "My wings are okay now, but my tail-"** she looked behind her, at where her long tail feathers used to be, **"Here, you won't get a new set of feathers if these don't come out first!"** Hecate reached behind her, and started plucking out the burnt feathers: as each feather came out, a new one started rapidly growing in its place: Elysia was somewhat taken aback, but didn't complain as her tail grew back into place, and she spread her wings ready to take off: **"Thanks"** she smiled at Hecate, **"Now come on!** _ **Our friends need us!**_ **"**

* * *

Meanwhile, back in Shiganshina, at the Grayson residence:

"Good grief, I've never seen a storm as bad as this before" Rosemary thought aloud as she watched the rain pound the windows, holding onto her cup of tea with both hands, trying to keep the cold out of her fingers. "...I'm worried" Freya confessed as she stood by the window with Bestla, Skadi and Ran, who were all equally concerned: "The farmlands will have flooded by now with this much rain, I just hope Carla and the children managed to get to higher ground in time"

"Carla's a capable woman: she'll know what to do in a pinch..." Miriam stated confidently as Gustav poured her a cup of tea, while Derek sat across the table from them, going over some paperwork: "Are those biscuits ready yet?!" she called to Lucile in the kitchen; "Just putting them on the plate!" she called back sweetly. "Now," Miriam changed the subject, "About extending Tyto, Evrard, Falken and Eraman's work hours to cover additional security for the guesthouse and bar; I'm willing to bump it down to three days a week _at the least_ , with time off for important hunting trips and other duties around the Inn and at Coopers place, as well as that stall you have down in the market"

"Miriam-..." Freya sighed in regret as she and the other wives turned to face her, "Listen, I honestly don't know if-

Tap-tap-tap-tap!

Everyone looked around the room wondering what that noise was, it sounded like something tapping on glass: "Oh!-" Lucile pointed to the window as she held a plate of biscuits in one hand: "Freya! You have a big black bird perched on your window!" Looking back at the window, everyone was surprised to see a large black hawk with a prominent back-swept crest perched on the windowsill outside, tapping at the glass furiously. "Evernight?!" Freya exclaimed, quickly bolting for the door and running outside to retrieve the bird.

"Evernight?" Miriam raised an eyebrow, "I thought you set that bird loose ages ago?" "Oh no, she still comes home on occasion" Derek shrugged offhand: everyone looked at him weirdly, "How do _you_ know Evernight? And how do you know she comes _here?_ " Bestla frowned suspiciously. Realizing what he just let slip, Derek wasn't too sure how to answer that as he started sweating bullets: but he was interrupted as Freya ran back inside half drenched with Evernight tucked under one arm, and a small wooded tube in her other hand: "Quickly Skadi! What does it say?!" she tossed her the tube: Skadi uncorked the tube, jiggled the parchment out and unrolled it, reading it over with worry growing on her face. "What does it say?" Rosemary asked in concern getting up from her seat.

"It's Carla and the children!" Skadi began to panic, "They got caught in the flood and are trapped on a log somewhere near the forest!" everyone fell silent, "Falken says he and the others are going to try and intercept them as soon as they're close enough, but they'll be trapped if the flood continues to rise!"

"Wait a sec, the forest?" Derek suddenly remembered, "Bemadette, Bryson, Claude and Breck are out there too!" "But-, if the valley and rivers are flooded there'll be no way to get to the forest from here!" Bestla panicked. "There is one way" Miriam frowned, "If I take the main bridge across to the eastern forest road I can stay above the flood waters easily" she stated as she grabbed her coat and headed for the door, "-Hang on a sec!" Derek frowned: "You're going _alone?!_ "

"Unless you want to give me a hand, yes!" Miriam stated vehemently; "I'm not going to let our friends be left to the mercy of this storm! If there's a chance I can save them _I'll take it!_ You can either come with me or stay here! Either way I'm going!" she turned to leave, "-No you're not!" Freya frowned as she and the other wives approached her, "We're coming too! An old woman like you won't stand a chance all by herself! Besides, _our_ husbands and children out there, we're getting them home!", "Since you insist on going, we'll just have to come along too" Rosemary smirked, along with Gustav and Lucile. Without a second thought or doubt, Derek stepped up and asked: "Okay, What do you need _me_ to do?"

"Go fetch your brother and sister-in-law and tell them to close up the Inn, then ready the auxiliary cart and emergency provisions, we'll get everything we need ready! _Hop to it!_ " Miriam ordered.

* * *

Meanwhile:

The ride on the branch had been terrifying, as they got swept out into the river and then across to where the forest began, at the very edge of the tree line. As Carla and the children continued to hold on for dear life, they knew they were going to have to make a move to get to dry land soon, as the cold and the wet had them shivering uncontrollably: they were soaked through and through, and the younger of the children were starting to become sluggish as hypothermia began to creep into their flesh and bones. As the giant trees steadily came within range, Carla turned to the kids, and shouted over the thunder: "Okay listen! As soon as we're close enough to the trees, we're going to jump for it!" they all nodded, too tried to shout back as they got to their hands and knees.

The current was fast and turbulent as they approached the water's edge: from out of the forest countless rivulets poured down the inclining ground, washing away dirt, rock, plants, twigs and branches; here and there overflowing streams had turned into raging torrents, washing down larger items like small trees, and at one point what looked like part of a wooden bridge. Carla scooted along the branch, trying to position herself on the end of the limb so that when they came close enough she could grab onto an overhanging branch. But just when the water's edge came within several meters, the current suddenly took them over a series of rapids, and the branch was diverted away from the tree line.

"NO!" Carla screamed in dismay, "Hey look!" Lucy pointed: glancing over to where she was pointing, everyone saw they were heading straight towards a large coppice of giant trees, one that was a good thirty meters separated from the other giant trees in the forest, and was right in their path. The branch turned to one side, floating perpendicular to the current: and as they floated through the coppice the branch snagged between two giant trees, pinning it in place by the force of the current, and jolting hard enough to nearly knock everyone off their perch: but by sheer luck, no one went in the water. "We're stuck!" Dale called out, "Now what do we do?!"

Carla was about to reply, when suddenly a loud deep creaking sound echoed all around them: it sounded like it was coming from the trees. Glancing up, everyone saw the giant tree that had snagged the limbs of the branch was starting to steadily lean away from them: the flood water was washing away so much earth and rock, that the tree's roots had nothing left to support them. The tree groaned as it toppled over, creaking and cracking as it crashed into the water: its vast enormous roots erupting out of the water and swinging the branch around between the current and the truck of the tree: effectively still keeping it pinned in place. Looking along the tree, everyone saw the flood wasn't washing it away, and the top of the tree had crashed right into the forest. "We got a way across!" Carla called to the children, "Everyone up on the tree! We're going to chance it!"

The children scrambled to get up onto the giant tree: their limbs so cold they could hardly feel anything anymore, and it slowed them down considerably; in an attempt to make sure no one fell off they all continued to hold onto one another, with Carla leading the way as she held Ariana and Ash by the hand tightly. "Just hold on! We'll make it okay!" she called to them: they all weakly nodded, still desperately clinging to what hope they had left.

Carefully, they inched their way up the trunk: the tree had to be nearly forty five meters in length, and there was thirty meters of torrent flood waters to cross, all the while they felt the tree bending and creaking under the strain of the current, feeling as if it could go at any moment; that thirty meters began to feel like thirty miles as they fought the wind and rain to stay standing, all the while they hoped and prayed that the titans were somewhere nearby. "Come Shadow," Ariana thought aloud, her voice drowned out by the thunder and roaring waters: " _Where are you guys?!_ "

* * *

Meanwhile, Elsewhere in the forest:

"Great Sina on a Unicorn!" Claude exclaimed in dismay, as his horse struggled to persevere against the wind and rain: "At this rate we'll be cut off completely!" "I think we already are!" Bryson called back to him, keeping a tight hold of Bemadette as she tried to keep a grip on the saddle: "Have you _seen_ how much water we got to contend with?!"

Although the eastern forest road ran parallel to the steady incline of the forest floor (thus diverting the floodwaters downhill): the amount of water gushing down the slope was _unbelievable_ ; the entire forest floor was virtually under a few inches of water, and looked like one huge endless cascade, pouring down towards the valley below, washing away everything that wasn't either attached to a tree or was deeply rooted to the ground.

Noticing something moving out the corner of his eye, Breck turned his head and saw four figures running towards them through the undergrowth: with the encounter at the bridge still fresh in his mind, he wasn't going to take any chances, and so turned his horse to face them. Though he had no weapons handy he could still run them over if they tried anything: but as they came bursting out of the undergrowth and onto the road, he stopped when he recognized them "Tyto? Evrard? Falken? Eraman?!" Bryson and Claude turned their horses around, astounded to see it was them: but the looks of panic and fear on their faces told them something was terribly wrong, " _Good lord chaps!_ Whatever's the matter?!" Claude worried.

"IT'S CARLA! AND THE CHILDREN!" Tyto blurted out, struggling to get his breath back as he panted hard, "The wall cult-, they _threw them into the water! I saw it with my own eye!_ Th-th-they got up onto a log and are drifting this way!" "If we hurry we can snag them!" Falken panicked as he and Tyto carried on running down the road and turned off down the slope, "Come on! Hurry!" Evrard barked as he and Eraman took off after them. "Wha-, hang on a minute!" Breck called after them as he tried to follow as best he could, with Bryson and Claude following as best they could. Weaving between the trees and hoping their horses wouldn't lose their footing as the saturated earth continued to gush around their ankles, before long they came upon another, more smaller road: and through the trees down the slope, they saw and heard the thundering waters of the flood. "Okay, where'd you see them go?!" Breck called down to Tyto, "They must be along from here somewhere; at the speed they were going they can't be any further up stream!" "Alright! Fan out and start looking!" Evrard barked.

Glancing up the road, Bemadette saw a sign post at the cross roads: one that Lucius had told her about only yesterday; remembering what he told her, she quickly swung her leg over the saddle and jumped down to the ground. "Bemadette?!" Bryson exclaimed as she took off running, "I know some friends who live nearby! I'm gonna get help!" she called back, not waiting for a reply as she headed for the crossroads and turned up the left-side road.

"Over there!" Claude pointed through the foliage to a giant tree that was lying across the current some sixty feet away, with eighteen figures all slowly making their way across: no one could make out who they were at first, until Tyto recognized the taller figure: "-oh my god, CARLA!"

* * *

"It's alright; you're all doing so well!" Carla tried to encourage the children as they came to the last ten meters of the tree, now that they were in amongst the branches the going was really getting tough as they tried to climb over the limbs without losing their grip: meanwhile the tree was starting wobble steadily back and forth, as its roots began to lose the last of their anchor points in the ground. As Carla stayed at the front, climbing over a particularly large branch, the truck some two meters in front of her suddenly snapped in half with a loud CRACK! Sending splinters flying into the water and up into the air: and with a loud deep groan the whole tree swung away from the forest as its roots finally gave way, and floated freely with the current. The children screamed in a panic as the tree began to rock and roll: back and forth the truck rolled over, forcing them to run in the opposite direction of every roll, at the same time the tree remained within mere meters of the water's edge, but just far enough away that attempting to make a jump for it now wound be too dangerous.

"CARLA!"

Recognizing the voice, Carla snapped her head towards the forest, just in time to see Bryson, Breck and Claude ridding along the water's edge, with Tyto, Evrard, Falken and Eraman running after them. "DAAAAD!" Ariana screamed as she watched her father chase after them.

"HOLD ON!-" Bryson shouted as he took his hand grips and shot his lines at the giant tree; flying off the saddle, he ploughed through the water at high speed using his bended legs to essentially 'ski' over the water's surface, enabling him to hit the tree's truck without crashing into it. Carefully making his way to everyone, he looked them over and was relieved to see everyone was accounted for. "Bryson! What're we going to do?!" Carla shouted over the roaring water, "How're gonna get off?!" Gale pleaded. Looking behind him at the one large branch remaining, and noticing the proximity of the tree to the forest's tree line; Bryson suddenly got an idea. Quickly, he removed his gear, undid all the buckles on his straps, and somehow, in one smooth wriggling motion, managed to slip out of all his belts and harness: he took the harness and tied it to the base of the limb, buckled the triggers to limb with the hooks facing the forest, and using his hand grips, fired the hooks at a tree, the giant tree jolted as it swung around sharply, and ran aground next to the tree line, the limb creaking with the strain while the ODM gear began to warp slightly under the immense weight in had to hold: "QUICK! EVERYBODY OFF!" Bryson barked sharply. Nobody wasted a second in jumping off and scrambling up the slope to the tree line, just as Breck and Claude arrived, with four very relieved fathers who dropped to their knees and scooped their children up in their arms, crying every praise and thank you they could think of, with the Willum and Cooper kids hugging Carla in relief and thanks.

As she tried to breathe through her father's tight bear hug, Ariana saw Bryson leap off the trunk, just as the cables on his ODM gear snapped and the tree carried on its way downstream, with the ODM gear still attached to the limb. "Bryson, your gear" she pointed to the tree. "Ah don't worry: it saved more than one life this time; that's a pretty fitting ending I'd say" he sighed with a relieved smile, "Are _you_ okay?" He asked her. "Yeah" she smiled: "I see the brace's is working okay too" she pointed to his leg brace, "Like a charm" he patted it proudly.

As she tried to get her breath back, Carla was taken aback as Evrard suddenly scooped her up into a hug: "Carla, you have _no idea_ , how grateful I am to you for saving my children's lives!" he choked, overcome with emotion: "Thank you Evrard, but we're not out of danger yet" she told him. "She's right, we need to get to higher ground!" Breck pointed back up the slope. Too tired and cold to walk let alone run, the four fathers took their children in each arm (With the acceptation of Tyto, who took Ariana and Dale) and started trudging back up to the road, while Gale, Poppy, Belle and Ash were placed up on Bryson's horse, Shyla, Fox and Rowan held onto Claude on the back of his saddle, and Lucy and Lucius rode on the front of Breck's saddle, while Bryson helped Carla to stay on her feet as they brought up the rear. The cold and wet had really taken its toll on all of them, and Carla was finding it very difficult to stay on her feet: "Come on Carla!" Bryson looped her arm behind his neck and held her up as she tried to keep running, "You made it this far, just a little further! _You can do this!_ "

Making it back up to the road, the torrent of water was now faster and greater in quantity, much to everyone's disbelief: "Come on! We've got to make it back to the city!" Breck shouted, "Will the bridge across the river even still be standing?!" Falken shouted back, "We've got to try or _we'll die_ out here!" Claude shouted. Suddenly, a loud rumbling coupled with the cracking of wood, the groaning of rocks giving way and the roaring of water echoed down the slope, drawing everyone's attention uphill, just as a landslide laden with trees, rocks and other debris came barrelling down towards them. With a burst of adrenaline everyone bolted and narrowly missed the edge of it by mere feet: But Carla and Bryson were not so lucky as a stray log knocked them off their feet and tossed them into a nearby tree. As the landslide swept the road away, the tree began to lean over as the debris pounded it out of its anchor in the ground, and as Carla and Bryson scrambled to try and climb up towards the road, everyone was powerless to do anything as the tree gave way, and was swept down the incline.

"NOOO!" Breck howled as he watched his brother and Carla disappear from sight: with everyone else watching on in stunned horrified silence. But then suddenly, the sound gas-propelled pistons could be heard firing as two figures on ODM gear flew over everyone's head, and disappeared into the trees heading in the direction of the landslide. "What the-, who was that?!" Tyto gasped. Although they were blur and she didn't see their faces, Ariana could've sworn she'd seen a flash of ginger and brunette hair: "No way" she breathed, realizing who it had been. And sure enough, swinging out of the trees with Carla and Bryson safely in hand, Pascal and West landed on the road in front of everyone, "HEY! You got them!" Bemadette cheered as she came running along. "Cutting it a little fine wouldn't you say?" Carla smiled as she let go of West: "Eh, I like to think of it more as being fashionably late" Pascal shrugged as Bryson pushed himself off of him: "Fashionably late for our own _funerals_ more like!-" Bryson frowned, "Bemadette, you _know_ these two men?!" "Everyone this is Pascal and West: Pascal and West, everyone, _now come on!_ We got to get to higher ground before the whole forest gets washed away!" "We can head back to our place! It's not that far!" West pointed down the road as he and Pascal took off running, "Please guys!" Carla pleaded with the group, "Their okay, _trust me!_ " with not having much time to argue, everyone reluctantly followed Carla as she ran after the men, following them up the road as it curved uphill.

"You must have the _damndest_ luck! Do you have any idea how long we spent looking for you guys?!" Pascal glanced back over his shoulder at Carla, "Never mind that now! Let's just get out of here!" she called back. But as everyone rounded the next bend, West, who was way out in front, came to a screeching halt: kicking up water as Pascal, Carla and Bryson slammed into the back of him, but just as they were about to demand why he'd stopped, they then saw the reason why. Coming down the road at high speed was a large wagon being pulled along by a huge draught horse, and guided by the light of a couple of lanterns that blinded them as the wagon narrowly missed the group. "STOOOOPP!" a loud shrill voice shrieked: the wagon slammed on its breaks, almost going off the road as the horse swerved to one side, damn near losing its grip on the saturated paved bricks. Looking back at the wagon in shock, everyone was half-surprised-half-relieved when Miriam jumped out the back, donned in a rail cloak with a lantern in hand, and called out: "It's them! We found them!"

Out the back of the wagon, Freya, Bestla, Skadi, Ran, Mabel, Derek, Bren, Rosemary, Lucile and Gustav all jumped out, and ran over to their families and friends with blankets and towels in hand. The mothers scooped up their children and hugged them tightly as they burst into tears of joy and solace: while Rosemary, Lucile, Miriam and Gustav hugged their granddaughters/nieces and wards in equal relief. All except Lucy and Lucius, as they looked in the back of the wagon for their mother and father, their hopes were dashed as they saw no one else was present: all at once both their hearts sank, as they wondered _why_ their parents hadn't come to rescue them; seeing the heartbroken look in their eyes, Carla kneeled down in front of them, and hugged them both tenderly. "Listen...I know I'm not your mother, but, will this be okay? For now?" she asked with a nervous smile. With tears streaming down their faces, mingling with the raindrops that continued to pound their skin, Lucy and Lucius hugged her tightly as she picked them both up, and placed them into the back of the wagon.

Leading everyone to the wagon and helping them climb aboard: the rescue party helped to get everyone seated, and as she led her husband and children inside, Freya couldn't help but continue to cry with a big smile on her face: "How-, how did you find us?" Tyto panted as he gazed at his wife in astonishment: "You can thank Evernight for that" she smiled as she placed a kiss on his forehead; looking up at the canvass covering, he saw the black fork-tailed hawk peering down at them inquisitively: "Extra jerky for you tonight!" he smiled up at her, "Don't start celebrating just yet, we got to get back across the main bridge near the gate first!" Miriam stated as she handed Claude and Breck a couple of rain cloaks.

Glancing over at Pascal and West, and noticing their ODM gear, Gustav raised a quizzical eyebrow: "Who're _these_ two?" he thumbed over to them: "Their friends of ours!" Ariana called out from the back of the wagon, "Their names are Pascal and West! And they saved Carla and Bryson!" Belle added vehemently: "She's right" Bryson spoke up as he helped the Willum sisters and Ash into the wagon, "They saved us from a landslide: we own them one". "Fair enough, you coming with us or what? Only this whole hill's about to come down!" "Uh-, yeah sure" Pascal blurted out as he pushed West towards the wagon, and they both climbed up in.

Once everyone was seated, and Claude, Bryson and Breck and their horses were adequately dressed for the weather, the wagon was turned around and they set off back to Shiganshina. "Thank Maria we reached you in time" Miriam sighed offhand as she drove the horse, "We would never have found you all if it wasn't for that bird of yours Falken", "Well Evernight, we owe you one girl" Falken smiled as Evernight sat contently in Ashlyn's lap, while she sat on his lap, trying to keep warm. "Eraman, what about the ravens?" Skadi asked in concern, "Oh don't worry about them dear, they took off as soon as it started to come down" Eraman assured her as he held Josefa and Jaye close under a large towel.

Peering out the front of the wagon between Miriam and Gustav, Pascal frowned in alarm: "Hey, did you come along this road before?" he asked offhand, tapping Miriam on the back: "No? we came via the road through Oberosten, but that place was about to go under: figured this route would be higher and quicker on the way back..." she turned round to face him to ask why, only to see Pascal had a scared look in his eyes, "You gotta turn the wagon back! _Right now!_ " "What?" Ariana blinked in surprise, "Pascal what're you talking about?" "This whole road!-" Pascal tried to plead with Miriam, "It's controlled by the-

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The wagon jolted violently, and swerved dangerously to the side as the horse dropped dead with a huge bullet wound straight through its head: the wagon nearly flipped right over as its momentum made it swing hard to the left, breaking the shafts right off as it continued to swerve across the flooded road; the force making everyone knock into one another before they finally came to an abrupt stop. Behind them, Bryson, Breck and Claude were lying in the road, injured and dazed as their horses had been shot dead too: lying motionless some twenty feet behind them. As they tried to get their bearings, everyone looked out both ends of the wagon, and were taken aback to see a gang of about fifty masked men walk out from the trees, four of them armed with guns, the rest, all armed with axes, chains, knives and knuckledusters. "Shit..." Pascal swallowed hard, "It's _them!_ " "Wait-, you don't mean-" West glanced out the back, and saw them advancing on the three gentlemen behind them, "...Shit!" was all he could say as he began to tremble with fear.

As he held his hand over the cut on his forehead, Bryson tried to get back up, only to be kicked in the side, so hard he went flying through the air, landing next to the verge: "BRYSON!" Breck tried to scramble for his brother, only to be kicked as well: Claude was grabbed by his hair and dragged to the side of the road where two men proceeded to beat him up. But before everyone else could react, the gang attacked the wagon head on, ripping the canvas apart and dragging everyone out; the women screamed as they tried to protect their children, fighting furiously with everything they had: while the men were trying to wrestle their attackers off, landing punches and kicks in every direction.

Miriam in particular was like a raging bull as she dealt blow after blow, letting out a continual string of profanities as she beat the living daylights out of every criminal she got her hands on. Gustav too wasn't far behind her as he laid into every man in his path. Tyto, Evrard, Falken and Eraman had their size and weight going for them: the four of them were like giants compared to the smaller men, and their wives weren't too dissimilar in build and robustness. Bryson had his military expertise to call up upon, as he'd been able to get to his feet and hold his ground: Bren, Derek, Pascal and West on the other hand simply slug it out as best they could, trying desperately not to get a knife or axe to the side. Rosemary, Lucile, Carla and Mabel gathered the children and ran down the road: but to their horror, five of the gang spotted them and gave chase; the children, Carla and Mabel immediately ran at them and tackled them to the ground, taking them completely by surprise as they tried the wrestle the weapons from our of their hands (Fortunately, these five were only armed with chains, had they been knives, it'd have been a different story).

Getting Claude back from his attackers and standing over his friend to keep him safe, Bryson kept his fists up as the (presumed) leader of the gang stepped towards him with a large sickle in one hand, his face concealed beneath a hessian cloth sack: "...You're good" he grinned, "I like the ones that can put up a fight" he chuckled darkly: Bryson didn't budge as he kept himself planted to the spot; _no way_ was he going down without a fight: "We've got no money" he stated: "Oh we figured that" the masked man grinned, "It's _the children_ we want: they should go for a good price in the interior, providing we get them all alive that is, your women too I'd wager. Sorry, but I don't have much use for the rest of you I'm afraid"

As one of the criminals grabbed Ariana by the scruff of her neck and threw her off, she landed hard on the soaked grassy verge, but as she scrambled to get back up, she caught a glimpse of four familiar faces staring down at her from the trees; she smiled, and right away she knew everything was going to be okay.

As the gang's leader advanced towards him, time seemed to slow as Bryson suddenly felt a sharp chill go right up through the center of his spine: 'What? ...' his eyes widened in confusion: "why am I-...'. He'd felt it before, long ago when he used to go beyond the walls: that sense of danger and dread that told him to be alert and get his head in the game, the one, that _never_ failed to tell him when a titan was close and approaching; '...Why am I feeling this?...' he thought in confusion. But he was inside Maria, far from the titans: so why was he getting that feeling _now_ of all times?

As the man raised his arm to bring the sickle down on him, he suddenly stopped: his eyes wide with terror as he stared up at something behind Bryson; in that one moment, the whole chaotic fray came to an abrupt standstill as everyone stared up at what was looming out of the trees. Frowning in confusion, Bryson was about to ask what was up, when he suddenly heard and felt the pounding of heavy footsteps behind him. His eyes widened with fear as his whole body froze: he _knew_ those footsteps by heart, for they were the sound of death fast approaching; the footsteps stopped, and Bryson chanced a look up over his shoulder...

There, standing over everyone where _four gigantic titans_ : two fifteen meter classes and two seven meter classes; one looked like a bird, one looked like boar, one was female and black and white all over, and the other had the most hideous lipless, cheekless maw anyone had ever seen: together, the four of them were all covered in strange curling pointed markings. As the rain pounded and the thunder continued to boom across the sky, the four behemoths stared down at the humans intensely, projecting their hatred down upon the attackers: the gang began to back off while everyone else was too scared or shocked to move; their desired effect seemed to be working, until Poppy ruined the moment: " _YOU GUYS!_ WHAT THE FUCK TOOK YOU SO LONG?!"

Shadow and Midnight both rolled their eyes while Boar facepalmed and Angel shook her head in disbelief.

" **Oh great"** Hecate huffed, **"now's the cat's out the bag!" "Never mind that, let's just get to work"** Javorin sighed.

As the four titans stepped out of the trees, their eyes and the strange markings on their bodies began to glow in different colours: The big male one's were blue, the black and white females were purple, the boar-titan's glowed golden yellow, and the markings on the bird-titan's face glowed a pale ice blue; and all at once, the whole scene completely flipped on its head...

As the blue glowing titan raised his hand, trees erupted out of the road and verge like tentacles, grabbing the criminals in their branches and tossing them far into the forest as they shot up into the sky. The black and white female titan grinned wickedly as she held up both hands, and all the raindrops suddenly stopped in midair as if time itself had stilled them in place: the rainwater then froze into long shards of ice and shot down on the criminals hard, piercing their skin and causing them to flee yelling and screaming, and all the while not a single shard hit anyone else. The boar-titan pounded the earth with his fists, making the ground shake and rumble, sending out ripples of golden light in every direction: with every strike long narrow pillars of rock exploded out of the ground at high speed, knocking the criminals off their feet and sending them flying for a hundred meters through the air. And finally, the bird titan inhaled the biggest lungful of air and blew hard as she flapped her wings, kicking up a hurricane-force wind that scattered the remaining criminals into the forest, but left everyone else in place as if a gentle spring breeze merely brushed over them. With all the gang gone and those lucky enough to still run now beating a hasty retreat: everyone bar Carla, the kids, Pascal and West gawked up at the titans; their brains spinning with every thread of confusion, shock, amazement, and perplexity imaginable. "Wow, didn't know you guys could do all _that..._ " West thought aloud as he gazed up at the trees that had sprouted from beneath the road.

Noticing one of the gang had dropped their gun: Bryson quickly kicked it up, caught it, and aimed it at the lipless titan. "NO!-" Ariana panicked as she ran to him, "-DON'T HURT HIM!-" she tackled his side, trying to throw his aim off, " _He's my friend!_ I promise he won't hurt you!" Bryson stared down at her in astonishment, "Wha-... _What?!_ " " _Please_ Bryson don't hurt him! He just saved all our lives and this is thanks he gets?! Please just put the gun down and we can talk about this _rationally!_ " Ariana continued to plead desperately.

Staring up at the titans, Bryson felt his brain stall as he tried to grapple what she just said: '...these titan's-...are your _friends?!_ '. As if to try and convey Ariana's message better, the four titans held up their hands (and one wing bend) and waved in a friendly manner, while growling out something akin to an upbeat hello.

And at that moment, Bryson lost whatever collectedness he had left, and fainted on the spot.

" **... Too much?"** Elysia winced anxiously, **"I'd say so"** Hecate deadpanned as she gazed down at the other still-confused-and-terrified humans, **"Hoooo boy... This is going to go** _ **absolutely swimmingly**_ **"** she sighed sarcastically.

* * *

 **Well, Like Hecate said, the cat's out the bag now, and poor Bryson's in for one hell of a time: stayed tuned to see how Carla and the kids try to iron this out. BTW, while writing this chapter, I realized 'Carla and the kids' would make a great name for a 70's-type folk-rock band; I dunno? Is it just me? meh, I'm gonna do some fan-art on it when I get the chance. Anyway, hope you all enjoyed, and don't forget to R &R before clicking off :)**


	10. Chpt 9: The Morning After

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Chapter 9: The Morning After

The twittering of birds was the first thing he heard as he slowly awoke from his dreamless sleep, which was strange, given that he lived in a city: the sounds of people talking and walking about, horse hooves clip-clopping on cobbled streets, and carts and wagons rolling by; these were what he usually heard first thing in the morning. As he peeled his heavy eyelids open and noticed the sunbeams shining in through the window, he realized he'd been asleep on a makeshift mattress on the floor: looking around the room, he noticed his leg brace leaning against the wall in the corner by the door, and sighed in relief to see it was still in one piece (and looking remarkably clean, considering how much mud and water he had to wade through yesterday); frowning in confusion, he suddenly realized this wasn't _his_ room...

Hearing footsteps approach outside the door, Bryson sat up in alarm, but was only more confused when he saw his brother open the door, and walk in with _his_ clothes neatly folded in one hand: looking down at himself under the thick sheets, he nearly jumped when he saw he was completely naked. "Sorry about that," Breck smiled sheepishly, "There was no way they were going to dry properly with you still wearing them, so, I sort of took the liberty of slipping them off you while you were still passed out"

Passed out?

Thinking back to the last thing that happened before he blacked out, Bryson could recall some strange disturbing dream where he and everyone he knew from Shiganshina had been saved by four magical titans, from a gang of armed criminals: it was, so surreal, and yet so vivid, as if it had been real. "Oh, and if you think it was all a dream? Think again" Breck smirked as he handed him his clothes: confused, Bryson quickly shot out of bed, slipped his underwear and trousers on, and strode over to the window; outside beneath the bedroom window, the giant boar titan was sat on its haunches, gazing down at Clay, Hazel, Shyla and Fox, as they appeared to be in conversation about something.

Gasping in shock as he nearly jumped clean out of his skin, Bryson jumped away from the window and practically went flying across the room like a spooked cat, pushing himself up against the back wall as far as he could: his twin brother however, merely watched with a discerning smile. "...There's a titan outside the window..." was all Bryson could utter, his panic beginning to spike at seeing Breck's alarmingly calm demeanor: "I know" Breck nodded, "No, you don't understand: _there's a titan outside the window!_ " Bryson pointed to said widow: "I know, he's been there all night" Breck nodded again, "All night?!" Bryson exclaimed, "What the-, how-, why-, _what the hell's going on?!_ "

Breck approached him: and placing a hand on his shoulder he looked him square in the eyes and told him: "...If you promise not to completely freak out, I'll explain what I can, okay? But first things first, get dressed, and get your brace back on"

* * *

A short time later:

As Bryson followed Breck down the stairs into the kitchen, the smell of bacon and eggs frying hit his nose, and immediately his stomach reminded him of just how hungry he was: "Nice to hear you got an appetite," Rosemary smiled as she lifted the pan off the stove and deposited the eggs and bacon onto a plate that Lucile was holding, "Oh West dear, could you hand me another few of those eggs?" Rosemary pointed to the basket on the table, "Here you go Rosemary" the young man handed her a couple of eggs as he sliced an apple. Looking around the kitchen, Bryson was surprised to see Rosemary, Derek, Skadi, Ran, and those two men he remembered from the dream ('yesterday', he reminded himself, 'it _was_ yesterday'). "Hey, you're up" Pascal glanced over at him: "... Whose house is this?" Bryson asked offhand, "Ours" West replied, pointing to himself and Pascal, "We let everyone spend the night here, seeing as we were cut off by the storm: good thing this house has four bedrooms, it was a bit of a squeeze but we got everyone in alright"

"I take it Breck filled you in on what happened yesterday?" Ran asked curiously, "He did" Bryson sighed as he did up his cuffs: "And?" Rosemary inquired; Bryson paused a moment and then sighed in irritation, there was no use lying about it, "...I still have no clue what the hell is going on" he deadpanned. "Well, you won't be able to get much comprehending done on an empty stomach" Rosemary smiled as she handed him a plate of fried sausages, eggs, bacon, and a few slices of buttered bread, "Eat this first and then you can go back to worrying about what's going on"

It wasn't until Bryson was three quarters through his breakfast, that he suddenly noticed all the bowels of chopped up fruit sitting on the table: apples, cherries, pears, plums, strawberries, raspberries, peaches and apricots, they all looked deliciously ripe and sweet, and smelt good too; but that was when he suddenly remembered it was still March, none of these fruits would be in season for another four or five months at least, so where had they come from? "...Where did you get these fruits from?" Bryson pointed to the bowels. "Out in the garden, Shadow grew them this morning" Derek replied offhand. Unsure if he heard that right, Bryson tried to clarify: "...They-, _were grown_ , this morning?"

"Don't believe me?" Derek shrugged with a smile as he pointed to the back door, "Go see for yourself". Getting up from the table and heading out the backdoor, Bryson stopped when he saw six fully grown fruit trees standing in the back garden: every branch was heavy with ripe fruit, and on the ground coiled around the trunks were three strawberry bushes and three raspberry bushes, all filled with big juicy berries hanging off the limbs: so big and ripe they looked like they'd burst. The sweet smell of the fruit was heavenly, and as he approached for a closer look, his shoes squelching into the muddy earth, he noticed Bestla, Freya, Miriam, Mabel and Bren at the other end of the small orchard, each picking the fruits and depositing them into a large basket. "Oh hey you're up!" Bestla smiled as Bryson approached them, "Wha-, how can these trees be baring fruits at this time of the year?" he gestured to the trees. "Well because shadow grew them, we didn't have enough eggs, bacon and sausages to go around so he grew these trees for us instead" Mabel smiled in wonderment, "Honestly Bryson you should've seen it! It was _amazing!_ -

"Ah!-, he hasn't been filled in on _that_ just yet, he only got up ten minutes ago!" Breck suddenly interrupted them as he poked his head out the back door. "Oh..." Mable blushed, "Uh, sorry: not to worry though, all will be explained eventually" "Eventually?" Bryson raised an eyebrow, Freya pointed towards the forest: looking over to where she was pointing, Bryson nearly gasped when he saw the lipless titan, the black and white female titan, the boar titan and the bird titan all standing in a triangle some five hundred yards away: with the children all standing in their flattened palms, while Carla, Lucy, Lucius, Ashlyn and Hawk stood on the bird-titan's shoulders. As he watched with dread-filled bated breath, he realized there was no fear or panic, or any attempt to consume them: but rather, the group seemed to be talking among themselves; whatever was being discussed, it seemed to hold a particular importance as there were a lot of exaggerated hand-gestures between the children and titans. "They've been at it like that for over an hour now" Miriam commented as she placed a few apples in the basket, "Guess they're still trying to work out how best to explain it all"

"Explain it all?" Bryson glanced over at her in confusion: "They said they needed some time to get their heads together, figure out best to explain what happened last night, as well as the other stuff that's been going on apparently" she replied, "The other stuff?!" Bryson exclaimed in alarm, "Aren't you even _a little concerned_ about the fact there are four titans here?! _Inside the walls?",_ "I _had_ noticed, thank you for pointing that out Bryson" Miriam remarked sarcastically, " _And you're not worried about the fact we could be eaten at any given moment?!_ " he panicked. Miriam simply deadpanned at him, and stated, "Bryson, I think if those four 'titans' wanted us for a snack they'd have eaten us the first chance they got" she carried the basket back to the kitchen, patting him on the shoulder as she walked by him: "I don't think we have anything to worry about". Bryson stared at her completely dumbfounded, glancing back at Freya, Mabel and Bestla, he gazed at them pleadingly, hoping and praying this wasn't some topsy-turvy world he'd woken up to: "Trust me Bryson, we're all as astounded as you are" Bestla held up her hands in mutual bewilderment, "But Miriam has a point, I think if were in any danger here we'd have been eaten yesterday: I know that must not sound like much of a great comfort for you, but _trust me_ , we're all trying to get our heads around this as best we can"

Bryson still didn't know what to think, his head was still spinning with the fact that there were four titans here and they _weren't_ trying to eat anyone: this didn't make any sense in the least; he was about ask something else, when he noticed the children coming back this way with Carla in tow, the four titans however, remained where they were in the trees and stood there watching them curiously. Bryson felt that same chill go up his spine as he felt their eyes upon him, and naturally backed up a little. "Hey hey it's okay!" Ariana tried to assure him, "They know you're not comfortable with this, that's why their staying back there" she thumbed over her shoulder towards them. "Everything sorted?" Freya asked in concern, "Yeah, we're just about ready I think?" Ariana glanced up at Carla, "It's going to take a while, but we'll try our best" she sighed with a small weary smile. "In that case, I'll go fetch the guys" Bren excused himself as he went off around the side of the house, "Oh yeah I forgot to ask, where'd our dads sneak off to earlier?" Ariana looked around the garden. "Oh, they squirreled themselves away behind the sables I think?" Freya glanced over at the stables and small carriage house on the other side of the building, "Don't know what they've been talking about; it was a bit peculiar, they took one look at the titans and took off. I can't be certain but I think it's got something to do with those markings they have" she glanced over at the four giants, who were remaining motionless among the giant trees, "You noticed that too huh?" Gale sighed: Freya looked at her oddly, "How do you know about-

"-Ah!" Ariana held her hand up, "All will be explained mum, come on" she headed back inside, followed by the others: glancing back at the titans, Bryson swallowed hard as he re-entered the house; he made up his mind that no matter what happened from here on, he was getting answers one way or another...

* * *

As they watched the humans all file into the house, the gods all glanced at one another: **"Well? We set the parameters: the rest is all theirs now"** Javorin sighed: **"Do you think it's a good idea? Letting them in on** _ **everything**_ **we've done these last nine months?"** Hecate glanced at him dubiously; **"Well? The kids got their folks to listen to them last night, that's a good start as any right?"** Herne shrugged encouragingly, **"Except for the Scout,"** Hecate deadpanned: **"I could sense that guy had an instinct for titans, but I** _ **never**_ **expected him to be practically boarder-line psychic; that was,** _ **totally unexpected**_ **. He sensed us before we even assumed our physical forms: most humans with psychic abilities weren't even capable of** _ **that**_ **back in the day"** she thought aloud. **"...What're you thinking?"** Javorin glanced at her questioningly, **"...I'm not so sure if it's our divine power he sensed, but rather the curse"**

The other three gazed at her, realizing she had a point: **"...You could be right there"** Herne sighed as he thought about it: **"So? How long's it going to take for them to explain what happened?"** Elysia asked nervously as she rubbed her wing bends together, **"As long as it takes,"** Javorin sighed as he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder: **"Hey, don't worry about it okay? You explained to Carla and the children what happened and they understood your predicament; and** _ **we**_ **understand too, so don't think you're alone here: we got your back"** he smiled warmly, **"You really mean that? Even though I screwed up?"** Elysia cowered away from his touch slightly, as if she were expecting to be punished: **"...Brat..."** Hecate sighed in an unusually sympathetic tone, **"...There's no way any god could've contained** _ **that**_ **much chaos manner by themselves, let alone try to beat it back single-handedly: the fact you got away with your life is a miracle in of itself"**

" **She's right kid"** Herne glanced over at her, **"Even her elemental power over water couldn't have fought back the rain; not when it was tainted with so much chaos manna"**

" **It was bad for sure"** Javorin frowned in deep thought: **"But what** _ **really**_ **concerns me is why there weren't any other Tempus gods present?"** everyone glanced at him in concern: **"A storm corrupted by so much chaos manna? Every Tempus god in the hemisphere should've flocked to it like flies to a horse to try and temper it back to normal, but instead, Elysia was the only one there"**

A moment of uneasy silence passed, as the four of them considered the implication of that observation: **"...I don't think I like what that implies brother"** Herne sighed regretfully: **"... Neither do I,"** Javorin sighed in equal vexation: **"And as much as I don't want to have to put a pin in it for later: Unfortunately, the current situation demands our attention..."** he glanced over at the house: noticing how everyone had congregated in the parlor. He was about to say something else, when a small noise caught his attention: flicking his ear in the direction of the sound, he heard it was coming from behind a tree next to the house; glancing over at said tree, he saw it was Claude, watching them with intense curiosity. Realizing his cover had been blown, the skinny human quickly beat a hasty retreat into the house.

" **Well? Nice to know at least one of them is interested"** Herne shrugged,

* * *

A few hours later:

Bryson stared at Ariana dead in the eye with a completely perplexed frown, his jaw slightly slack and his eyes glazed over as his mind tried to comprehend everything he'd just heard: his face conveyed the perfect expression of one who had become so lost in his thoughts, that he had become totally oblivious to everything around him; while everyone else in the room was more mixed. Most were more amazed and fascinated than anything else, others were astounded to the point that they honestly didn't know how to react, and the rest were so overloaded with unbelievable information that they just made up their minds to go along with it and not think too hard; except for Claude, who had hung onto every word like a child hearing their favorite story for the first time, utterly entranced and curious beyond measure. Meanwhile, Carla, the Children, Pascal and West all felt like they were in the dock of a courtroom: hoping and praying that their friends and loved ones believed _at least some part_ of what they'd told them was true...

Between all of them, they told everyone everything: from the night Ariana ran away into the forest and encountered shadow, and the following day when she ran into him again; Carla also clarified how her run-in with those human traffickers was not halted by an angry bear, but rather the bird titan 'Angel', and how she too returned to the forest the following day to try and find her, and ultimately ended up caring for her, and teaching her the ways of the human world so as to avoid being caught. And together they explained the details of their secret meetings that were conducted under the pretenses of early morning hunts, and foraging trips for wild herbs and mushrooms (all the while finding it a tad perplexing if not a little funny that both their titans didn't tell one another about them; why they didn't tell? They hadn't thought to ask either of them yet, much to everyone's bewilderment). From there, the other kids explained the events of 'that crazy day' that took place last July, including their run-in with the dark riders (much to their parents horror): all collaborated by Pascal and West (of their part at least), who despite getting 'off on the wrong foot' with the titans, ultimately parted company on a good note.

After that, Carla explained how she took the delivery job so as to act as chaperone for the children, so they didn't have to go into the forest unaccompanied every time they wanted to meet up with their titan friends: meanwhile, the titans kept them up to date on their efforts to rid the Marian forest of the Disciples (and ultimately hindering the progress of the wall cults efforts to built their 'sanctuary'), as well as keep the Scouts safe on their monthly expeditions (which suffice to safe, came as a great surprise to Bryson). They talked of all the things they did together over the past eight months, all the wondrous and awe-inspiring powers the titans had shown them, all the games the kids liked to play: and with the dark rider's presence on their conscience, the Celtic kids even explained how they endeavored to keep their 'regular folk' friends safe by equipping them with the skills they need to survive in the wild with nothing to hand (it had become plainly obvious to everyone by this point that Tyto, Evrard, Falken and Eraman's families _were_ Celts: a fact no one seemed to be concerned about or questioned, much to Evrard's great surprise and concern), by teaching them everything their fathers had taught them (much to the four father's amazement).

And then finally, they relayed everything that happened yesterday: how Angel planned to use her 'weather-summoning powers' to create a storm that would strike lightning down on the sanctuary, thus burning what was left of it to the ground: but instead, something went badly wrong and she lost control of it (all the while emphasizing that the resulting flood _wasn't_ her fault, and she was in fact injured by a lightning bolt): they even explained, when they sought out higher ground to get away from the flood on the wall cults land, how the cultists turned on them like a pack of animals and tossed them into the flood without a second thought. The rest, everyone remembered exactly as it had happened: after Bryson fainted the titans escorted everyone back to Pascal and West's home, with Breck and Claude carrying an unconscious Bryson between them; Midnight used her 'water-powers' to clear the worst of the deluge out of their path, Boar used his 'earth-shaking-powers' to stop another landslide in its tracks, and flatten out what was left of the half-destroyed road for them to safely walk upon, Angel used her power to clear away the worst of the wind and rain, tempering it into a steady breeze and a softer steady shower, while Shadow, used his 'plant-controlling-power' to rapidly grow a strange looking rhubarb-like plant that had an _enormous_ leaf over four to five feet across ('Gunnera manicata', Lucius called it, something Shadow had taught him a while back) and a stem over two to three meters long (lined with sharp spikes, that were easily countered by wrapping a towel around them). He chopped them off at the crown and handed each one out as a make-shift umbrella: and as if that all wasn't enough, boar revealed his power over fire, by warming up the air around everyone to banish the cold away, and keep them from freezing until they got to Pascal and West's place; he even went as far as pushing the wagon all the way there so they wouldn't be without their provisions.

It was an incredible saga to say the least: with everything that had happened it was no wonder they hadn't told anyone of their gigantic friends; their powers alone were unbelievable, never mind all the crazy, dangerous, questionable and (sometimes) near-stupid things they had done/gone through together. But the one thing that stopped them from dismissing it all as complete and utter horseshit was the fact they had _seen_ the titans for themselves _and_ had witnessed their powers in action. On that evidence alone they took their story with a slight pinch of salt: not questioning the parts about how they first met, why they continued to meet up in the forest, how Pascal and West got involved (although the part about the kids using ODM gear sounded a bit farfetched), and why they kept the whole thing secret from them, those all sounded quiet plausible despite their incredibility. But the part about the dark riders however? That was dubious: much to the Children's, Carla, Pascal and West's dismay...

"...Okay..." Tyto sighed as he leaned his head against his propped up elbow on the table, "... _You do realize_ there are some serious questions that need to be answered here" "We know dad" Ariana nodded: "...Okay, putting the titans aside for a moment: I don't doubt your claim about seeing the dark riders that one time last July, but, don't you think if they were out there in the forest on a regular basis, we'd have picked up some sign of their activities by now?" her father asked her.

"Yeah, I figured that would be kinda tricky to explain," Ariana answered anxiously: "Well? Like I said before, Midnight is always the one to go after the Disciples hunting parties: Shadow and Boar only take care of the supply depots and half-way houses. When Midnight hunts, she always likes to bring back trophies and stash them away in her tomb"

"Which is the proof we have to back up our 'claim', and which we'll show you later," Rowan frowned: "... But the fact we're having to go over this again is _bullshit!_ _We're your kids!_ _Why're_ you even questioning us on this? If we were in the middle of the forest and I smelt the riders approaching us: would you question me right up until they slit our throats with their swords?!"

"It's not that! It's just-" Tyto tried not to raise his voice as he rubbed his forehead, trying to stay focused, "...I've been avoiding them _a lot_ longer than all of you children put together: me, your mother, _and_ your parents combined" he gazed at his nieces and nephews seriously: "We _know_ what to look for when we're migrating from one area to another, we _know_ their tracks and tricks by heart; half our lives has been _dedicated_ to avoiding their gaze. So you'll forgive me if I take your claim with a pinch of salt..." he gazed at his adopted sons, "...I don't have to remind you of the consequences for those that get caught"

"I know dad," Ash sighed, "But _what reason_ do we have to lie about something as serious like the Disciples? You've said it yourself plenty of times, a foolish hunter can only cry wolf so many times: and when have we ever cried wolf to any of you?" Knowing he had a point, Tyto sighed in submittance: "...Never" "So why now?" Ariana demanded incredulously, " _Why_ do you doubt what we've told you? You've told us a thousand times over we have to remain vigilant for the dark riders: we finally see them, nearly _get killed_ by them!We finally tell you truth and you won't believe us! WHY?!"

"Why?" Evrard frowned, " _Why_ didn't you tell us about this before?! You could have left the titans out of it, but you _should have at least_ told us that the dark riders were near Shiganshina! Why didn't you?!" "-Because we didn't want you all to panic!" Ash shot back, "-We were scared that if-, you found out the dark riders were in the eastern forest, that we'd pack up and move back to the wild in the western woods; that somehow you'd all get it in your heads that the wall cult were closing in on us and that we had to get out!"

"What?" Ran gasped: "-Ash, listen to me!" Freya grabbed him by both shoulders and looked him square in the eye, "If we knew the Disciples were in the forest again, we would _never_ do anything so reckless as to leave Shiganshina! Not while those wolves are out there! _How could you think we, or anyone else would be so stupid to pull a move like that?!_ "

Ash dropped his gaze as an awkward silence passed between them, before finally admitting: "...Because, it seems to be only answer we have for everything..." "What?!" his mother let go of him, and stared at him in surprise as he pressed on undeterred: "...Every time the wall cult, or bad 'regular folk' gossip is mentioned in one form another, we always talk about how we're 'going to return to the safety of the wild' or, 'how the forest will provide us with a bounty of hides': we don't stop to consider if maybe we're just getting a little paranoid, or that life in the city is just not agreeing with us anymore. Either way, we don't talk about getting along with it, or just being careful not to imply the wrong thing _,_ whatever the hell _that_ means anymore? ..." he frowned at his father, uncles and aunts, who all stared at him agasp: "Did it ever occur to _any of you_ that we don't like having to be reminded _all the time_ that we're descended from _cowards?!_ That every time the going gets tough we pack up and run away with our tails between our legs?! Sure, our culture survived by being stealthily, but did you ever think of the cost we had to pay for that?! Our pride, our dignity, our confidence, our courage; in all the time we've been hiding we never fought back against our oppressors, _not even once!_ I know it's not our way to give into violence and I still agree with that principle: _but damn it!_ That doesn't mean I have to be at peace with it!" he shouted angrily.

"-Listen" Ariana tried to clarify, "we _get_ why we have to do all the things we do, _we know_ it's what keeps us alive. But you _can't_ expect us to think that running away every time the world comes too close to us is going to work every single time. What if the wall cult found out we were living in Shiganshina, and rather than draw attention to themselves by storming the house directly, they simply wait for us to return to the wild?"

"Besides, even though Midnight has been doing a great job at keeping the Disciples out of the forest, there's no guarantee the cult won't send more" Hawk pointed out; "For the last eight months they've sent out nine hunting parties, all of which she 'took care of', and yet in all that time they didn't seem to get the message. I don't know if its hubris on their part, or if someone covered the up the disappearances in an attempt to avoid trouble. Either way, the forest still isn't totally free of them...Long and short of it? We didn't tell you about them because ultimately, we assumed you were all going to blow things way out of proportion, and do _the only thing_ we know how to do. Run and hide"

"Besides: even if Midnight's got them on the run, we can't move back to live in the forest anyway: we've got our lives here in the city, _our friends_ , we can't just up and leave!" Clay stated vehemently: "Wait a minute-, I thought we established that we're _not leaving_ Shiganshina: whoever said anything about moving back to the forest?" Bestla frowned, "Dad did" Hazel and Clay both pointed at their father, who suddenly felt like he was stuck between a rock and a hard place as his wife and sister both gawked at him: "WHAT?!", "I didn't think it'd be too much of an issue! I was going to tell you when we got back from our trip!" he innocently tried to explain: "Yeah, only _after_ we'd packed up and were half-way out into the forest!" Hazel fumed as she glared at him, "-And _don't you dare_ try to make any excuses dad! The only reason you want us to move back there is because of some _stupid rumour_ you overheard the pastors gossiping about!" "Rumour?! _What on earth_ are you talking about?!" Skadi exclaimed.

"The day before last, Evrard overheard a couple of pastors at the church talking about some new decree the royal government is reviewing that'll enable the wall cult to hold 'religious studies' in all the schools: therefore, he decided he'll move himself and his family back to the wild" Tyto explained: Evrard looked at him incredulously, to which Tyto merely glanced at him as if to say: What? You expect me to lie? "WHAT?! You were going to move us back to the wild?! Without _consulting_ _me?! Without consulting your sister?!_ " Bestla fumed, "-It's not just that" Hawk interrupted coolly, "Uncle Evrard's worried that by going to school, we'll be sacrificing our traditions and customs by learning stuff that's got nothing to do with us, you know? 'regular folk' stuff an' all that?" "Personally? I don't see how that can be a bad thing?" Ashlyn shrugged innocently. Evrard gazed at her in surprise: "You don't see how that's a bad thing?" he shook his head in disbelief: "Ashlyn, our culture is _dying_ because of what 'regular folk' think is best for the world, and you think learning their backwards ways is okay?! After _everything_ we've been through, how can you _think_ that?!"

"-OH LIKE YOUR ONE TO TALK!" Rowan suddenly yelled at him, "Rowan?!" Freya gasped, "No mum! This has to be said!-" Rowan stomped over to his uncle, and stared him down fiercely: "You think we're not aware what the world is like?! _You think we don't know how cruel it can be?!_ Having to hide what we are for fear of the wall cult finding us! You say we have to be scared and hide from the world; but what if something happens and we can't hide anymore? _What then?_ Where will we run to? Where will we hide? What if _everything we knew_ that kept us safe before, doesn't work anymore?! Did you ever think about that? No, _you didn't_ , because you still like to believe that the wild places of the forest are still safe for us, that they'll _always_ keep us from harm. Well I got news for you uncle Evrard, THEY WON'T! For _eight months_ the titans have been confronting the Disciples and making them 'disappear', for eight months the wall cult have tried to establish themselves here in Shiganshina, and the titans have been there to screw up their efforts; the only reason no one has 'disappeared' is because of them! The only reason we could still continue our camping and bush-craft trips is because of them. They've been keeping _everyone_ safe: not just us but all the other people that live out there in the forest too: Celts or regular folk it doesn't matter, everybody's fair game as far as the Disciples are concerned..." he took a deep breath as he calmed down a little, "...Look, I _get_ why you got upset, and yeah I don't blame you for feeling like that..." Rowan looked at him with a sense of confidence: "But if we're to stand any chance of surviving in this world: I mean, any _real chance_ of survival? Then it's not by hiding away but by learning how to hide in plain sight: and if that means we have to learn what regular folk know then _fine_ : I'd rather miss a few hours of learning how to gut a deer then miss learning how use money properly, or learning to write straight without getting ink all over my hands"

"Besides, it wouldn't be like we're giving up our whole culture entirely," Dale clarified, "It's nothing like that: but if you _seriously think_ we're so naive and gullible that we'd believe _anything_ anyone tells us just because we're kids? Then _you don't know us_ as well as you'd like to think you do uncle Evrard"

"And one other thing I can't stand," Clay frowned at his father: "-Is how much of a _hypocrite_ you are towards everyone else! What was it you said the other day? Humanity has nothing left to show for itself? That there's _no such thing as_ 'good people' in the world anymore, that even _our neighbors_ would sell us out to the wall cult at the first opportunity?!" he confronted him: Evrard immediately froze as everyone glanced at him in astonishment; but Clay wasn't finished just yet: "...You know dad? The one cruel fact _I have_ learned about this world is that bigotry goes both ways: you keep saying that 'regular folk' are stupid, backwards, spiteful, greedy and cruel: but how the hell are _you_ any different when your arrogance and condescending attitude leaves no room for people like the Willums, the Leon brothers, Claude, the Fitzsimmons, and Mrs Jaeger to be considered our friends. _How can you say such things?_ After _everything_ everyone has done for us? We've put our lives in their hands just to make it this far, and then suddenly you turn around and decide none of that counted for anything?! That they weren't putting their own lives on the line too?!..."

Everyone stared at Clay in amazement: Evrard in particular sat there in stunned silence, every word he ever said in anger and frustration coming back to haunt him, and he felt horrible. But Hazel had her own opinion to share, as she stated: "...You once said, that the best quality that defines a Celt is our ability to look past all hatred and spite, and to see the potential for good in others; _how the hell_ can we see _any_ good in the world if all we do is hide away in the shadows and keep ourselves distant from the rest of humanity? How does running and hiding solve anything? How does that make us better than everyone else? Or better yet, how _cruel_ does it make _us_ , if we're _willing_ to turn our backs on our fellow man?"

An unbearably uncomfortable long silence hung in the air as Evrard sat there contemplating what he just heard: as he felt their eyes upon him, he reluctantly turned his head to look at everyone else in the room. His wife and sister were glaring daggers at him as if to say: _how could you?_ Falken and Eraman and their wives simply looked at him as if to say: Seriously? What were you thinking? All Tyto could do was gaze down at the floor, and let karma bite Evrard for his own foolishness: he felt no reprimanding gaze was necessary. Rosemary, Lucile, Mabel, Bren and Derek stared at him like a couple of kicked puppies, hurt but not angry, more confused than anything else while Miriam and Gustav simply gazed at him the same way a cat eyes up a mouse. Bryson, Breck and Claude merely stared at him in disconcertment, but like the Willums and Fitzsimmons, they didn't appear to be outraged either; and neither was Carla as she sat there trying to lend him a sympathetic gaze. Feeling like the odd one's out (mostly because they weren't family men), Pascal and West tried to remain as inconspicuous as possible: this was some heavy emotional family stuff being exchanged, stuff they knew they weren't qualified to lend an opinion on, so for their part they simply kept their mouths shut and waited for the subject matter to move along, all the while feeling as though they were stuck between a several large rocks and a very hard place.

"...Look..." Ash tried to lighten the subject: "...I don't know the real reason why the wall cult wants to wipe us out? And frankly I _don't want to know._ All I know is that they hate our guts, and to that I say they can go screw themselves. I'm not going to hide away just because a bunch of psychotic zealous nut-jobs think they know what's best for everyone. _I want_ to go to school, _I want_ to know how to get by, so at the very least I know how to stand on my own two feet: in both the rest of this walled world, _and_ the wild"

"It goes the other way too you know?" Belle offered, "At least, by learning how to hunt and how to gather food for ourselves: we know what to do when we fall on hard times and don't have a coin to our names. They don't teach _that_ in school" "They don't teach you how to make your own weapons either" Poppy smiled sheepishly, "And besides," Ariana chipped in, "So what if the wall cult teaches 'religious studies' in school? That doesn't mean we have to suck it up and accept it as fact. We got _brains_ you know, we _can_ choose what we want to accept as real and deny what we believe to be false. It's just like what Dale said, we may be kids but we're not stupid; it's _our lives_ , we get the final say in how we want to live them: no one has any right to tell us otherwise..."

Another long silence had the children on tender hooks, before Tyto sighed offhand: "...So that's how you all really feel huh? ..." he got up and glanced over at the children: "Would you-...Could you all leave the room for a while please? We've got to have a little grown-up's chat"

"About what?" Ariana asked, wondering where her dad was taking this; Tyto glanced over at Evrard with his poker face, and sighed, "...A few things I think are long overdue to be discussed between us all" he glanced back at Ariana: "It's okay, we'll call you back when we're done"

"Why don't you all go and check on the titans?" Carla suggested, "They must be getting pretty bored just standing around out there?" glancing out the window, everyone saw the titans hadn't moved from their spot: like children waiting to see the head teacher for a misdemeanor, they just stood there impassively: were they anxious? Frustrated? It was hard to tell. Glancing around the room, the kids all began to get the vibe that their presence was no longer required, and so didn't probe the matter any further as they quietly took their leave, with Tyto softly shutting the door behind them.

Heading outside and making their way across the boggy muddy earth to the small clearing where the titans were standing, the kids all glanced up at their giant friends, who all kneeled down to meet them with sympathetic looks: "...You heard all that, didn't you?" Ariana looked away in anxious embarrassment. Shadow softly lifted her up between his finger and thumb, and gently held her in his palm: lifting her chin up with the tip of his thumb to get her attention as he wrote out, : With these big ears? It's kind of hard not to: he pointed to one of his elfish ears, before adding, : But listen, no matter what happens, your parents will _always_ love you; and it's _because_ they love you so much, that they're willing to go to the length's they'll go, to keep you all safe: "I _get_ that," Ash sighed with a slight wince, feeling bad enough as it is: "But does that mean we have to be cowards in the process? Do we really have to turn our backs on our friends, just to stay alive?" he thought aloud, "...If part of staying alive as a Celt means having to be hypocritical about our most basic belief in humanity, then _I don't want_ any part of it"

"What?" Clay gazed at him in surprise, "Come on, I know we're asking some serious questions here, but you don't mean _that_ , surely?" "Don't I?" Ash gazed at him stoically, "...I have to agree with him" Hawk sighed reluctantly, "If we're not willing to admit our own faults as a people different from another culture, then how can we expect to find any common ground, if we can't even sympathize with them when it comes to _our own_ lesser qualities?"

"...You know? I never thought we'd actually be talking about something like this" Jaye admitted anxiously: "I didn't really used to think about this kind of thing much: well? Not as seriously as I probably should have been, I mean _sure_ I knew we had to remain hidden for our own safety an' all that, but, I never thought the things that defined us as Celts could also set us apart from everyone else in a 'bad' way?" he pouted slightly, "Am I wrong?". Josefa laid a hand on his shoulder, but she wasn't sure what to say.

Feeling helpless, and frustrated at not being able to do anything to change all this: Fox sighed in defeat as he lay a hand on Ash's shoulder: "Listen...I may not be a Celt, but as someone from the outside looking in: I can tell you right here and now: we've got _way more_ in common that you think," Ash turned to face him as he explained: "I know on the surface we look very similar, and that beneath that surface we've got very different ways of doing things: but, you're not the first to run from a fight" "What do you mean?" Rowan frowned. Hoping deep down he wasn't making a mistake, Fox took a deep breath, and thought back to the day, when he and Shyla made the greatest choice of their young lives...

* * *

Another few hours later:

As she poured the tea, Rosemary glanced over at Evrard, who was sitting with his face in his hands: "Oh cheer up dear, it's not the end of the world: we've already explained how we've forgiven you" she tried to encourage him: "It's not that it's just-," he chuckled, feeling emotionally tired: "...I just can't believe I'm the last to know all this... Am I _really that much_ of a bigot?" "You're _not_ a bigot you idiot" Bestla sighed in exasperation as she took her cup and sat back down, "You're just short-sighted and pig-headed: like your spirit animal"

"It has to be said, you don't exactly strike everyone you meet as 'overly open-minded" Ran sighed offhand, "But you try your best; that's all anyone can ask for" Lucile smiled. "And let's face it, you wouldn't have handled it well, even if all the guys told you together" Freya shot him a mother-hen look. "The fact it's come to _this_? It shouldn't have happened in the first place; not if you'd learnt to be a little more understanding in bending the rules and learning to make acceptations where necessary"

Gazing over at Tyto, Bryson, Breck, Gustav, Bren, Derek and Claude: Evrard leaned back in his chair as Rosemary handed him a cup of tea: "...So? The traitors and heretics? Kind of an appropriate nickname considering the crack-pot theories half of you have come up with" "Hey, be polite!" Freya swatted him over the legs, "Actually he's not kidding there Freya: we _would_ be hung or burnt for even mentioning things like the 'altered memory theory', or the research I've been doing on the walls," "I'm still surprised you _actually_ went through with that, considering the risks involved" Mabel commented offhand, "But, given the curious mind _you_ possess Derek, I guess I shouldn't be surprised" she smiled wearily.

"...And, you really don't have any qualms over this? ... " Evrard glanced over at Bryson and Break: "Evrard, when you've starred down the jaws of a titan and lived to tell about it: I can honestly say, there's not much that fazes me deeply...except..." his smile dropped as he glanced out the window, and gazed over at the titans, who were still talking with the children. "-Oh I meant to ask, how're you coping now? Knowing their not about to be made into autres I mean?" Pascal butted in with his devilish grin, trying to lighten the mood (to not much avail). Bryson swallowed hard, he could see the titans were obviously presenting no danger: the logical part of him _knew_ _that_ now; but still that sharp chill that went right up the center of his spine told him to stay on edge. Which for the most part he was now mostly ignoring: putting it down to old habits as a former Scout; "...Okay" he admitted, "I _accept_ they pose no threat to humans (for the most part), I _accept_ their highly intelligent and are capable of using language: I just-, as a former Scout this is _a very unusual situation_ for me! One I wasn't trained for!"

"Like you're the only one!" Gustav grumbled as he slurped his tea, "We're all in the same boat here kid! So don't go rocking it just because you got egg on your face!"

"Ah! But think of the _opportunities presented_ to us here!" Claude perked up enthusiastically, "If what the children said is true, we could be looking at the emergence of an _entirely_ _new species_ of titan! One mankind has never encountered before! And if what we witnessed last night was _only a fraction_ of their full powers, then the possibilities are _endless!_ " "Wha-, hang on a second Claude-" Carla interrupted, "We _haven't found_ any other titans like them, and they haven't been able to find any of their own 'extended family' either; we don't know if they might be the only ones in existence, or, if the rest of their kind might be somewhere out there in the outside world?" she pointed in the direction of wall Maria, "Either way, It's a mystery both we haven't been able to solve yet" she clarified, "Well? Then maybe it's a mystery we can solve together? Like the riddle of their markings, I _can't wait_ to get started on that!"

"Actually, that's one hell of a theory you guys came up with" Carla thought aloud as she gazed over at Tyto, "And _you're sure_ you recognize those markings?"

"It's as I've explained," Tyto sighed as he sat upright and leaned over in his chair, "Those markings _are_ known to the Celts, their part of our written language _and_ art style: they form the very basis of how our people interact with the world, and how _it_ relates to us. After we retreated behind the walls, the style itself became rather 'contemporary': becoming smaller, less detailed and expressive for the sake of conveying information as facts, not as a cultural interpretation. Markings like the ones on Shadow's back? Those have not been seen since our Great-great-grandfather's _grandfather's_ age"

"Wow. That's way more than just a hundred years ago," West raised his eyebrows in amazement. "Which also leads me to believe our kids pestering us all winter to learn our people's language wasn't just a coincidence," Eraman realized, "Did _you_ know about this?" he gazed over at Carla: "They discussed it amongst themselves: they _did_ plan to teach me and the others once they learnt the basics. But yes, it wasn't a coincident" she nodded frankly, "They wanted to try and figure out what they said, as well as what was carved into their tombs"

"Which brings us back to the subject at hand ..." Miriam stated as she addressed the whole room: "...We still gotta go out there and 'formerly' meet them: because if you what you four surmise is true," she glanced over at Tyto, Evrard, Falken, and Eraman, "Your asking us to take _a hell_ of a gamble: even if we're not involved directly the fact _we know about_ _them alone_ puts us in an uncertain position, one we might not be able to handle as a whole... And then there's _you_ two," she glanced over at Pascal and West, who suddenly felt trapped under her commanding gaze, "We still haven't touched on the subject of what happened yesterday: like how you seemed to be 'familiar' with those men that attacked us"

"We are familiar with them in name only," Pascal deadpanned, "Trust me, we have _nothing_ in common with those psychotic nut-jobs" "Yet you trade stolen ODM gear?" Bryson frowned at them, "How's _that_ any different from what they did?" " _We_ don't kidnap women and kids to sell as slaves and whores on the black market; we may be criminals but we're not sick in the head like some we've had the unfortunate luck of running into. We _have_ morals and standards I'll have you know," Pascal stated matter-of-factly: "Yeah, Carla has confirmed as much by the fact she's still here in one piece: the kids too seeing as their all accounted for," Miriam stated: "Besides, _if_ you really were part of that gang? I'd have smelt rat all over you in heartbeat, and you _wouldn't_ have got away from that fight alive, _I'd have made sure of it_ "

"Trust me, _I believe you_ " Pascal deadpanned as he recalled the fight, and how she practically mowed down every man standing in her way: though she was old, Pascal made a particular mental note to be careful what he said around her. Getting Miriam's drift that these two weren't dangerous, Bryson lowered his guard a little: "...So just who were those men anyway?" "The guy who nearly made diced meat out of you?" Pascal picked up his tea and took a sip, "He goes by the name of Shredder (no guesses why): his gang owns-, or, _used to_ _own_ that whole section of road. They'd mostly jump poor folks traveling late at night: and when the wall cult muscled in last summer and kicked out all those laborers? They struck pay-dirt, must've grabbed about ten families in total I think? Last night, we were damn lucky the titans showed up when they did"

"And you know all that because?" Break frowned skeptically, "Shiganshina might not be anywhere on the scale of Mitras, but the criminal underworld thrives beneath its polished exterior all the same" West chipped in, "We go to the city regularly to check what's being said down the grapevine: in a place where crime can go about its business quietly and the law is as reliable as a dead dog, you have to stay on your toes constantly" "The second someone tries to muscle in on your turf, you gotta know who you're dealing with: so you can either pay them a visit and send them packing, or pack up and leave yourself; half the gangs in this region? You take _one look_ at them and you know it's a fight you can't win," Pascal stated, "Oh, and before you ask? _There's a difference_ between cowardice and knowing when the odds are not in your favor; and we're not gamblers"

"Well good: gambling's a waste of money and a waste of time anyway..." Miriam nodded as she approached them, "But that whole yarn you two spun about the kids using ODM gear to try and 'rescue' their giant friends?..." she eyed them suspiciously for a long tense moment, before asking, "...I'd be interested to see if there's any truth to that"

"Say what?" West blinked in surprise, "There's a lot of bullshit I've heard in my time boys: as such, I raised my nieces to _never lie_ about important matters, and they _fully understand the consequences_ for lying in _my_ house. So when they tell me they used ODM gear from a couple of crooks to rescue their friends, knowing _how that sounds_ and knowing what'd do to them for _even attempting_ to make up such _horseshit_...What am I to believe? Except, that it can _only_ be the truth: I just need to corroborate it from you two, seeing as _you're_ the one's they got the gear from" she frowned at them.

The two men stared at her in disbelief, half wondering if she really had all her marbles: glancing over at everyone else, they just shrugged and shook their heads as if to say: just go with it. Deciding not to push their luck, they didn't question her about it: "...We'll go get the gears" Pascal simply said as he and West snuck out of the room, and squirreled away towards the basement. "Good. While you two are busy with that, we'll be tying up the loose ends" she called over to them. "Loose ends?" Evrard frowned in confusion.

"Yes, loose ends..." she gazed over at the giant redhead with a sideways mother-hen look: "Before we go any further with this, you might want to go and patch things up with Clay and Hazel: _trust me_ , you don't want to leave things like that lingering for too long before its time to resolve them..." she glanced over at Tyto, "You too Tyto, Ash and Ariana were pretty sore too"

"But-" Evrard hesitated worryingly, "I don't even know where to begin? I don't even know if they'll want to listen to me anymore"

"Evrard," Miriam sighed in an unusually sympathetic tone, "...He's your son and she's your daughter: you tell them both you are their father, you love them _very dearly_ , and sometimes you can't help but fuck things up. That's just the way parents are. But that doesn't mean you'll not be there for them, and you'll never stop loving them no matter how much fucked up shit they go through in life. Okay?"

Evrard stared at her for a moment: "...Fair enough..." he sighed meekly, deciding not to question her choice of words; "Come on..." Bestla sighed as she took him by the hand and wandered over to the door, "...I'll open up the dialogue, and then you can handle the rest": "I think I might need a tad moral support as well" Tyto smiled sheepishly as he and Freya got up and followed them outside. Watching out the window, they saw the two couples stop just short of the tree line, and upon noticing them, their children left the titans and ran over to them.

"...Don't punish yourself..." Miriam glanced sideways at Carla, knowing she'd been wearing that same face since Clay's outburst: the one that told her she couldn't help but feel she should have done more to smooth things over between Clay and his father: knowing it was _him_ that first told the children about the wall cult and the Disciples. "Evrard's a lot of things but he's not a bad man at heart: just a flawed one, like everyone else in this world. Could you have done more? Who knows? Maybe not; these little outbursts have _a reason_ for happening: their usually a kid's way of trying to reach out for someone to listen to them, because unlike us grown-ups they can't articulate themselves as well, so they do the only thing they know how...And it's a habit we don't really seem to grow out of: we just learn to apply to the things that hurt us most... Though that being said: I'd say they got their message pretty good" Miriam explained as she watched the parents talking with their children.

"...Whatever happened to Evrard to make him resent the rest of humanity so bitterly? Did he loose someone he loved to the wall cult?" Carla couldn't help but ask, "...We _all_ have" Falken sighed ruefully, "That's the whole reason our four clans came together to live in Shiganshina... It wasn't just the Crow clan that was wiped out that night all those years ago..." Carla turned round and stared at him in disbelief: "... So? Pascal wasn't kidding when he said the kids were last of their bloodlines" she suddenly realized, "The last of the Red Boars, Black Hawks, Ravens and Grey Owls; the four great clans of southern Maria" Eraman sighed: "Now, we are a single clan that lives under the name Grayson: and in all likelihood that is how we will remain until the end of our days"

Thinking about her part in all this, Carla couldn't help but turn back to the window, unable to look everyone in the eye as she watched Evrard bend down on one knee to talk to his son and daughter face to face: "...I should've said something to you sooner; I'm-...sorry I went behind your backs like this" "Ah don't beat yourself up about it," Miriam waved off, "You were thinking of those kids the whole time: when you're a mother you do what you must, even if it means you gotta be sneaky about it. And those titans? I'm just glad you're a good judge of character like me". Thinking of Eren, and how she came very close to death yesterday, Carla reluctantly sighed, "...Miriam? When we get back home: do you mind if I only work part time? After yesterday: I just want to be with my family" Glancing at her, and seeing the heart-aching look in her eyes, Miriam sighed: "...Yeah, figured you ask that; I'll talk with Freya, see what we can shuffle around" "After we're done here I just want to head straight home: Grisha and Eren must be going out their minds wondering what happened to me" Carla worried.

"Oh, that's another thing that struck me as a tad-, well? Odd" Claude hesitated a little:"I'm a bit surprised you didn't let your husband and son in on your little 'titanic' secret; I'd have thought with the friendship you struck up with Angel that you'd be brimming at the seams to introduce them to her"

"Believe me Claude, there's been plenty of times I wanted to," Carla smiled weakly: staring off into the forest as she thought about the reasons why she didn't tell her own family about the titans: "...But...every time I thought about it: I couldn't help but think of the complications involved; I know that sounds hypocritical coming from _me_ of all people and I don't feel good about it in the least. But I _never_ had any intention of letting things get this far: in the beginning I thought _it was_ only Angel, and if were just her then yes, that's probably how things might have transpired, just between the four of us. But then I met Shadow and found out Ariana had known about _him_ all along too, and after everything that happened on that crazy day back last July? Before I knew it, it was way out of my control"

"And you didn't want to let anyone else in for fear of it spiraling out of hand any further" Rosemary surmised: "The less people who knew the better: am I correct?" "Initially," Carla turned to face her, "But it _wasn't just_ the titans that were the real reason I didn't tell Grisha and Eren about them. The Disciples had me greatly worried: if Grisha had to travel through the forest late at night to go and see a patient, and he had a run-in with them?-" "Ah" Breck realized, "Yes, I see what you mean" "That's why," Carla continued, "When we started going to see the titans during our delivery trips, I laid down some ground-rules so as to keep us all safe; if the Disciples were ever in the in forest we were _not_ to visit the titans until Midnight had 'seen them off': and if you and your children were out on a hunt while they were there, one of the titans had to keep an eye on you at all times, and _if_ the Disciples ever found you? To get you out of harm's way" she glanced over at Falken and Eraman: "So it wasn't all just fun and games eh?" Skadi thought aloud.

"Grisha I can understand, but Eren? You're still not sure about him?" Mabel asked offhand curiously, "I mean-, don't get me wrong, if you're not sure about introducing him to the titans because you feel he won't be safe enough, I-

"-It's not like that Mabel" Carla was quick to clarify: "I've no doubt Eren would love them, and they him: and you couldn't ask for better chaperones with them around..." she smiled thoughtfully: but her eyes still held doubt as she spoke her thoughts aloud: "...Some part of me still hopes to introduce him to them one day: but... It's a great burden, knowing what we know and knowing what the consequences will likely be if it gets out. The kids have found it difficult enough keeping it from all of you, and I don't want Eren to have to go through life suffering that same burden; knowing he could never tell Armin, or any other new friends he might make in the future? _I don't want that_ for my son," she gazed out the window, just in time to see Evrard hugging Clay and Hazel, and Tyto patting his children on the head: "...That night Angel and I met? I don't know if that was fated, or if it was just a completely random fluke: in any case I owe her my life, and _I_ made the conscious decision to go back and see her. This whole thing (from my perspective at least) has transpired due to circumstances that were totally beyond all our control, and what choices we _did_ have, we tried to make the best one's for everyone's benefit: _not just_ us or the titans. If we had the chance to go back in time and change something would we do it? Probably? I don't know? All I know is that for the past eight months it's been a bitter-sweet time: sweet, for the company and fun we've shared together with our friends; and bitter, for knowing we _couldn't_ share it with the whole world, for the _one obvious reason_ " she let her gaze drop in rueful heart-ache, "...I don't want Eren to grow up with that ache in his heart; if something happens beyond my control and he finds out about Angel or the other titans? Then so be it, I'll cross that bridge when I come to it: but for now, I just want him to have a childhood free of as many burdens as possible. For as long as it can last"

As everyone pondered her reasoning: one thing stood out to Rosemary: "...And you think that'll be okay with Ariana and the other children? I'd have thought it'd go both ways?" "Of course it goes both ways" Carla sighed, "Ariana's already asked me about it twice, and she doesn't like having to keep it secret from Eren any more than I do; it's just-... _I don't know_ if she'll fully understand the real reason why I won't tell him"

"Heh" Miriam couldn't help but smile: "I think after that little outburst earlier? Those kids are more than just aware of what's at hand: and it seems pretty clear to me they ain't as naive as they look..." she placed a hand on Carla's shoulder, "Just talk to her okay? Ariana may not be the smartest kid on the street, but she sure as hell has the heart to deal with _your_ line of reasoning; she _is_ her father's daughter after all"

"It's hard, I know" Rosemary sighed as she got and wandered over to the window: "But there comes the day every parent has to face, when they have to step back and let their children take the reins: and if we don't instill them with the reassurance they need to find that confidence and surety in themselves, then _we've failed them_ before they've even had a chance to step out into the world..." Rosemary smiled as she watched the children by the side of the house, slipping into the straps and harnesses, and readying the ODM gear with Pascal and West: "...I think it's pretty obvious that our young ones are growing up fast, and they're now on the cusp of understanding the 'bigger issues' of life...Have a little faith dear, those children will be fine as long as your honest with them"

"And specking of honesty" Miriam changed the subject as she noticed the kids were finally ready, and were launching themselves into the trees: the loud pop of the pitons firing off echoed through the back door: "I think it's now time for the honest-to-god moment of truth: come on" she beckoned everyone to follow her outside. "What?" Claude looked all around, before suddenly remembering, "Oh right yes! The ODM gear, Come along chaps! This should be interesting" he practically jumped out of his chair, grabbing Bryson by the cuff and dragging him outside: "Uh- wait a minute! Those titans won't be anywhere nearby right?" the former Scout hesitated, "Oh come on!" his twin brother shoved him out the door, "You're going to have to meet them eventually!"

The rest of the adults filed outside, but avoided the mud by staying on the back porch: Bryson's breath nearly hitched in his chest when he saw the titans standing just beyond the tree line, all standing in a row as if waiting for something to happen: except for Shadow, who was holding Bemadette in his palm; with her back turned to them it was hard to see her clearly, but judging from the way her arms were moving about she was definitely doing something. "Calm down or you'll make _me_ skittish!" Breck deadpanned as he placed a hand on his shoulder. "Where did the children go?" Lucile asked offhand as she looked all around the garden and the forest.

"UP HERE AUNT LUCILE!" Gale called down as she and her sisters flew overhead on the ODM gear, followed by the other children like a flock of birds: "-CAREFUL! Watch where you're going!" Evrard chased after them in a panic, his nerves practically being raked over the coals as he dreaded Clay and Hazel, or any of them falling suddenly: "Will you chill dad?! We got this!" Clay smirked as he shot his lines at one of the giant trees, and pulled a sharp turn. On the back porch, Falken, Skadi, Eraman and Ran watched in stunned amazement, as did Rosemary and Lucile, though Miriam and Gustav's faces hardly budged an inch as they folded their arms and watched them carefully: Mabel, Bren and Derek watched in astonishment, smiles growing across their faces as they marveled at their talent. Claude and Break couldn't help but smile in amazement as well, while Bryson just couldn't take his eyes off them. With the trained eye of a veteran professional: it was clear to him by the way they were straining to keep themselves upright that they hadn't totally mastered _all_ the necessary techniques, but the fact they were able to swing and counterbalance their own weight, in addition to the weight of the gear on their thighs, was nothing short of remarkable, given that they were much shorter compared to the usual average height many new recruits were when they started ODM gear training. 'They learned all this-...' he thought in astonishment, 'They _learned_ to do all _this_ from that one time I let them try my gear on?!',

Were these children really that strong? Or had they just 'got the hang of it' from that one time he let them use his gear? In any case, Bryson couldn't help but be mightily impressed. Glancing over at Carla, he noticed the happy smile spread across her face as she watched them soar through the trees: sailing past the titan's faces, before coming back around and being joined by Pascal and West, as they flew with them on their own gear. "Mind your lines!" Pascal called out, trailing them from behind as they turned to make another lap around the perimeter of the clearing, "And watch out for each others hooks!" West added. "Okay, so the ankle-biters can use ODM" Gustav nodded in content, "That takes care of that". "But-, how on earth are they able to _move_ like that?!" Skadi gasped as she watched her son and daughter clear a branch, half worried they were going to hit it, "I'd say they got the balance down pretty good" Claude adjusted his pince-nez, "And it looks like they have good spatial awareness, judging by the way their able to fly so close together without bumping into one another".

At that moment, Tyto, Freya and Bestla wandered over to the house from where they'd been standing by the tree line: Evrard had given up pursuing the children as he stood in the clearing trying to get his breath back, while the other three parents all watched their children nervously; "You're okay with this?!" Falken gawked. "Hardly!" Tyto waved off as he watched his sons and daughter, hoping and praying that they knew what they were doing, while at the same time, secretly impressed by their prowess: "But _damn it_ , they sure know how to move on those things" "You know?" Eraman thought aloud, "With gear like that, you'd never have to worry about building another dray again: you can just shoot your lines up a tree, swing up with your bow and quiver in hand, and just wait until something comes along; you could fill up the pantry in less than a few days" "Now there's an idea" Tyto raised an eyebrow: Freya and Bestla could only roll their eyes in exasperation, "Trust _you_ to get an idea that involves our children potentially breaking their necks!" Ran gave her husband a sideways glance: "Hey I'm just saying" he shrugged innocently, "It just seems like a good skill-set to keep handy: being able to use ODM gear, you could do _all sorts_ of things!"

"Actually?" Bryson chipped in, "The chances of breaking your neck using ODM gear isn't really that high" "Hey! Don't encourage him!" Ran swatted the back of his shoulder. As they approached the house, the children came to a wobbly stop as they adjusted their pistons to 90 degrees away from their hips, and shot their lines outwards to the nearest trees, effectively letting the cable's natural elasticity absorb their momentum, bringing them to a stop. "Nice" Pascal smiled as he and West both swung up, recalled their lines as they twisted in midair, and landed on the very end of the porch: "At least you learned to slow down and stop this time". "So?" Gale glanced down at her elders, "Do you believe us now?"

"I stand corrected" Miriam admitted humbly, before glancing over at Bryson with a mother-hen look: "Looks like they learned more than just how to balance themselves; _what the hell_ did you let them get up to when you let them try your gear on?!". Bryson nearly jumped, feeling like a mouse backed into a corner by a cat, "Uh, well? It was just a few basic moves really?-" he fumbled as he tried to explain, half wondering what she had in mind for him, thinking he was responsible for this: "-Ah save it" she waved off dismissively, "What's done is done" she sighed, glancing up at the kids, "And I suppose you enjoy using those things?" "Uh? Pretty much, yep!" Belle nodded with a big grin spread across her face. "It's actually not bad once you get the hang of it!" Ariana smiled: "I'm sure it is darling," Freya nodded as she patted her chest, trying to slow her racing heart: "Now _please_ get down from there before my heart gives out!"

"Meh, just five more minutes?" Ariana grinned cheekily as she recalled her lines and took off, only to have her lines caught by Shadow, as he gave her a rather 'oh really?' sort of look, gently depositing her on the porch: under her mother's full reprimanding glare. Bryson felt the hairs on the back of his neck prick up as Shadow kneeled down, looming over the porch: one by one the children recalled their lines and dropped down onto the back of his shoulders, and slid down his left arm, landing feet first in the mud, while in his right palm, Bemadette sat with her legs crossed and a half-full hessian sack sitting in her lap; "Well? Seeing as everyone else has met the titans, you're the only one left Bryson" she smiled as she scooted down out of the titan's palm, and approached him with the sack in both arms.

Glancing up at Shadow, the sight of those lipless, cheekless teeth made it hard to like him: every instinct screamed at him that this wasn't right, he should be running, or fighting in his final moments of life before plummeting down the giant's gullet: and yet, nothing was happening. Looking up at his eyes, the former Scout felt his fears quell momentarily, as he suddenly felt a strange calm sooth his anxiety; those eyes, they were so bright and vivid: glistening with every hue of blue imaginable. He'd never seen eyes like that before, except for one, and _only_ one: Ariana's left eye. "You know? If you ignore the teeth, he's actually rather handsome" Mabel smiled, "You said the same thing about me!" Bren frowned incredulously, "Oh tish-tosh, I'm just jesting" She playfully swatted him. "Uh..." Bryson swallowed hard, "...Hi"

"Is that all your going to say?!" Gustav raised an eyebrow, "Well what the hell do you say to a titan?!" Bryson exclaimed, "Anything you want!" Ariana shot back as she strode over to him, took him by the hand and led him towards Shadow's knee: Bryson really didn't feel comfortable doing this as he pulled back a little, like a skittish horse: but he held his composure and refused to run as he allowed Ariana to do-, whatever it was she had in mind. Shadow offered his open hand, and grabbing his thumb, she placed Bryson's hand on it: "Okay? Now you can say you're the first Scout to ever touch a titan without getting eaten". Staring down at her in surprise, Bryson suddenly realized what she was trying to do, and deep down he couldn't help but be amused and humbled by her simple idea. Glancing back up at the titan (the size of him alone was intimidating enough as he loomed right over him), Shadow raised his other hand, and to Bryson's astonishment the marking's on his hand and wrist glowed blue: as he waved his hand to one side, a strange glowing substance that he could only describe as 'smoke light' materialized from the markings, and formed words, a whole sentence that spelt out, : Hello Bryson, it's good to finally meet you at least. :

Bryson gasped in awe: it was words, a constructed sentence complete with grammar and punctuation: for a moment he didn't know what to think as he watched the words fade away like mist; then, Shadow waved his hand back the other way, and more words appeared, : The children have told me much about you:. Still at a loss for words, he nearly jumped when Carla came up alongside him with a reassuring smile, and gently stroked Shadow's thumb, "It's okay, it's always hard to get your head straight the first time round"

"The first time round?" he frowned, removing his hand from the titan's thumb: "Trying to think of what to say in reply; I should think for you especially, this is quite a unique encounter" she replied, "Unique?!" he couldn't help but laugh nervously, "Uh, that's one word to describe it" he nodded. "By the way, he has something for you" Carla gestured to Shadow, who gestured down to Bemadette as she approached, and handed him the hessian sack: looking inside, Bryson was completely taken aback; it was his ODM gear. Lifting it out of the sack and inspecting it all over, he saw it _was his_ gear all right: right down to all the little dents and dings and every strap and buckle of the harness, except it was polished up to a shiny finish, the cables and hooks had been replaced with a new set, and the hand grips leavers and triggers felt smoother than ever. "How-" he stared at the gear in complete astonishment, "I lost this when I attached it to that tree"

"And he went to go and find it for you after we got to the house" Carla smiled, "It took him a few hours, but he found it and brought it back: Bemadette fixed it, cleaned it up, and Pascal and West provided the spare parts to replace the damaged ones". "It wasn't too badly done in actually" Bemadette mentioned offhand, "The cables and hooks just needed replacing, and the hip-harness needed pounding back into shape, but other than that it was in good shape". Gazing up at Shadow, all Bryson could think to ask was "Why did you do this for me?" : Because: Shadow spelt out, : I can sense it is precious to you; it's saved your life many times, and I can feel a piece of you within it. That's how I was able to find it:

As he gazed down at his gear, Bryson felt like the whole earth had suddenly shifted beneath his feet: all of a sudden, it was as if the pendulum of his instincts had began to swing in a whole other direction, leading away from fear and dread, and towards something more akin to a curiosity. Shadow, this titan had gone out of his way to find his ODM gear (which admittedly was special to him) and bring it back for him so he could continue to use it (presumably?), because he could 'feel a piece of him' within it? (Or whatever that was supposed to mean) Whatever the explanation, Bryson realized this was no mere titan he was standing in the presence of: gazing deep into those intense blue eyes, he saw something more than just a creature of great intelligence and cognitive ability; there was something deep and profound in his gaze, something that spoke of a great mystery, one so vast and complex he couldn't even begin to fathom what it looked like. Whatever it was, deep down he felt himself compelled to want to get a better look at it. A smile finally spread across Bryson's face as he took his gear, and gave Shadow a courteous nod: "Thank you, Shadow". The titan tipped his head to the former Scout as he scooted back a little, allowing Midnight, Boar and Angel to come up alongside him. "Well, now that the ice is finally broken, shall we say hello to everyone else?" Carla smiled as Angel leaned right down to greet them with her nose-boops.

"How about that eh? A Scout and a bunch of titans actually getting along" Claude grinned, "Who'd have thought _any of us_ would live to see the day?" "Indeed" Breck couldn't help but smile like an idiot, "What I wouldn't give to see what's going through his mind right now" "Whatever it is, it seems to have calmed him right down" Evrard shrugged. "Oh this is simply _too fascinating!_ " Claude was practically bouncing on his heels as he watched Angel chirping down at Bryson, "I can't wait to get started on the research!" "Research?" Falken raised an eyebrow at him: "But of course! Oh goodness I don't even know where to begin? There's the biology, anatomy, comparative-anatomy, behavior studies, analysis of those strange powers of theirs, linguistic studies to determine just how similar their vocabulary is to ours, analysis of those markings and their significance-" as Claude continued to rattle off his list of studies, Pascal leaned over to West and grinned in a hushed voice: "Oh boy, we used hustle guys like these back in the day, remember?" "Easy money" West shook his head with a nostalgic smile.

"Well? He ain't gonna be jumping out of his skin again anytime soon, and about time too" Miriam interrupted as she glanced down at the kids, "So, when're we going to see these 'tombs'? Only some time today would be nice"

"Oh yeah, I nearly forgot about those" Ash suddenly remembered, "Hey!" he called over to the titans, "They wanna see the tombs! Are you guys done yet?". Getting back up on their feet, the titans unexpectedly walked around to the front of the house: "Where're they going?" Derek blinked in surprise, "To get ready for the journey, we already got our means of getting there" Ariana patted her ODM gear, "What? Oh no! You're not swinging around on _that_ thing again!" Freya pointed to the device: "Um? Actually, they're gonna have to, on account we're probably not going to be able to fit everyone in" West sheepishly interrupted as he headed back in the house, "Fit everyone in? Fit in _what?_ " Freya demanded as she followed after him. Everyone followed them through the house while the kids ran around the outside: once reaching the side of the house they shot their lines and flew up to the roof, watching as the grown-ups filed out the door to where the wagon sat near the stables; standing next to it was a considerably smaller cart, "With the shafts broken off on your wagon, our cart's the only thing that'll be able to carry us to where we need to go" West explained, "And trust me, with all this mud underfoot, it's either the cart or the gear: because either way, if we try to walk there we'll be out in the forest all day" Pascal deadpanned.

"But we don't have any horses, so what's going to pull the cart?" Bren pointed out, "Here's your horse" Pascal gestured to Shadow, "HIM?!" Evrard exclaimed, "He'll carry the cart to the grove!" Clay called down from the roof (his mother nearly had a heart-attack when she saw him standing up there), "It's okay dad! We've done this before!" Hazel added, "Well the kids aren't gonna fit in there" Gustav shrugged, "And probably at least a couple more of us are gonna have to walk" "Me and Pascal got our gear so our feet aren't touching the ground" West pointed out, "Then I suppose I better gear up" Bryson sighed as he headed back inside to get his harness on, "Me too, give me a sec to find a spare gear will ya?" Bemadette stated as she followed Bryson inside. "Angel always likes to give me a ride, so if you'll all excuse me I won't keep her waiting" Carla smiled as she held up her arms, and Angel obliged by leaning right down next to the wagon, and letting her climb up onto her shoulder. Glancing down at all the mud, and looking over at the cart, the other adults all sighed in defeat: "...Come on" Miriam grumbled, let's get this over with"

* * *

Half an hour later:

"Huh, I can't believe the grove's not far from our place" West thought offhand as he shot his lines and swung over to the next branch: " _You_ can't believe it?! _I can't believe_ we've been living this close to the damn place this whole time and we never even knew!" Pascal huffed as he followed after him. "Oh lighten up it's not like they probably knew where our new place was?" West waved off, "Ten gold pieces says they did!" Pascal shot back. "Hey Shadow! Did you guys know where we moved to?" West called out to the titan, Shadow simply shook his head as he passed them by, "Don't forget to pay up when we get back!" West grinned smugly, waiting patiently as Pascal and Bryson both swung by, before rejoining them from behind.

"OI! Keep yer' eyes on the trail!" Miriam barked up at Shadow as she gripped the side of the cart tightly, hanging on for dear life as the cart steadily rocked back and forth: "Well? You gotta admit: this is one way to get around the forest in a hurry!" Derek grinned nervously as he peered over the side of the cart, and felt his stomach clench nervously at the ten meter drop below. "Indubitably ol' chap!" Claude grinned as he sat right up on the front of the cart, savoring the view. "Yeah? Well you can keep it!" Gustav grumbled as he held on tightly, "Give me a horse any day of the week! The view from the saddle's fine for me!", "Ah quit yer grippin' pops! We ain't got far to go!" Belle grinned as she shot her lines and jumped off of Shadow's shoulder to avoid a large overhanging branch.

The long walk to the grove had been nerve-racking for the adults, as they sat clambered together in the cart like chickens in a coop, while shadow carried it with both arms like a fully loaded fruit basket: carefully making his way along the muddy trail, trying to keep the rocking motion to a bare minimum while also trying to avoid slipping on the wet mud. Behind him, Boar and Midnight were doing some sort of strange waving motion with their arms, their markings glowing purple and golden yellow, as their footprints vanished from sight as they followed behind. Flanking Shadow's right side, Angel made her way along with Carla sitting on her left shoulder, and Lucy, and Lucius sitting on her other shoulder. The kids took it in turns to sit on the titans shoulders for the sake of saving gas, intermittently using the ODM gear every time they were about to knock into an overhanging branch, with Pascal, West and Bryson following on their gear. "This may not be the conventional way to travel" Bren swallowed hard as he peeked a look over the side of the cart, "But they weren't kidding about the mud". "It's not just the mud," Breck sighed as he glanced down at a small stream: though having reduced in flow and size, it was clear from the amount of debris on its edges that it had been overflowing quite considerably yesterday: "That flood did more than just soak the earth".

All around throughout the forest, the sounds of trickling rivulets, bubbling streams and dripping water could be heard everywhere mingling with the songs of the birds: the flood had certainly left its mark, as a number of trees had lost their anchorage and toppled over; some that had been situated on the banks of the larger rivers and streams had been pounded by debris and washed downstream, snapped in half and even broken to pieces; and some had been washed out of the earth and carried downstream all together. They had collected at choke-points in the topography of the forest floor, creating large areas that were full of dead-fall: broken splintered branches and piled up trees, like a giant stack of pick-up sticks. "...Goodness: I've seen devastation from storms before, but nothing on this scale" Tyto sighed offhand, "Well look on the bright side: with all these dead trees everywhere, we can look forward to a bumper-harvest of mushrooms this year" Eraman offered, trying to see the glass half full.

"I hope everyone in the valleys got out okay?" Ashlyn thought aloud as she swung alongside Shadow, "I'd hate to think we were the only ones!" Lucy called up to her, "I just hope those cult bastards got washed away!" Rowan frowned as he cleared a branch, "Hey! We're there!" Ariana pointed straight ahead, "Thank god, I thought this ride was never going to end" Miriam grumbled. As the titans entered the grove of giant trees, the adults all gazed up at the ancient trees in astonishment: "Great Sina," Claude gasped, "I've never seen giant trees _this_ big before", "Neither have I" Tyto blinked in surprise, "I never knew _this_ was here before?" "Heh! Show's what you know old man!" Rowan chuckled as he flew down to the ground and landed on a large log. As carefully as possible, Shadow placed the cart down between two elongated roots, making sure it sat snug and tight with no room to wobble. "You might wanna stay on the roots, Giant tree bark ain't slippery when wet" Ariana suggested as she launched herself off of Shadow's shoulder, and into his palm.

As the adults disembarked, helping each other get up and out from the cramped cart: Angel quickly took the opportunity to go and check on her nest; as she leaned down into the root cave, Carla breathed a sigh of relief as she saw the nest and the cave floor were both dry: "Oh thank goodness the rain didn't get in here", "Looks like the whole grove mostly stayed intact" Lucius mentioned offhand as Angel backed up, and headed for the hollow were her tomb was. The three humans and one bird titan all stared down at the hollow in slight dismay, as the whole base and inside of the tomb was completely underwater: like a chalice the hollow kept the water trapped with no way of draining off; considering the height of the tomb including its base, there had to have been nearly two feet of water in there. "Well? At least it's still standing" Lucy shrugged. The grove itself had avoided the worst of the storm and flood: with the exception of a number of broken branches laying on the ground, and several of the hollows on the outside of the grove full of water like drinking cups; by and large, not a single giant tree had come down, and much of the undergrowth wasn't submerged in a bog.

Once everyone was safely on the tree roots and using them as a make-shift boardwalk, the titans showed them their four tombs: including the cracked lids that they had put back together next to each of them, so as to display the original engraved images to top, which fascinated the Celts and Claude to no end. The insides of the tombs contained various things the titans had allowed the kids to place in there: Shadow's tomb looked like an enclosed playground, as there was a small fort made out of branches, bark, and other odds and ends, as well as a few pieces of wood with targets painted on that had been used for archery practice, as well as an impressive collection of other things that had been made into make-shift toys. In Boar's tomb there was a sizable collection of different crystals and semi-precious stones, along with several sized toy balls, and other bits and pieces the children had collected during their time together. Angel kept her treasures safely in her cave: like a magpie's nest the rim of her bed was lined with little knick-knacks Carla had found for her, as well as all the items she used to find on her invisible forays to the various hamlets on the edge of the forest. Everything from small toys to gardening tools: bits of broken ceramics and shiny metal spoons ('why only spoons?' Carla thought offhand); the head of a rocking horse and a blunt rusted wood axe, even an old carriage wheel and a weathervane ornament shaped like a cat chasing a mouse had even found their way in there, confirming Angel was more of an oddball collector than anything else. But Midnight's tomb was quite different, no toys or souvenirs had been stashed away: instead, the inside was filled with dozens and dozens of large sacks: all containing items like camping equipment, ropes, wooden poles, iron chains and hand-cuffs, guns, bows and quivers, bladed weapons, gun powder, and various other items that had been plundered from the Disciples depots and half-way houses; the children explained how Midnight figured it seemed a waste of perfectly good usable stuff, so she kept it all for if the humans ever needed them.

But one sack contained no such items: instead, it was the collection of all her 'trophies' from her hunts. The masks of the Disciples she'd encountered and 'disposed of', each stained with its former owner's blood': there were a hundred and fifty two in total. Precisely what entailed with these 'disposals' and how the Disciples were made to 'disappear' was (surprisingly) not questioned: the fact these masks were here without their owners told everyone that whatever happened, was probably not worth knowing about. In any case, the question of whether the Disciples had been in the forest or not was now put to rest: and soon after, the adults decided not to hang around any longer than necessary, and opted to leave the grove.

* * *

The journey back to Pascal and West's house was another nervy ride for the adults, but at least this time they knew what to expect (more or less), and were rather thankful to Shadow for not losing his footing in the mud. The parents also had a chance to get their nerves back as they watched their children use the ODM gear, and could see that indeed, they were quite good at using it without crashing into anything or misfiring a line and falling accidentally; it was no less worrying to watch, but they had to admit their children _did_ have the knack for it. Once they got back and were safely on the ground, the adults needed to steady their nerves with some much-needed tea, and so excused the children to head outside (minus the ODM gear) and play with the titans, while they gathered in the parlor for another exchange of thoughts and opinions.

"So? What do we think?" Gustav sighed in a deadpan tone as he slurped his tea, "Because honestly? I _really don't know_ what to make of it?" "I think it's a fair assumption our intrepid youngsters have stumbled onto something quite profound," Claude surmised as he held his cup between his hands, staring down at the floor as the cogs turned in his head: his initial delight and enthusiasm now replaced by serious thought and he contemplated what he'd seen in the grove: "If those titans _really have_ been asleep in those tombs for Sina-knows how many years: then it poses some very big and important questions" "Like when did they first 'go to sleep'? What was the world like before they went it? And how and why did they get placed in those tombs in the first place? _If_ it was even a willing choice to begin with?" Bryson frowned as he too thought about the tombs: "I have to confess, this has got me _very_ curious" "You changed your tune" West smirked offhand as he helped Rosemary pour the tea, "Not five hours ago you were scared to death we were going to get eaten"

"Yeah well? I guess saw some sense at last huh?," Bryson shot him a sideways glance, "... Besides, now that I've had time to calm down and actually think straight: I've been pondering on what you told us about their 'endeavor' to keep the Scouts safe on their monthly expeditions," he glanced over at Carla, "You say they leave the walls and tail them at a distance, and keep the bulk of the titans from getting to them whilst remaining invisible, correct?" "That's how Shadow explained it" Carla nodded, and explained further: "He and Midnight tend to follow the expeditions on account they're the more 'seasoned' combatants: Boar can hold his own well enough and so he goes along sometimes, but Angel's not experienced on account she's never actually been in any fight of any sort before, so she's the only one who remains behind"

"Hmm..." Bryson scratched his chin as he gazed out the window, "Oh god!-" Breck suddenly exclaimed in dismay, "You're not thinking what _I think_ you're thinking, am I?!" "Maybe?" Bryson shrugged coolly, "Why not?" "WHY NOT?!" Breck stood up and stomped in front of his brother, "Because it's suicide! _That's what!_ Not to mention you've been out of the military for twenty three years and are probably as rusty as an old cart wheel! Plus, what the hell can you do to help?! Your chances of survival are no different to theirs even with the titans providing back-up! What could you possibly do to even the odds?!" "-Whoa whoa hold up!" Bren raised his hand, "-Did I miss something? What just happened?" "Bryson got it in his head to join the titans on their mission to help the Scouts" Miriam huffed as she facepalmed, "Of all the idiotic hare-brained ideas, _this_ takes all the cake!" "Wha-, how?" he frowned in utter confusion, "It's a twin thing" Eraman sighed, "You get used to it" "Bryson, _you can't seriously be thinking_ about wanting to go out there! You of all people know what awaits those who leave the walls!" West pointed in the direction of wall Maria.

"I do, and that's _exactly_ why I have to go back out there," Bryson frowned at him dead seriously, "For twenty three years I've been unable to serve due to my injury" he gazed down at the brace on his leg, "For _twenty three years_ my heart has gone out to my brothers and sisters, hoping and praying that they've been making strides in my absence, maybe not great ones, but still, finding out what they can no matter how insignificant or mundane. When I first joined the military I knew _exactly_ what I wanted to be, the wings of freedom were only ones that beckoned me, and even as a civilian I still see them off at the gate: and greet them when they come back again. I cheer for every soul that makes it back and I morn for every brave life lost. I maybe a civilian West, but don't _ever_ say I'm stupid _or_ past it, because if the titans were to break down the walls and invade our lands tomorrow, you can be sure I'll be there to answer the call! _Every damn time!_ When I pledged my heart to humanity, _I meant every single word of it!_ "

Suddenly, the moment was broken by Pascal's uncontrolled laughter, as he howled in hysterics in his armchair: everyone stared at him, wondering what just happened (even West was taken back), while Bryson stared at him in disbelief: "-Oh, I'm sorry!" Pascal waved off as he calmed down and regained his composure; "I knew you were a Scout, I just didn't know you were one of _those_ scouts!" he smirked in contempt. "And what the hell is _that_ supposed to imply?" Bryson frowned dangerously, "That you're one of those scout's who's so full of himself that it's impossible not to laugh!" Pascal chuckled, undeterred by the glowering look in Bryson's eyes; everyone began to grow tense, realizing this wasn't going to end well while Pascal continued to push his luck: "Guys like you are way too rich! You spout all that sanctimonious bullshit about doing humanity a great favor, when all you're really good for is being titan food; thirty percent of your new rookies don't live to see their first year in service, and yet you keep telling every new sucker that there's no greater honor than to pledge your heart to humanity, and die as fodder-

Practically in the blink of an eye, before anyone had a chance to try and calm things down, Bryson was up like a shot and roundhouse kicked Pascal clean out of his chair, out through the door and into the kitchen, slamming him face first into the cupboards. Tyto and Evrard tried to grab Bryson but he ducked and slipped right past them, storming into the kitchen as he unbuttoned his cuffs and rolled up his sleeves, while everyone else was shouting at them to stop. With his nose bleeding, Pascal flipped back up on his feet and held his fists up just in time as Bryson swung a left hook at him, but he held his arms too far up, and Bryson easily kneed him in the gut with his right leg (which had the leg brace on, that only made it feel like he just got hit with a metal club). "-ALRIGHT YOU TWO STOP IT!" Tyto barked as he grabbed Bryson and held him back while Evrard lunged at Pascal and wrestled his arms up into a vice-like grip, West tried to help him but Bren and Derek held him back as the two men continued their verbal tussle.

"WHAT THE HELL GIVES YOU THE _FUCKING RIGHT_ TO PASS THAT KINDA BULLSHIT JUDGEMENT?!" Bryson fumed, "-You, a common criminal who preys on others, robbing them of all their worth, _and for what?!_ To live the life of Riley having never done an honest day's work in your whole life? Scrounging off the backs of others so you can live comfortably, taking everything and giving _nothing_ back in return?! YOU'RE SCUM! Bottom-dwelling low life _scum!_ The scouts might as well recruit _you_ as fodder! Seeing as you're hardly good for anything else!" Bryson shouted at him: "OH YEAH? YOU'RE ONE TO TALK!" Pascal shot back, "-You puffed-up pompous windbags drain the taxes of hard-working folk just so you can go outside the walls _to die!_ " he calmed down a bit, but was still riled up though: "... Tell me, _honestly_ : these last hundred years humanity has lived behind theses walls; in all that time the scouts have been going beyond wall Maria and in all that time do you know what humanity has achieved? _Nothing!_ _We don't know shit_ about the outside world because no human being has ever made it past the titans, and we don't know shit about the titans because your lot _never did anything_ to actually study them! All the knowledge we _do_ know is barely enough to fill a pamphlet never mind a whole damn book! You go out there and you kill them over and over again, _but_ _you don't do anything to actually try and figure out what they are or where they come from!_ "

Bryson stopped struggling, and stared at Pascal in surprise. Since Pascal had stopped struggling too, both Tyto and Evrard cautiously let them go: taking a handkerchief out of his pocket and wiping the blood off his lips, Pascal continued in a more measured tone, as Bryson, now more curious than outraged, listened; "...You claim your doing what you do for humanity, to try and expand our territories and push the titans back: all I see is a bunch of over-proud fools going to meet their deaths..." he paused a moment, "Seeing Shadow and the other titans for the first time? That _scared the living shit_ outta me, and for _that one moment_ I realized the true horror that you guys faced every time you went out beyond that wall: I respect you for _that_..." he gazed at Bryson with a mixed look, "Look, don't get me wrong, I don't doubt your concern for your 'brothers and sisters': I don't doubt your courage, your tenacity, your commitment, or your heart; but from what I've seen and heard? It just seems like you guys repeat the same stupid pattern over and over again, without ever learning from your mistakes or trying to come up with something new to-, I don't know? Find a way to sneak past the titans so you can travel further, or find a way kill them better so you don't lose more soldiers? In any case, nothing ever changes with you guys, and your _way too damn proud_ to ever admit it"

Everyone remained silent as Bryson contemplated Pascal's line of thought: before the former scout heaved a heavy sigh, "... Well I'm sorry to disappoint you, but you have a point", "Eh-, what?" Pascal raised an eyebrow, as did West: "-Come again?"

"That moment, when you see a titan in the flesh for the first time, we used to call that 'the breaker': because that was the moment that either made you or broke you, and really tested the measure of how well you could handle yourself. They say when you've been a scout long enough and you've survived enough titans, your pride is justified: because you are one of the _very few_ that has what it takes to do what no one else has the tenacity or guts to do. Being a scout is not for the faint of heart, you don't just wake up in the morning and decide to join the Corps on a whim: you do it because you are _driven_ , because you have the strength of heart as well as the strength of mind to _push yourself_ to the limit, and to keep going even when your body is failing you..." Bryson paused a moment, sighing in rueful thought as he continued, "...I was one of the gifted; at least, that's what they called me: my skills on the ODM were the best they'd ever seen, I knew how to read the situation, knew what to do under every different set of circumstances; I even had a knack for being able to 'sense' when a titan was approaching. All this, was the reason I survived for so long. _Eight years_ I served, not even the veterans lasted _that_ long: and yet in all that time I could _never_ bring myself to accept the promotion to squad leader, or even commander... Because-, I never felt my pride was justified..."

Staring at Bryson in surprise (as did everyone else), Pascal couldn't help but listen as he continued: "...I know surviving the titans is an accomplishment in of itself, and any pride associated with such a feat would seem justified: but to be honest? I didn't see what there was to be proud about? Every time we went out beyond the wall, _at least ten_ of us wouldn't make it home alive; _we all knew that for a fact,_ and there wasn't a month that went by we weren't scared of facing that inevitability: and every month for eight years I'd watch someone I knew die in the jaws of a titan. How could _I_ be proud about surviving? When everyone I knew didn't make it. I felt I'd be disgracing their memories if I went down the street bragging about it: so I chose the path of the humble soldier, fighting in the memories of those lost, and making sure every stroke of my blades counted for someone... As Scouts, our pride might be justified for the fact we're _willing_ to face the titans: but that same pride can also be the death of us. When it came to the breaker, those that made the cut were often the ones that were the most scared, for the simple fact their fear made them alert and ready, they didn't try to prove themselves, _they didn't need to_ , they just tried to survive. While those that were broken were often the ones with _far too much_ pride, or far too much anger: cocky, brash, overzealous and full of themselves; they only joined the corps as a matter of brown-nosing society or to prove a point. Theirs was a death that was ultimately the result of their own stupidity: but I stilled mourned them all the same, for it was such a waste of human life..."

He glanced over at Pascal, as he reluctantly explained further: "And to a greater or lesser degree, maybe it was that same pride that stopped us from making any real progress. What territory we were able to scout barely covers less than fifty miles beyond wall Maria, _and yes_ , what we know about the titans as a whole can only fill a pamphlet. I won't deny that...But what were we supposed to do with the resources allotted to us? Every five years the military budget is reviewed, and every five years we were _damn lucky_ to get what funding we got; between the wall cult's decree of 'retaining the sanctity of the goddesses' by forbidding cannons to be placed along the walls outer limits in every district, and the royal government's ban on 'unauthorized technologies', we could only use what was within our limits, which wasn't much. The one time we tried to capture a live titan as a specimen, twenty people died in the attempt, and the titan ended up getting its nape slashed by accident before we could even pin it down. _That one failure_ nearly ended in the Scouts being disbanded altogether, and we were put on suspended duty until our commander could smooth things over with the Commander-in-Chief, and the nobles who funded the operation... What 'good' we do, we can only do with what we've got: brains, brawn, resources; _we have always been sorely lacking_. Everyone who's smart enough to _actually do something_ about it joins the MP's or the Garrison, because it's the best way to guarantee your safety within the military and live a comfortable life... So on that note: if you feel so strongly about the Scouts needing to make a change in the way they do things: why didn't _you_ ever join up?" he glared at Pascal threateningly.

Heaving a deep sigh, and getting rather annoyed with Bryson's lofty attitude, Pascal smirked: "Okay, first of all: as I stated early, I ain't a gambler. I know how the odds work, and me taking on a titan? Sorry, but I know who's gonna walk away from _that_ fight, so I'd rather not waste my time _or_ my life thank you very much," he stated brazenly, before turning serious: "But if I was interested? It's not career option that would have been open to me anyway, on account they don't let kids from the underground district join the military unless they can buy themselves a surface citizenship, which, _never happens_ "

Claude and Breck blinked in surprise: "Good heavens, _you're_ from the underground district?" "We both are: born and raised down there" West admitted, "And you either paid to be smuggled out or you got your hands on some forged documents, correct?" Miriam raised an eyebrow, "Well the stair tolls are pretty steep, and we got better things to spend our 'hard stolen' money on" Pascal smirked, before readdressing Bryson, who simply stared at him in surprise: "Ah don't give me that look, you don't need to feel sorry for anything" he waved off with a small honest smile: "We did alright for ourselves. But by the way? You might want to give some thought to how hard it is to survive in a place like _that_. Being penniless, being hungry and being desperate forces you to make some tough choices: ones that either _make you or break you_ , and more often than not, you gotta be pretty ruthless if you want to live to see tomorrow. So if you think the titans used to give _you_ a hard time? Try spending a day in the underground district the next time you're in the capitol; you might have to reconsider a lot of what you spouted out..."

Turning to gaze out the window into the forest, Pascal couldn't help but think aloud: "...You and I? When you really think about it we ain't all that different; sure we were born to different circumstances and we grew up with starkly different lives: all that was beyond our control, for the simple fact one of us was born in darkness and one was born under the sun. Growing up in the underground district? It's impossible not to feel just a little envious of the people living above ground: whether you admire them or hate them, you can't help but wonder what it's like up there, to live without a ceiling constantly over your head. For some, their circumstances were what they were and they begrudgingly accepted that, and lived the rest of their lives as such, eventually dying in the darkness. But for the rest of us? We tried to get by with what we had, to try and afford a little comfort in an otherwise human cesspool. Whether it's for money, for power, status or respect, or just plain old fashion survival like us; having to do bad things becomes second nature; it's the way of the underground, just like it's the way of the rest of this walled world. The difference is, most of us keep in perspective what makes us human, and treat each other the way _we prefer_ to be treated, as other human beings; while others? Simply get drunk on their own psychotic hubris, or whatever other sick and twisted reasons they have for justifying what they do: either way, they have no excuses, _their evil_ , and their the one's that make this world so damn hard to endure... Whether you're trying to help your fellow man by going out to face the titans: running away and hiding just to save your way of life, or even just being a thief living in quiet obscurity: everyone in this world thinks their doing some kind of 'good' or 'bad'; be it for their own selfish reasons or selflessly living for others: everybody thinks they know how the true nature of the world works"

"And? You do?" Gustav raised a skeptical eyebrow: turning to face him, Pascal smirked, "...Hell no! Even after all this time, after all the shit me and West have waded through to get this far and survive. The one thing that is totally predictable about the world is its _unpredictability_ : and believe me, it's got some pretty fucked up ways of reminding you, that just when you think you know what's going on? _You're wrong._ Case in point..." he gestured out the window at the titans, who were still horsing around with the kids. "...He's got a point" Mabel nodded, "Well, at least _one of us_ still has their sanity intact" Breck sighed sarcastically, giving his brother an old fashioned look. "...My point is" Pascal sighed, "If there's any 'good' I can do for this world? It is by simply staying out of its way, and carving out my own niche for my own survival (and West's of course): I never stole from any poor people, I never pushed my luck where it couldn't be pushed, I never killed anyone, and I sure as hell don't treat people like animals; I simply sell ODM gear stolen from the MP's, it's not messy, it doesn't involve having to hurt anyone, and I don't owe any debts to anyone. It's good for everyone all round, and I get to sleep at night" he stated matter-of-factly with a proud smirk.

"Oh really? ..." Miriam raised an eyebrow as a sly cunning smirk began to spread across her crinkled lips: though he didn't let his worry show on his face, Pascal felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up in alarm at the sight of that smirk: "...Well? can't argue with that logic, if no one's getting hurt then there's no gripes to be had...However..." her smile grew; and right away, everyone in the room was thinking the same thing: uh-oh! As she swaggered over to the two thieves, who both suddenly felt like a couple of mice starting up (or rather down) at a cat: "Yesterday, when that 'Shredder' idiot siced his lackeys on us: I _distinctly remember_ the two of you swinging a few left and right hooks at him before getting jumped by another of his goons: now fair enough _it was_ pretty chaotic and it was hard to keep track of who fought who. But considering the fact that that road starts about fifty yards from this house? I'm guessing the boarders of his turf overlapped yours, and as such, you two must have come to a 'gentleman's agreement' to stay out of each others business, correct?"

"Uh Pascal?-" West began to get uncomfortable, "-I know, I don't like where this is going either!" he frowned down at Miriam, already having a pretty good idea where she was going with this, "Uh? Where're you going with this Miriam?" Mabel asked offhand: "Oh, you two might want to start running" Rosemary smirked mischievously: "Well?" She continued, "He basically _saw_ you two, and could see you were trying to stop him and his idiots from 'gathering up the merchandise' so to speak: ergo, whatever agreement you had has now gone out the window, and once he's done licking his wounds and his pride, his first order of business will probably be to shred you two into diced meat...How's that for unpredictability? Didn't consider _that_ yesterday did you?"

Both Pascal and West were as pale as sheets, stunned at their own failure to predict that (more than likely) scenario: while everyone else bar Gustav, Rosemary and Lucile simply stared at Miriam in amazement: "Uh? Miriam, am I correct in assuming you're trying to _blackmail_ these gents over something?" Claude gawked, "Oh no not blackmail, I'd never sink _that_ low" she waved off dismissively, "No, I am simply doing my 'good' for the two of you by offering my charity, and a chance to save your own skins..." she grinned like a Cheshire cat. Gustav snorted as he tried to hold back his laughter, while outside under the kitchen window, Bemadette, Shyla and Fox could be heard giggling hysterically. "OI! WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT EAVESDROPPING?!" Miriam shouted at the window, the children ran off back to the titans and she regarded Pascal and West with a straight serious face: "I'll get right to the point: we've been having a spot of trouble with gangs trying to offer their 'protection' against hustlers and pimps in our establishment, the MP's are probably in on it of course and so unless I employ Tyto, Evrard, Falken and Eraman here as full time as security guards (which would take them away from their other responsibilities) , I have little other _reliable_ options open to me. However, a couple of gentlemen with your 'particular' skill-sets must know a thing or two about dealing with this thorny issue, without having to resolve to violent means that draws unnecessary attention, and ultimately the wrong kind of crowd to an otherwise respectable business. So here's the deal: I'll let you move in rent-free with three square meals a day and no drinks tab, in return, you will keep those idiots out of my Inn, keep any MP's from trying to muscle in and take a cut of the protection rackets, make sure the pick-pockets say out too, as well as make sure no other idiots think my barmaids are for sale as whores. Sound fair?"

Pascal and West stared at her, completely and utterly gobsmacked: everyone else was just as astounded, they knew Miriam was a savvy business woman who didn't do things by half: but _this?_ This was downright ballsy, even for her: "...Let me get this straight..." Pascal pinched the bridge of his nose: still not quite sure he understood all that, "You want to hire _us_ , a couple of crooks, to keep out a bunch of other crooks?" "That's it" she nodded, "But-, _why the hell_ would you take a risk like that?" West gawked, "What's to say we're no different to those gangs? How do you know we won't rob you blind the second we find all your money?" "Because you will _never_ make it out of the building alive, nor, will _anyone ever_ find all the pieces of you and where they'll be buried" Miriam stated darkly: "Eh, I wouldn't test _that_ if I were you" Gustav shook his head. "Okay, say we agree and come work for you: what guarantee is there we'll be able to keep the other criminal's away for your business? What makes you so sure we'll be able to get the job done?" Pascal argued. "Simple, you said you were from the underground, and if you were able to sneak out past the stair tolls that can only mean you're both well connected. The fact you're able to sell stolen ODM gear without the MP's kicking up too much of fuss, must mean that you have connections here in Shiganshina too: and pretty inconspicuous ones if you were able to stay under everyone's gaze this whole time: you two are not just crooks, you're _professional_ crooks, and _I only_ deal with professionals"

Pascal and West both glanced at one another skeptically, "... One other thing," Pascal asked dubiously: "There's no question you are a woman of your word, and I've no doubt of the consequences if _we_ cross you... But how do we know _you're_ not going to sell us out at the first opportunity you get? How do we know that you're not going to take advantage of our 'particular skill-set' and try to get what _you_ want? ...How do _we_ know we can trust _you_?"

A long tense pause kept everyone on tender hooks, as Miriam and Pascal stared each other down, before Miriam simply stated: "...You don't..." Pascal and West both glanced at one another again, before casually shrugging: "Meh, good enough for me: you got yourself a deal lady" Pascal extended his hand out, and Miriam took it with a firm shake, nearly crushing his hand. "Oh, one other thing" she raised a finger, "How much are the ODM gear?" Pascal and West both glanced at each other in confusion, "...Uh? Three hundred each?" "Gas refills are separate" West added: "Okay then..." Miriam nodded as she took out a house brick-sized wad of paper notes from her pocket, and started counting them out, " _Geez lady_ you carry _that_ kind of money around with you?!" West gawked as he eyes practically popped out of his head at that sight of all that money; "Considering how hard she can beat up a guy five times her own weight? She can afford to" Bren deadpanned, "As a doctor, I practically get half my business from all the bar fights she breaks up" Breck added. "Here you go" Miriam handed Pascal the money, "Five thousand and four hundred for eighteen ODM's, the gas we can move to the caller and I'll pay you extra when necessary; for now, the kids get their birthday presents both late and early this year"

"WHAT?!" Freya exclaimed in horror: "What? You want to have the ankle-biters gripping all the way home? They're damn good on those devices and _they know it_ , which means _none of us_ will hear the end of it if we tell them no: besides, Eraman's right, it's a good skill to keep handy: even if none of them don't end up joining the military, they can still use em' for other things" Miriam stated matter-of-factly, much to the Parents disbelief. "Thanks Mrs Willum!" the kids called out together from outside up on the roof (most likely having placed there by one of the titans); the parents all sighed and moaned in exasperation and despair, as if trying to keep a household of ten children was hard enough work, now they had to worry about them getting up to goodness knows what on a device that essentially gave them the freedom of the whole forest.

"Oh, one other thing," Miriam counted out another six hundred and gave four hundred to both Pascal and West, "An additional advanced payment for the first ODM lessons, if the ankle-biters are going to use those things then they better learn how to use them properly", she then turned to Bryson, and gave him the remaining two hundred, "You too Bryson, I don't expect _these two_ to be able to handle the hoard without getting devoured on the first day, a good firm military attitude will be required to keep the trouble to a minimum: also, it'll keep you too busy to go gallivanting off beyond the wall tailing after the Scouts; consider this your advanced payment too, if there are any additional costs needed to cover your hours at the bookshop we'll talk further when we get back" she stated before quickly heading out the back door, to try and see where her grand-nieces had scampered off to: "WHAT? You didn't say anything about babysitting the brats!" Pascal stormed after her, "Miriam! Seriously?! _What the hell?!_ " Bryson stormed after her on Pascal's heels.

The parents were left stunned, the Fitzsimmons, Carla and Claude all glanced at one another in amazement, but were not really surprised by Miriam's unusual move: West just stood there counting his lucky stars, trying to remind himself that they could have gotten off a lot worse, while Breck was trying and failing to stifle his laughter. Freya stared off into space, dazed for moment, before turning to Rosemary and asking point blankly: "What just happened?" "Miriam just recruited Pascal and West to come work for us, bought eighteen ODM gears for all the children, and just hired both of them and Bryson to give them lesson" Rosemary smiled casually, "Tyto?" Freya staggered into the parlor, "Please put the tea on dear, I think I feel another headache coming on", "Uh, right away dear" Tyto got to work as he picked up the kettle and filled it with water, "Make that three Tyto" Bestla sighed as she held her head, following Freya with Skadi and Ran close behind.

Glancing over at Rosemary, Lucile and Gustav, West approached them and asked offhand: "I take it this kind of thing happens all the time with you guys?" "Eh not much," Gustav shrugged, "But we have our moment's: and trust me, you ain't gonna be bored living with us" "Oh I think I already sussed that" West nervously chuckled, "I take it your happy Bryson's gonna be kept busy for a while?" he glanced over at Breck, who was trying to stay standing by propping himself up on the door frame, "Trust me, I'd rather he'd be trying to round up the kids than round up titans" he grinned as he headed into the kitchen to help Tyto with the tea, "Miriam just did me the biggest favor _ever_ : next time she needs my services, it's on me"

As she watched Bryson and Pascal try to argue with Miriam as she tried to round up the kids (who had all somehow reappeared back on the ground again), Carla couldn't help but giggle, "What's got you?" West smiled, "Ah, trust Miriam to hire a couple of criminals to keep the Black Stallion free of criminals; that's just so-, _her_ " "Well she's different I'll give that," he offered, "She's sly for one". "But unbelievably good hearted, once you get to really know her" Carla smiled as she headed outside through the back door, "... You might want to rethink looking for all her money: stick around, you might find yourselves being presently surprised"

* * *

" **Well? That was** _ **definitely**_ **interesting!"** Herne grinned like an idiot: **"Seriously? Did that** **just happened?" "Oh I like** _ **her,**_ **"** Hecate smirked as she watched Miriam argue with the two gentlemen, while the kids ran around after Angel, who was still horsing around by weaving in and out between the trees in a game of tag, " **A mortal after my own dark heart" "And yet she meant every word of it"** Javorin smiled as he watched Carla call Ariana over, and together, the two of them began to talk as they wandered over to the side of the stables: **"She might be rough around the edges, but I sense she's got a lot of wisdom under her belt" "Yeah, that's usually the way with humans like her"** Herne nodded offhand, **"Still, what do you think about the others? From what we overheard I think we've got off a little easy"**

" **I think at least, we can expect the 'scientist' to be paying us a visit sometime in the not-too-distant future,"** Hecate sighed as she glanced down at the parlor window, where Claude was watching them like a little kid seeing the first snowfall of winter: **"The Celts too, seeing as our 'markings' go them so enthusiastic" "Maybe that's not a bad thing?"** Javorin pondered about it as he gazed down at the tattoos on his arms, **"We haven't been able to figure out the significance of these markings since we awoke, and maybe having a few 'fresh eyes' might lend some new perspective? Help us to see if there's anything we might have overlooked? Plus, having a scientist at our disposal won't hurt: there's always a chance** _ **he**_ **might stumble onto something too?" "You got a point there"** Herne agreed, **"And who knows? We find out something new along the way"**

" **That aside,"** Hecate changed the subject, **"What the hell was up with that storm yesterday? It was soaking up chaos manna like a sponge: I've seen similar magics and raw energies used to create artificial weathers, but nothing on a scale like** _ **that**_ **before. Not since the time when-..."** she hesitated,

" **...I hate to say it guys, but could we be looking at a rouge wizard or a dark Mage? Or even a witch with a grudge? I don't see how it's possible for a corrupted storm like that to suddenly just take on a life of its own without the necessary magics to tip it over the edge,"** Herne pointed out, **"Not to mention the fact that no other Tempus gods were present, nor did any other god show up; at least, not that** _ **I**_ **could sense"**

" _ **None of us**_ **could sense any other gods,"** Hecate frowned dubiously, **"I had a feeling that chaos manna would be unpredictable in other ways, and what we saw last night pretty much confirms my worst fears. We not only couldn't** _ **hear**_ **each other's thoughts, we** _ **just barely**_ **found the humans in time, their aura's were so distorted by the manna it was hard to make out anything, even from several hundred feet above the ground"**

" **A storm of that size and ferocity? There's no way to conclusively prove it was conjured or not"** Javorin sighed in disappointment **, "We can only be thankful it finally lost its momentum during the night: and that the rain itself was not tainted by that same manna, otherwise we'd have a** _ **much**_ **bigger problem on our hands"**

" **As it is, it looks like we're gonna be on clean-up duty for the foreseeable future, seeing as there're no other nature gods around"** Herne shrugged, **"Well** _ **someone's**_ **going to have to help tidy things up a little?"** Javorin smirked down at him. **"And speaking of tidying up..."** Hecate frowned darkly at Javorin, **"What Carla said, about the wall cultists tossing her and the brats into the flood?** _ **You do know**_ **what that means, right?"**

" **Of course"** he nodded with no particular expression, **"And I have no issues with you handling the matter: but considering the sanctuary's location, you might want to be discreet about it"** he advised as he continued to watch Carla and Ariana talking. **"Aren't I always?"** she smirked, **"Besides, we're looking to push the Disciples out once and for all: and what better way than to make an example of their fellow** _ **murderers**_ **"**

" **How do we know they won't send more in retaliation? Thinking it's some kind of anti-cult movement on the part of human dissidents?"** Herne asked concernedly: **"Oh trust me"** Hecate smiled, her sharp fangs glistening as she licked her lips: **"What I have in mind will** _ **take the fight**_ **right out of them;** _ **I am**_ **one of the night roamers after all: we don't do things by half,"** she glanced over at the kids, as Miriam finally managed to round them all up and away from Angel, with Pascal and Bryson still trying (and failing) to get her to change her mind, **"But for now let's concentrate on** _ **this**_ **lot shall we? They still need to get home remember?"**

" **I haven't forgotten,"** Javorin waved off as he stepped around the side of the house, next to where the broken wagon and cart were parked: **"Come on, I have an idea how we can get them back, and get into the city unnoticed" "Oh yeah? What've you got in mind?"** Herne smirked, **"Angel?"** Javorin called over to the bird titan, instantly grabbing her attention: **"How would you like to learn a new animal form?"**

* * *

A short while later:

"Uh? Are you sure you guys got enough stuff?" Mabel looked over the contents of Pascal and West's luggage, "I mean, its one thing to keep a whole wardrobe of good clean clothes, but will you really need all this?" "Hey, you can never have enough essentials," Pascal stated as he shoved another pile of clothing into a sack and tied it up, before tossing it down the staircase: "Besides, you never know what you might need, and quite a few of these items were pretty hard to come by" West added as he carried his bag of clothing down the stairs, and placed it with the rest of the pile.

Everyone had agreed to help Pascal and West pack up their things, as well as help tidy up the house: after depositing the last of their luggage in the hallway, the two former thieves headed for the basement, and reemerged with a large trunk carried between them and a shovel each. "What on earth is in that?" Tyto frowned at the trunk curiously, "It's called a 'long term deposit': wait here, we'll be back shortly" Pascal told him as they staggered out the back door, and headed out into the forest: "Do I _want_ to know what's in that trunk?" Bryson frowned suspiciously as he watched the two men vanish behind a small cluster of pine trees some three hundred yards away: "Nope" Miriam stated flatly.

Looking over all their things, Claude noticed a large cigar box sitting on top of the pile: having not smelt tobacco anywhere in the house, he wondered why they had this in their possession: although curious, he decided to heed Miriam's advice and leave it alone; but as he tried to step over the pile to get to the front door, his knee accidentally knocked the box, and it slid off onto the floor, half-spilling it's content's across the hallway: "Oh, hang on let me help you with that-" Lucy bent down on her knees to help Claude pick all the items up, which together, made for a rather odd collection. They consisted of a deck of playing cards, three different coloured cups, three different coloured balls, three large silver rings, a black silk draw-string bag, a couple dice, a small cube-shaped dark blue box with a star painted on each side and the lid, and a black shiny wooden rod with white tips at either end. Recognizing what it was right away, Claude broke into a big smile: "Oh wow! It's a box of magic tricks!" "Magic tricks?" Lucy echoed in confusion, "Oh yes! I remember seeing something similar to this when I was your age! It's a little box of fancy illusions and conjuring's for parties and such, you know? Parlor tricks?" "Hmm, can't say I've ever heard of such a thing?" Lucy commented offhand as she put the last few items back in the cigar box and closed the lid: "I wonder who the magician is? Or both of them, perhaps?" Claude thought aloud as he placed the box back on the pile, "Mind you, fooling one with tricks and slight of hand would be a fitting hobby for a former-thief" "I guess?" Lucy shrugged, "But, the titan's can do magic tricks too. So How's a 'box of tricks' different to what _they_ can do?" she asked innocently, "Ah ha-" Claude chuckled, suddenly realizing Lucy had never seen a 'box of magic tricks' before: "Well? There's a pretty big difference, you see? It's sort of something like this,"

While Claude tried to explain to Lucy the difference between the titan's powers and a magician's illusions: in the parlor, Freya was done covering the last of the furniture with dust sheets, with Ash helping her out: "That's the last of them" he told her, "Good, then I think we're just about done down here: Skadi and Mabel should be finishing upstairs" she sighed as she wiped her brow. "Umm? ..." Ash nervously hesitated, "You're not still mad at Miss Willum for-, you know? 'Treating us' to the ODM gear?"

Gazing over at her son with a sideways glance, and sighing in defeat, Freya couldn't help but smile as she wrapped her arm around his shoulder, and gazed at him lovingly: "Well she'd be right about you lot gripping all the way home; I really wouldn't hear the end of it, would I?" "Probably not" he smirked, "...Just _promise me_ you'll be careful on that thing won't you? And don't let your brother's and sister take liberties alright?" "Promise" he nodded, "...And, about earlier," she sighed, "...I'm sorry if we ever gave you, _any of you_ the impression that we don't value your opinion; your growing up, and you will have to bare responsibilities at some point, I _do_ understand that. But for now, I just want you to enjoy what freedom you have, whatever form that take for you. I just need to be sure you know what to do, alright?" "...Yeah" Ash smiled, "Thanks mum... And, _you're sure_ you're okay with the titans? I mean, I know you didn't freak out like Bryson did, but-...They're part of our lives now. We still intend to visit them when we can" "Yeah I figured as much," she sighed with a weak smile, "Your father and uncles are rather keen to visit them too: and given what we've discovered here today I think they might be onto something with that 'idea' of theirs. So I wouldn't worry about sneaking off or using delivery trips as a cover okay? I think it's the old boys that're going to need keeping an eye on" she smirked, to which Ash couldn't help but chuckle.

"Okay? Everyone good to go?" West smiled as he and Pascal came back in through the back door: "That was quick" Miriam raised an eyebrow, "We're quick when we need to be" Pascal smirked, "Is the cart and wagon ready yet?" Outside the house, around the side near the stables: Tyto, Evrard, Falken, Eraman, Breck, Bryson, Bren, Derek, Gustav and Bemadette had been busy repairing the wagon as best they could. With the shafts broken off, they used some old ODM gear straps and part of a harness to fashion a set of traces, a girth and a collar, which should be able to pull the wagon's maximum weight efficiently. While just a few meters away, Gale, Poppy, Belle, Shyla, Fox and Ariana were getting the tack for the cart ready. The front door swung open as other the kids all carried a piece of luggage outside and deposited them into the cart, followed by everyone else, who looked the wagon over before helping Rosemary, Miriam and Lucile get in first, with Freya, Bestla, Skadi, Ran and Claude getting in and taking their seats last.

"Not bad eh?" Bren grinned, "Think it'll work?" " _Of course_ it'll work!" Gustav grumbled, " _I know_ how to make an emergency patch job damn it!" "So? Not to be nit-picky or anything? But what are we going to do for horses? Yours are dead and ours broke out of the stable and bolted some time during the night, and _this lot_ can't carry us to the inner gate without being spotted!" Pascal sarcastically pointed out, thumbing over at the titans who were watching everyone from the opposite side of the house: "...So what hare-brained trick have you go in mind _this_ time?" he frowned down at Ariana, who simply smiled slyly; as if on cue, the titans came around the side of the house, leaned forwards as if to get down on all fours, and in a blur of light and glistening sparks, they shrank down and transformed from their gigantic titan forms, into four beautiful horses. "HOLY SHIT!-" Derek jumped out the wagon, landing on his ass in the mud, "Whoa! Now that's one hell of a trick!" Mabel stared at them bug-eyed, "Indeed! How absolutely _extraordinary!_ " Claude beamed in excitement "Hey, _we did warn you_ they can change into animals you know!" Rowan huffed as he loaded another piece of luggage onto the cart. "Yes, you did..." Pascal deadpanned, "Whatever, let's get them in the collars and let's get going" he said as he went to lock the front door.

Being the biggest of the now-horse titans, Shadow was led over to the wagon and strapped in securely: in this form he was a big robust draught horse, with the same light brown colouration as his titan hair; his coat was nice and glossy, while his mane and tail were just as long and thick, and had a smooth feathering that covered his fetlocks and hooves. His markings had disappeared too, which really confused everyone, and neither were the other horse-titan's marking's present (but then that was probably a good thing: four horses walking into Shiganshina covered in strange markings? It wouldn't exactly be inconspicuous). Midnight had turned herself into a big black hunting steed with a shiny smooth coat and long flowing mane and tail, a white face and a white stocking on each leg. Boar had turned into a more unkempt draught horse with a scruffy red coat and wild unruly mane and tale: and at the corners of his mouth, two teeny tiny tusk-like teeth could be just seen peeking out; he was to be used to pull the cart. While Angel had turned herself into a beautiful glossy while mare, with a coat that looked like polished white silver: a mane and tail that looked as extravagant as her plumage, and thick fluffy feathering that covered her hooves and fetlocks; and while Angel's attempt at turning into a horse had mostly succeeded, her long flowing mane and tale had small long white feathers dotted about here and there, which did make her look a little odd. "Good grief, HORSE FEATHERS!" Gustav laughed his ass off as he picked one out of her mane, looked at it, and laughed even harder.

"Yeah yeah very funny!" Miriam frowned, "Well boys? Who gets to ride who?" she gestured to Midnight and Angel: Bryson and Breck glanced at one another in bemusement, and shrugged as they approached the mares and slipped the lead ropes onto them, before climbing up on the side of the cart to mount them: with no saddles to ride on, they'd have to ride bareback all the way home. "Hey can I lead?" Ariana asked offhand, "Me and the big guy here gotta talk about some important stuff" she thumbed over to Shadow, "Okay, but if it's too muddy underfoot you climb up in here okay?" Carla replied as she took her seat up the front with Lucy and Lucius. Pascal and West finished up strapping Boar into the tack and mounted the cart, with Gale, Poppy, Belle, Shyla, Fox and Bemadette all squeezed onto the back, sitting with their legs dangling over the tail board: while the rest of the children and their fathers opted to walk.

Before long the whole group had set off, and as they watched their house disappear amid the trees, Pascal and West both exchanged an uneasy look: wondering what their new business/living arrangement was going to entail. By this time the sun had began to break through the clouds, and as the canopy thinned out and they left the forest behind, everyone was pleased to see blue skies stretching from one end of the walled horizon to the other, and no rain clouds in sight.

However, when they reached the farmlands, the view was far from pleasant: in the places that were within the vicinity of the rivers, streams and drainage ditches, the flood had washed away everything in its path. Accumulating in thick mud, debris and fallen trees, the devastation reached far and wide: remains of buildings and wooden bridges, shattered carts and wagons, and even the odd dead animal littered the countryside here and there; many of the farms and hamlets that were situated on the hillsides and upper glens had escaped the worst of the deluge, but where the water had risen, the flood claimed one and all. The road for the most part was still largely intact, and passable as the family's made their way towards the inner gate. But as they gazed at the devastation all around, and listened to the stark silence that hung in the air all around them, Carla and the children realized just how lucky they had been to survive. "I'm not seeing any dead people: that's a good sign right?" Belle asked offhand anxiously. "Eh, I wouldn't hold my breath kid" Pascal winced slightly at the sight of a dead pig lying on its back in a ditch.

As Carla and the other adults talked among themselves, Ariana walked as close to Shadow as she could get without tripping over his hooves: sensing she had something to say, he leaned his head down so his face was right next to her's. "... So um? Mrs Jaeger and I talked: about, why she doesn't want Eren to know about you guys? The _real_ reason I mean..." she spoke in a hushed voice: staring off into space as she contemplated what they'd talked about; Shadow nodded in understanding: "...I gotta admit she does have a point: _it is hard work_ keeping a big secret; and now that I think about it, I don't want Eren to feel like he's got no choice if I just drag him into all this. Which made me realize something very important..." she gazed up at his big vivid blue eye: "Despite everything that's happened: how we first met, the Disciples, what happened yesterday during the flood, I don't regret meeting you and your family Shadow; these past nine months have been _the best time_ I've ever had, and I wouldn't trade you, or any of it for anything else..." She smiled happily, before a more anxious look replaced her expression: "However, when Mrs Jaeger told me why she doesn't want Eren to know about you guys: I kinda realized I'd forgotten about what _I_ already had. Sure, making new best friends like you is great: but, Eren's _also_ my best friend too; we've known each other since we can remember, and we've always been there for each other. But? These last nine months, I've not been there for him, and that's kinda selfish and irresponsible of me; so? I don't want you to take this personally Shadow, but from now on I'm going to be spending time with Eren, as well as you...Is, that okay?"

'Oh, I don't think that's going to be too much of a problem' Javorin mentally smiled as he leaned down further and nuzzled Ariana on the cheek with a content snort; which made her laugh as she scratched him on the chin.

Before long they reached the inner gate, and the scene that greeted them was nothing short of extraordinary: on the banks of the southern Marian river next to a table bridge, ten giant trees lay parallel to the water's edge, all neatly stacked in a pile and propped up in place with several smaller logs that had been rammed into the mud to securely wedge them in place up against the brick-lined embankment. Surrounding the pile was a large gathering of Garrison troops and MP's, and even the Scouting corps were present (judging from their fresh-faced appearance, it seemed they were yet to embark on their latest expedition), with an even larger crowd of people standing around nearby, seeming trying to get a look at the tree pile. "What the hell's going on?" Breck blinked in surprise as he held onto Midnight's lead rope, "Don't know, but it looks serious" Bryson frowned. As they steadily trundled past the gathering, bits and pieces of conversation drifted about and caught their notice:

"Look, are we _sure_ we can't find any witnesses?! Someone must have seen _something!_ "

"What I don't get is how it happened? I mean, how the hell do you move ten giant trees and stack them like that?"

"It's impressive for sure, but who did it, and how? What kind of equipment or machine would you use to pull something like _this_ off?"

"Under ordinary circumstances perhaps: but during a raging flood?! _Give me a break!_ Do you have any idea how _crazy_ that sounds?!"

"And nobody saw who or what did it? How's that even possible?"

"It's not natural I tell ya', _something unholy_ is at work!"

It painted a peculiar picture, and as the group passed by the gathering they gazed up at the giant trees in bemusement: but unlike everyone else present they carried on into the city, and as they cleared the gate, a familiar face came running up to the wagon "CARLA?!" Hannes cried out in a mix of panic and joy, "CARLA!" "Hannes?!" Carla leapt off the wagon and ran to him, thinking something was wrong, but before she had a chance to ask what was up he nearly ran into her as he came to a screeching stop: "CARLA! -Thank Maria your alive!" he sighed in sheer relief, before glancing over at the rest of the group, "- _You're all alive!_ Holy shit! Do you have _any idea_ how worried we were?! When you guys didn't return last night we spent half the night looking for you! _Where the hell have you all been?!_ "

Seeing the look of genuine relief, worry and anxiety on his face, and suddenly feeling horrible for it, Carla frantically tried to explain: "Oh my god-, Hannes I'm so sorry, we had no idea-, we managed to get to higher ground up in the eastern forest before the flood hit: we were cut off so we had no choice but to wait it out all night!" Looking at the state of the wagon, Hannes blinked in surprise, "Holy-, you guys must've just barely made it!" he gasped, before explaining the situation further: "...The Garrison and MP's were out all yesterday and last night searching for survivors: hell, even the Scouts called off their expedition to help with the emergency-relief efforts. We've been rescuing people from all over the outer district, and we _still_ haven't got as far as far as the central valley yet!"

"Oh... -Uh hey, what's going on with those trees just beyond the gate?" Carla thumbed over her shoulder towards the inner gate: "Hm? _Oh those!_ Holy Crap I don't even know where to begin with _those!_ By late afternoon yesterday the flood had reached its worse: the city's flood defenses were straining to keep the worst of it out, when suddenly those trees washed down from out of the eastern valley. They jammed up against dam and it looked like they were going to break right through for a while; but luckily they didn't. But then we realized it was only getting worse as they were blocking the drainage canals. We had no way to shift them other than to blow em' up with dynamite and gunpowder! It was pitch black by the time the MP's had procured the explosives, but then: we get back to the river and _there the trees were!_ All stacked up and out of the way. I tell ya Carla, _the one day_ I decide to quit drinking and _this_ happens! ..." he facepalmed. Glancing up at Shadow, Ariana grinned, "Did you have anything to do with that?" she whispered: Shadow merely nodded with a cheeky nicker.

Suddenly remembering her family, Carla panicked: "-Hannes! Where's Eren and Grisha?!" "Wha-" the man suddenly remembered: "Grisha was called to the hospital to help with the refugees: but I told him I'd look out for you. They were calling as many volunteers as possible to come and help out, so Mr Arlet, Armin, and Eren went there too!" "-Thank you Hannes!" Carla shouted happily as she took off for the hospital, "Hang on a sec!" Ariana called out as she tossed the lead rope up to Lucy and took off after her. Carla knew the way to the hospital by heart, it wasn't far from the gate: the crowds were thick and numerous as refugees continued to file into the city: saved from the flood or retrieved from high ground that had been cut off, it was staggering just how many people were now homeless: all their worldly goods gone, with only the clothes on their back still theirs.

As she reached the hospital and burst in the through the front doors, Carla began scanning the faces of every gentleman in a white coat, and every young boy she passed by. Moving from room to room, ward to ward, growing more frantic with every second that passed: she couldn't let them think she was dead, she _had_ to let them know she was still alive; the pain and agony of not knowing, it made her heart ache just thinking about it, and brought tears to her eyes. Then, as she rounded the next corner and entered the central ward, she froze as she picked him out from among the crowd: standing there in the middle of the aisle, Grisha had looked up at the exact same moment she entered, and they locked eyes on each other. Her happiness over-brimming, and his in equal joyous measure as tears came to his eyes, they both ran and hugged each other tightly; loosing themselves in each others embrace, as if they were the only people in the room.

"...I thought I lost you," Grisha choked as tears ran down his face, "When you didn't come home last night, I didn't know what-"

"-I'm so sorry" was all Carla could say as she leaned back and held his face in her hands, wiping away his tears, "I so sorry I scared you like that: but I'm back now it's going to be okay" she smiled as she planted her lips on his, and for a moment the whole world was lost to them in their kiss. "MUUUM!" Eren cried as he came running down the corridor: letting go of her husband, Carla held out her arms and scooped up her son, holding him in close as he cried his eyes out, hugging her tightly and never wanting to let her go, "Where'd you go?!" he sobbed as he gazed up at her with teary puppy eyes, "Mr Hannes said they couldn't find you anywhere! They said that you, Ariana and the others-, that you might be-" he broke down in another fit of sobs and cried into her shoulder: overwhelmed with so much emotion that he could hardly contain himself. "Shh-shhh, it's okay," she soothed him, rubbing his back as Grisha pulled them both in for a hug, "It's alright sweetie, mummy's here now, and I'm not going anywhere" she smiled as she felt her heart bursting with joy; her own tears streaming down her face as she silently thanked whatever gods there may be, for letting her make it back alive, and giving her this second chance to be with her family.

As she watched them from the doorway, Ariana couldn't help but smile. Deep down, her heart told her this was a very good thing: and just watching it from a distance, was enough to make her happy. "ARIANA!" Armin cried as he ran up to her and hugged her tight, taking her completely by surprise: "Armin!" she suddenly snapped back to reality; pulling out of his grip to get a look at him, Ariana was shocked to see him crying his eyes out too. "Oh god Ariana! You're alive!" he sobbed as he hugged her again, "When Mr Hannes said you didn't c-c-come back last night, I-I th-thought you got washed away and d-drowned in the flood: they said they wouldn't even be able to f-find you!" he sobbed uncontrollably. Feeling her gut twist with guilt, Ariana hugged him back as she began to feel bad for scaring him like this: "Armin I'm so sorry! I had no idea it'd take this long to get back," "Ariana?!" Armin's grandfather gasped as he came running up to them, "My goodness, you're alive?! You made it back alright?" "Yeah..." Ariana nodded as she stepped back a little to let Armin catch his breath, "We got trapped up in the forest when the flood hit; we had no choice but to wait it out all night" "And the rest of your family? What about the Willums and the Fitzsimmons? When they said they were going to look for you we feared the worst" "Their all okay too Mr Arlet" she smiled, "We all are". "Please Ariana just-..." Armin hesitated as he gently grasped her hand, hesitating as he tried to regain his composure, "...Don't scare me like that again, okay?" Gazing into his eyes, and seeing he had been genuinely worried, Ariana smiled, and took his hand in her's, "...I won't, I promise"

"Ariana?"

She felt her heart skip a beat when she turned around, and Eren was standing there, staring at her like he'd seen a ghost, "Eren," Ariana hesitated, knowing he had been just as worried and anxious: "...I'm so sorry I couldn't make it back sooner, I know I said I'd play with you when I got back? But we-

But her words were cut off as he threw himself at her and hugged her tight: she hugged him back, relieved he was okay now; that they were both relived she was alive: "...I don't care about that now, I'm just so happy your alive" he sobbed, "Well? I'm happy that you're happy..." she smiled, before her own guilt began to weigh heavily on her heart: tears forming in the corners of her eyes as she admitted: "...Listen, I know I've not been around much. But _I swear_ I'll make it up to you: I'll make it up to _both_ of you, I promise," she cried as she pulled Armin into the hug too; and together, the three of them stood there in each others embrace, content in each others presence, and relieved that they were together again.

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere in Shiganshina:

" **Well? I don't know about you guys, but I'm starting to get the distinct impression our 'circumstances' are about change yet again"** Herne smirked as he pulled the cart up the road, allowing West to direct him in the direction of the Black Stallion. **"Well? They know we can change into animals, which will make hiding in plain sight a lot easier around here: and don't forget, we can still turn invisible?"** Javorin suggested with a cunning smile. **"And the reason you didn't recommend this sooner was because?"** Hecate sarcastically deadpanned, glaring daggers at the god: " **It never came up in conversation"** he shrugged casually with a sneaky smile.

" **So does this mean I can go live with Carla?"** Elysia perked up **"I could turn myself into a bird and live on her roof? Or into a mouse and live in her attic!"** , **"Eh, I wouldn't get too ahead of yourself kid, let the poor woman be with her family for a bit: after everything that happened yesterday and today? They'll** _ **all**_ **want some quality family time together: not to mention the newbie's are gonna need breaking in,"** he glanced behind him at Pascal and West.

" **And your idea about letting the 'heretics and traitors' use us for the subject of their mutual curiosity:"** Midnight glanced over at Javorin dubiously, **"You** _ **really think**_ **they'll be able to glean something from us?"**

" **If there's one thing I know about humans Hecate, it's that it's the crazy and the driven ones are often the innovators: the one's, who by their very nature go against the grain of the status quo, and let their passion and conviction drive them in the direction of change"** Javorin explained.

Midnight and Herne both glanced at one another: **"'Change' as in, change for the individual? Or, change for the betterment of mankind?"** Herne smirked knowingly: " **You've been** _ **planning**_ **this from the very start, haven't you?"** Hecate realized. **"Not** _ **all**_ **of it: a scheme of such a grand design is a serious gamble, even for the wisest and most ancient of our kin. No, I let this play out on its own"** Javorin shrugged casually, **"But, admittedly, I _might_ have given it a gentle nudge in the right direction where needed: and while I hold no particular high expectations for the final outcome, I **_**can**_ **say, I am pleased with how things have progressed thus far"** he smiled.

" **-TCH!"** Hecate huffed sarcastically, **"Trust the overseer of mankind to get it in his head to bring about the rebirth of humanity"** , **"Actually? I like to think of it more as a 'reawakening'..."** he clarified, before turning serious for a moment: **"...The first time we came to this city and I saw how far mankind has fallen, I knew I had to do** _ **something**_ **to try and help restore what's been lost; that is my divine duty after all, and if I cannot fulfill that, I have, and am, nothing,"** he gazed over at them, **"... I'm not sure if what I'm hoping for will come to full fruition or not (not for a few human lifetimes at least): but for better or for worse** _ **I am**_ **going to start taking a more active role in helping the humans regain their hope: between the scouts, the heretics and traitors, and everyone else involved, I have an idea, and I intend to see it through as best I can...Of course, this is going to take a good long while, and I know we all get along really well together, but if you need to return to your own divine duties anytime: I don't mind, really"** he smiled thoughtfully.

" **Ah come on bro don't start spouting all that mushiness"** Herne grinned, **"You know you can't get rid of us anyway!" "Yeah, I mean we're family anyway** **!"** Elysia piped in. **"Besides, we're committed too, so like it or not you're stuck with us!"**

 **"... So your board is set and your pieces are all in place, now what?"** Hecate asked offhand.

" **Now?"** Javorin thought about it, **"...Just let things happen as they come, and we'll wait and see..."**

* * *

 **Well? that's the rest of the family folks: and the gods are gonna be hanging around for while :) so stay tuned for next time, and don't forget to R &R ;)**


	11. Chpt 10: Last Wolf Standing

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Chapter 10: Last Wolf Standing

844, April, Shiganshina:

"Oh Lisa, She's gorgeous" Carla couldn't help but smile, as the baby in the cot stared up at her.

"Indeed" Rosemary beamed as she tickled the baby under her chin, "She has your face: and her father's eyes. You've done a superb job"

"Thank you" The young woman smiled meekly, "And you don't think the name is too ostentatious?"

"What? Oh heavens no, Marigold is such a fitting name for the little darling: why she's even got these lovely golden locks to compliment it" Lucile assured her as she stroked the baby's head. "Don't worry darling, for a first-time mother you've done well"

"Sorry ladies" an older gentleman interjected as he approached the cot, and picked up the baby with a broad delighted grin across his face: "Grandpa wants to show off his new granddaughter to the Wallace's"

"Come on, why don't we take a quick break?" Lucile thumbed over to the front door, grabbing her glass of wine on the way out; "Oh, I really shouldn't, I've still got all the other guests to see to, and Peter's parents aren't even here yet" Lisa fretted. "Ah don't worry about them, they'll be along soon enough" Miriam waved off as she grabbed her glass of brandy-wine; "Besides, your husband seems to have things well in order" she gestured to a young man over in the corner of the room, who was busy chatting happily with several other people, "You've been working hard all morning, take the weight off your feet for ten minutes"

"Well? I suppose ten minutes won't hurt..." Lisa shrugged as she reached for her drink, and followed Carla, Miriam, Lucile and Rosemary out the front door, and sat down on the long bench beneath the window. Sitting next to the large pot of marigolds at the end of the bench, Lisa breathed deep the fresh spring air, and gazed over at the Inn on the other side of the street, "Oh, before I forget: Carla, could you please let your husband know how grateful we are to him for delivering the baby? I'm afraid with all the chaos of the past few weeks it completely slipped my mind" Lisa admitted sheepishly. "Oh don't worry about it" Carla waved off, "Grisha also asked me to send his apologizes for not being able to come along today: but he's booked Marigold for a follow-up examination next week, if that's okay?"

"No no it's fine..." Lisa assured her, before taking a sip of her drink: "Actually, if it's not a problem, my sister would like to see him when it's next convenient: only, she and her husband are seriously considering having children too; they'd like to start sometime this year if possible?" "I'll tell Grisha, I'm sure he can book a consultation in somewhere" Carla smiled

"When does your sister move here again?" Rosemary thought aloud; "Uh, next month I believe? It was a real stroke of luck being able to get the house right next door to ours" Lisa glanced up at the house along from her's; "And thank you for that job recommendation for Andre Miriam: I'm surprised you were able to convince Mr Cooper to take him on"

"Eh, Cooper owns me a few: I've done enough business with him over the years to be able to twist his arm and then some" Miriam shrugged, "Mind you, work's been surprisingly good, considering how badly those floods hit us three years ago"

"That's certainly true..." Carla sighed, as she thought back to that day...

It had been three years since the storm and the flood, and in those three years life had managed to get back on track for the citizens of Shiganshina: although the city's flood defense's had held in place and staved off the worst of the deluge; quite a substantial amount of water had managed to overflow the dam, and flooded the neighborhoods that were situated along the riverbanks, causing a fair amount of property damage, along with stranding several cargo barges on the dock-sides and roads; but other than that, no one had lost their lives and no buildings were washed away.

The same however, could not be said for those living out in the countryside: but surprisingly, the death toll wasn't as high as everyone had expected, in all, fifteen people were drowned, six were confirmed missing, and hundreds more were rendered homeless by having their houses washed away: and penniless by losing their crops and livestock. Many were able to reach the high ground in time and were successfully evacuated when the worst of the storm had past. But despite the minimal loss of life, the financial damages all but crippled the local economy; many landowners faced bankruptcy for losing their laborers accommodations, as well as their produce. Since many of the farms in the Shiganshina district specialized in producing luxury goods, it wasn't surprising then that in the wake of the disaster, a massive donation of financial aid from the capitol helped everyone to get back on their feet again, and although it was hard work, many were able to set up temporary accommodations, and grow and harvest what they could.

"Mind you" Carla smiled, "It was quite amazing how the land was able to recover from all that devastation; the harvest was pretty good that year"

Indeed, it had been an exceptional harvest that year, given the fact that the ground had been underwater for over half a day, and was completely saturated. But unusually, the same ground had also dried out within a month, and come May, the first crops were sown again and harvested the following month. Carla couldn't help but smile to herself as she recalled Shadow's efforts to help heal the land from the disaster: she knew his mastery over all plant life was incredible, but being able to restore the valleys to their former glory? That was a miracle in of itself, and in a way she found it rather sad that everyone owed their success to the titan, and no one even knew he was there: watching over them, encouraging their crops to grow, as well as restore the damage done to the forest.

But the disaster hadn't been a total loss: with all the dead trees having been washed down from out of the forests, there was no shortage of wood to use for building homes and other essentials. In particular, the huge pile of giant trees that had been mysteriously staked up on the riverbank, just beyond the inner gate's flood dam; of all the stories to emerge in the wake of the storm: _that_ one was still talked about the most.

Even to this day people still remember it with such clarity, and recall seeing the oddity in vivid detail: it had been so strange, ten giant trees each about a minimum of twelve tons in weight, all staked up in a neat pile; and no one knew who did it or how. It was a mystery that continued to be persistently perplexing, and many rumours were still being debated as to who the culprit was; but, it was a phenomenon was welcomed by many, as the wood was put to good use building new homes for the homeless farmers and their families. Shadow later confirmed it was him that staked the trees, and although he didn't elaborate on _how_ he moved them into position like that, he'd sworn up and down he had taken precautions to avoid being seen: the matter wasn't pressed any further, and everyone was just relived he hadn't been spotted. The Black stallion had been lucky to escape the flood as well, being situated up on a hill about a half mile from the river meant the flood waters didn't come anywhere near them, however, the heavy rain had taken its toll on the roof, and when they returned, the Willums and Fitzsimmons were surprised to find several small holes that were leaking rain water into Bren and Mabel's room.

"Aye: but that whole thing with the Sanctuary and its worshipers was a bit, well? _Disturbing_ " Lisa pointed out. "Eh, _something_ definitely happened up there; though what exactly? Who can say? Guess it's just one of those things we'll never know?" Miriam shrugged as she sipped her drink.

Miriam of course was lying: although she didn't know exactly what happened, (and figured it'd be best not to know at all) but she had good idea of what _might_ have transpired. Almost immediately after the floods, alongside the rumours of the 'mystery tree stacker': another set of odd rumours began circulating among the Black Stallions regulars, rumours that got people talking and speculating; and theorizing if something supernatural was at work.

In the weeks following the flood, many of the farmers whose property bordered the Wall cult's, spoke of how the land seemed to turn against the cultists; for while their own land had dried out and was able to be worked successfully, the land the Sanctuary was situated on hadn't dried at all: the whole property was bogged down in mud, and nothing was able to grow. And then towards June and July, something more _unusual_ began to happen. Reports of people seeing strange dark shadow-like figures standing at the base of the hill became a regular occurrence after dark; the ghostly apparition of a woman with long black hair tied up in a side ponytail was sighted on the road leading up the hill, mostly around sunset. And at night the disembodied voices of children crying and wailing for help could be heard echoing down the hill into the neighboring valley. For anyone who was witness to this phenomenon it was both terrifying and alarming: but for the wall cult? No one could say, all anyone knew of what they were experiencing was what they heard and saw up on the hill. Screams of horror and panic could be heard coming from the building site in the middle of the night: on several occasions the pastors from the church in Shiganshina were called out to the property, raised voices were heard every now and then, and heated arguments between the cultists were seen on the building site; and on a few occasions, some cultists were seen leaving the site with their bags packed, never to return. And then, it all seemed to culminate on a dark stormy night in late August, when all the lights in the cultist's lodgings went out, and the sounds of bloodcurdling screams were heard over the sound of the thunder and the rain; sending a chill through the blood of anyone who heard it.

The following day, the MP's were called to the property to check on the state of things: but what they found only raised more questions than answers; the entire site was completely abandoned. The cultist's belongings were still present and in place where they left them, plates of half-eaten food were found on the tables along with their drinks, the horses were still in the stables, and there was no sign of anyone having snuck in or forced their way in through any of the doors. It was as if the cultists had been made to vanish, spirited away by some unknown malicious entity: and while the building site and the lodgings were undisturbed, what the MP's found in the cultist's chapel (a small cabin that had been made into their make-shift church), posed only more questions. The alter had been found broken in half, the stone idols of the goddesses smashed to pieces all over the floor, claw marks and deep scratches all over the wooden floor, walls and roof, and scratched into the back wall above where the alter had been, were the words: NEVER COME BACK.

The incident was both a relief and a vexation for Carla: on the one hand she _hated_ the cultists for what they did to her and the children that night, she held no sympathy for them, and whatever Midnight did to make them 'disappear' that night, she held no qualms about; she felt like justice had been done. But on the other hand, that was just it: _what had_ Midnight done? The sightings of the ghost woman with long black hair tied up in a side ponytail caught her attention the most: had Midnight used her strange powers to somehow duplicate her face? To create an ethereal doppelganger to torment the cultists, to have them believe they were being haunted by her and the children? (After all, as far as the cultists knew they were dead) If so, it was a pretty creative way to get back at them: and deep down, Carla couldn't help but be a little disappointed she hadn't been there in person to see the looks on their faces. But like Miriam, and ultimately everyone else who knew of the titans: it had become apparent over time that Midnight did certain things that were kept secret for a reason: a reason that if questioned, could lead to potential trouble; in the end, some things were best left unknown, and no one questioned the titan about her 'secret workings'.

Following the disappearance of the cultists: the wall cult gave up the land, and elected to stay in the confines of their church in the city; to them, the land was cursed, and many of the cultists and pastors from Shiganshina refused to go anywhere near it. The property was put up for sale and few weeks later a wealthy farmer from wall Rose came along and bought it up, and as if by magic, within a few weeks the ground dried out, the plants grew back again: and by mid September the farmer and his family celebrated the first successful harvest on their new land; bringing in enough money to have a new house built on the top of the hill. For Carla, the children and their families, and the titans, it was a major victory: with the sanctuary gone and their network of supply depots and half-way houses destroyed, the Disciples didn't return to the forests: and before the summer was even over, the wall cult abandoned several other properties in the surrounding districts, out of fear that whatever had befallen their fellow parishioners in Shiganshina, might also find its way to them.

"Still, at least those nut jobs in the cult haven't been bothering anyone since; they must still be thinking that 'curse' is hanging over their heads" Miriam added as she took a sip of her drink: "Eh, I don't understand how people can even listen to them? What with half the crazy things they come out with" Lisa agreed, "Like that rumour that was going around some years ago? Where they said they were going to be teaching 'religious studies' in all the schools?"

"Oh yes, nothing ever did come of that did it? ...Probably just as well," Rosemary recalled as she sipped her wine: remembering back to the months following the flood, and how life changed for everyone in the wake of being introduced to the titans...

After that day, life seemed to fall back into a steady pace of normality for everyone, though there were some changes here and there: come the autumn the four Celtic families allowed their children to attend school alongside their friends, and it actually worked out okay as the children did a good job of keeping their heritage hidden away; their fathers would use the weekday evenings to teach their children about their culture, as well as use the weekends to continue their bush-craft and hunting trips. Following the flood, Carla had quit her delivery job and opted to stay at home, so Eren wouldn't have to worry about her; Pascal and West moved into the Black Stallion as agreed, and were placed up in the two remaining rooms in the attic, alongside Bren, Mabel and Derek. The two former crooks wasted no time in seeing off the gangs that had been pestering Miriam and her family (though _how_ they did it was never divulged, and Miriam never asked), by posing as a couple of criminals that had claimed the Black Stallion as their turf, and didn't take kindly to anyone squeezing in on their 'business'. Before long, hardly any of the regular pimps, whores and gang members were seen anywhere around the place; all, with one minor acceptation...

As the women watched the regular punters sipping their drinks, a small woman with long black hair came around the corner with two little boys in tow, and a smaller child held in her arms. She walked past the Inn's front door and went around the side to the service entrance near the livery and forge, where Bemadette had been waiting patiently for her; she seemed happy to see her as they talked, though the woman's smile seemed more forced rather than genuine: she handed the baby over to Bemadette, and they went inside the kitchen together.

"Was that Bemadette's mother?" Lisa thought aloud, "Yep, that was her" Miriam sighed, "Huh, I always hear about her but I seldom ever see her" "Eh, she keeps irregular hours: doesn't come up here unless she needs to; and even then, it's more obligatory than anything else since she's her mother. That and, she doesn't like to be _seen_ up this way" Miriam shrugged. "How is she getting on with her little brothers? I heard the youngest turned two last week" Lisa asked offhand; "Eh, pretty good considering the circumstances...Though personally? I don't know why she decided to have the boys? Her financial situation's already tight enough, that's the whole reason she sent Bemadette to live with us in the first place: and _that_ was only out of respect to her own mother who I was good friends with when she was alive, who's dying wish it was to see her granddaughter not grow up into that life" "Do you think she'll try to get you to take the boys on as well?" Lisa asked disconcertingly. Miriam paused a moment as she thought about it carefully, before replying in an unreadable tone: "...I've made it clear to her on where I stand: and if anything happens that forces her to question her motherhood, I'll make sure those boys don't come to any harm. She may have her own problems to deal with but she's got no excuses: those boys are _her_ responsibility as long as she keeps them under _her_ roof" she frowned.

"But? Surely it can't be all so bad? I mean, she comes to see Bemadette regularly, and they're on good talking terms: she _must care_ about her, to go out of her way to do that on a weekly basis" Lisa pointed out optimistically. But the women merely gazed at her with mixed feelings in their eyes, unable to answer that...

Family relationships were never always as straight forward as some like to imagine: and the relationship between a mother and daughter could be rather complicated, especially when said mother was a prostitute living in destitution on 'the bad side' of town, and who'd decided to have another three children in the years since the storm. Bemadette's mother never gave a straight answer as to why she chose to live the life she had: but then, she was not the kind of woman who had the mental constitution to properly think things through anyway; she lived day to day hand to mouth, her income determined by how many 'clients' she catered to every night, and all the while trying avoid the gaze of any pimps looking to get a new whore on their 'payroll'. It was not a life that brought satisfaction, security, peace of mind, or happiness, and why she didn't try to get herself out of it? No one knew, or could say for sure: the one good thing everyone could agree on that she _did_ get right was to get her daughter away from that life and somewhere she had the chance to make a future for herself. But now, Bemadette had three baby brothers, Brendan, Bren and Brendis, who came to visit her once a week, but they were still living with their mother: and any talk of making long term provisions for them hadn't been raised as of yet, and the more Bemadette's mother put the subject off, the more it began to worry everyone concerned.

"Caring about your children and caring about their futures are sometimes two different things," Rosemary thought aloud regretfully, "The latter often involving having to make some pretty tough decisions on your part; you can't just bring a child into the world and expect everything to work out alright. After all, there's no such thing as a free lunch"

"Well? Whatever happens, I'm sure things will work themselves out in the end" Lucile smiled, trying to inject a little positivity into the conversation, "They seemed to work out okay for the Schulz's?" Lucile pointed to the house between the Grayson home and the Jaeger home: "They came here only year ago with not a penny to their name, and yet they've been able to pick themselves right up" she smiled. Watching the house in question, the women noticed a small boy by with black hair come outside, and run over to where they were sitting with a casserole pot in hand covered by a tea towel: "Morning Mrs Weber" he smiled at Lisa, "Good morning Lawrence" she smiled back, "What's that you got there?" she glanced down at the pot, her mouth watering from the lovely smell of the pie inside: "My mum's game pie, she said sorry she couldn't come along to Marigold's welcoming party, so she made you this instead" he handed her the pot, "Oh that's so kind of her: how about you take it inside and ask my husband to give it to all our guests, I'm surely they'll love it" She smiled, "Okay" he nodded, and made his way into the house; "Such a well mannered young man" Rosemary thought aloud with a smile, "he'll go far if he keeps that up"

"Indeed... I wish Eren could take a few cues from him," Carla sighed ruefully as she stared up into the blue sky: the other women knew exactly what she was talking about, as a feeling of awkwardness suddenly overshadowed the conversation: "Oh, yes of course" Lisa sighed sheepishly, " _How is_ Eren doing anyway? Only, I heard he was in a bit of trouble last week?"

"Last week, every week; it's been going on for over a year now" Carla thought aloud: "And I'm worried it might be getting worse: I mean, he still does his chores when I tell him to, and he has his moments of calm with Armin and Ariana; but this last year? It just feels like we've been arguing more and more. This 'chip' he's got on his shoulder? He's like a dog with a piece of meat, he just _won't_ leave it alone, and for the life of me he won't tell me _why_ "

"Eh, he's at that age all young boys start to get impetuously stubborn" Miriam shrugged: "Right before they enter their teens, they start to think they know what's what: and you gotta give em' a bloody nose to remind them where they stand" "Oh Miriam you are awful" Rosemary waved off dismissively, "Debatable," Miriam waved off before tuning serious, "But my point is, he's lost perspective: no offense Carla? But he's _an idiot_ if he thinks he's going to achieve anything on just pure determination and attitude alone; I can't help but think what got him so riled up in the first place?"

"This is what I've been trying to ask him, but every time he just tells me no" Carla sighed, "Armin and Ariana haven't said anything, but they've noticed he's changed too: he's started getting into fights with the kids who pick on him, he's been scolding Hannes for drinking on the job, and now because of him, Armin and Ariana have been getting picked on too. Ariana's a tough girl she knows how to stand her ground, but Armin? The poor boy can't even say boo to a goose let alone stand up to anyone. And the worst part? I don't think Eren can see the consequences of his actions, and the effect it's having on those around him"

"...Well? His hubris will come back to bite him in one form or another" Rosemary sighed, "It usually does with most people in that state of mind" "Speaking of Ariana, where did she scamper off to?" Lisa looked up and down the street, "Oh, she's out in the forest with the others" Lucile replied.

* * *

Meanwhile, deep in the Marian forest:

"HEY! That's not fair! I saw it first!" Rowan shouted up at the Raven twins as he chased after them on his ODM gear. "You snooze you loose!" they grinned as they swiped their prize and took off, firing their lines into the nearest tree and flying up into the canopy to escape him. "Watch your spacing!" Bryson called up to the children from a nearby branch, "You don't want your lines getting tangled again!" "And make sure you got enough room for the long jumps! You misjudge that gap and you'll go crashing into someone!" West added as he watched them from another branch nearby.

Ariana shot her lines up and aimed for the target, but just as she was in range to grab it, Shadow quickly reached his hands out to grab her lines, but at the last second she recalled the cables and shot them into his arm instead: rapidly swinging up and over as he pulled away, recalling her lines and letting the force of the swing carry her to the nearest tree, where she landed feet first against the truck, shot her lines up at the target again, and jumped upwards; swiping her target before Shadow had a chance to catch her again. "Nicely done Ariana!" Bryson called over, "Keep it up!"

"You know? I could watch this all day" Eraman thought aloud as he reclined between the roots of a giant tree: his ravens all sitting at his side in the grass, watching the spectacle. "Me too: and to think, we used to be scared of them falling, now look at them; they're confident and sure as any bird" Falken nodded as Evernight sat in his lap dozing, unconcerned by what was going on.

For the last three years, the kids had been learning to use their ODM gear, and in those three years they had come a long way. Between West, Pascal and Bryson as their tutors, they had learned just about all there was to know: from the evasive combat manoeuvres of the Scouts, to the more unconventional and maverick tricks Pascal and West used to employ when they were thieves, using ODM gear to beat a hasty retreat for the authorities. Learning the basics was hard, learning the intermediate skills was challenging, but now that they had they had the strength, weight and frames to use the gear comfortably, the training became more advanced, as their tutors were always thinking up new ways to test their skills. One such means of training was a game called 'swipe the pine cone', which pretty much described all that they needed to do: the aim was to grab a pine cone that was suspended on a long piece of string from a high giant tree branch; the catch? The pine cones were guarded on four sides by Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel, and suspended over a wide clearing, making nearby anchor points for the cables very difficult to reach, unless the children shot their lines at the titans themselves and used _them_ to get to the pine cones. It was a means of training Bryson had gone through when he was in the scouts, and was important in terms of being able to fight the titans in open spaces where no trees were available. But in this instance, it had become a fun game for the children and titans to enjoy together: and for the titans, the tiny hooks embedding into their tough skin were not much of a nuisance.

"I got this one!" Belle shouted to her sisters as she shot her lines low and used her gear's gas to propel her horizontally right between Boar's legs, before recalling and firing her lines up into the back of Midnight's left upper arm: and as the titan swung her arm downwards in attempt to grab Hawk, she used the momentum to propel herself up at high speed, essentially catapulting her upwards, allowing her to grab her pine cone and get away. When Midnight realized what had happened, she let out a loud frustrated "TCH!" to which Angel could help but laugh. "Watch it Angel! Their coming right at you!" Lucy shouted as she and her brother allowed Ash, Rowan and Dale to fly right past them, splitting off into three directions and throwing the bird titan's concentration off as she could only swipe at two of them with her wings: Lucy and Lucius took advantage of the opening, and sailed over the titan's head, swiping their targets and zipping away. "You cheat's! She got Dale and Ash!" Rowan shouted at them as he watched his brothers kick themselves off the avian's wings, "Sorry Rowan but you know there's no etiquette to this game!" Lucy called back, smiling smugly to herself.

"Their getting stronger" Evrard smiled as he folded his arms, "Pretty soon they should be able to shoot a bow and arrow while using those things", "I wouldn't be surprised if they already know how" Tyto smirked.

" **Dammit! They're getting better at this!"** Hecate huffed as she tried to grab Ashlyn, only for the girl to twist herself up and avoid her clawed fingers: her brother had somehow snuck around the back of her, and used her long hair to swing around, and grab his pine cone. **"Can't we just use a little wind? You know? To blow them outta the way or something?!"** Angel panted as she tried to keep her eyes on the Willum sisters, Fox and Shyla as they flew close together like a flock of birds, only to split off in all directions at the last possible second as she tried to softly bat them away with her wings; **"Now now, We promised no cheating,"** Javorin playfully pointed out as he tried to grab Ash's cables, only for him to recall his lines at the last second, and drop down out of the way before firing them again, **"Besides, this is as good for us as it is for them: in corporeal forms as big as these, keeping our spatial awareness and hand-eye coordination in check is important"**

" **I** _ **get**_ **all that,"** Midnight frowned as Josefa and Jaye gave her slip between her legs, **"But you didn't warn us the brats would be** _ **this**_ **good!" "Are you saying you're getting slow in your immortal dotage?"** Herne grinned cheekily as he jumped up at Hawk, forcing the boy to swing up and around out of the way, and find a new route to his target, **"With that fine figure of yours you could've fooled me!"**

" **Oh shut up Shorty!"** the goddess huffed as she reached up to grab Ariana, but to no avail as she easily dodged her hand, shot her lines into her hip, and sped off down and up in a fast wide arc, grabbing another pine cone before Javorin could spin around and catch her.

As Ariana retreated into the canopy of a nearby tree, she looked over her pine cones and grinned with pride: "This'll put in first place for sure this time!" Placing the cones in the small basket used to hold them, she turned and readied herself: gazing down at the titans and picking out a new pine cone to grab. But just as she was about to fire her cables, something caught her eye on the ground. Several meters from the base of the tree she was standing in, Jaye had landed on the ground after being softly swatted away by Boar, and was looking for a way back up to the pine cones: but as he stood there watching everyone else fly around, he was completely oblivious to the large black wolf that was sneaking right up behind him, only several meters away; completely concealed from sight by the thick undergrowth as it readied itself to attack.

"JAYE!" Ariana screamed as she jumped off the branch, grabbed her hunting knife from out of its holster and shooting her lines at the nearest tree as she barrelled down into the wolf's neck at high speed: the animal yelped in surprise as she hit it hard, and Jaye spun around on his heels nearly jumping out of his skin as he heard a loud crash in the bushes right behind him. In the same instant, everyone stopped in their tracks and hurried over to the bushes: "ARIANA!" Tyto panicked as he dashed to where he caught a glimpse of his daughter falling. Shadow careful stepped over to where the commotion was, and as he parted the bushes and small trees out of the way, he saw Ariana lying on the ground next to the wolf: the hilt of her knife protruding from the back of its neck, and its lifeless eyes gazing up into nothingness. "-Ariana?!" Tyto found her, and saw the wolf too: "I'm fine dad," Ariana gasped as she slowly stood back up, her cables still lodged in the side of the tree with too much slack to recall them, "He was about to attack Jaye, I saw him from up in the tree" she explained, trying to regain her composure.

"What? ..." Jaye gazed down at the wolf in stunned surprise, as his sister landed next to him, "I-, I didn't hear him, I didn't even know he was there!"Jaye panicked a little. From the looks of things the wolf had broken Ariana's fall, as she'd swung too low to the ground to be able to swing up again, and she'd used her momentum to drive the knife into its neck, killing it instantly; as he reached down to inspect the animal, Tyto breathed a sigh of relief: "Well at least your both alright: well done Ariana"

"Why would a wolf be stalking a human at _this_ time of the year? And with all that commotion going on?" West thought aloud as he landed on the ground next to Tyto; he'd seen what had happened but was been too far away to reach Jaye in time. "Look at him," Tyto gazed down at the wolf, "See his ribs? See the bones on his back? He must have been desperate for an easy meal". Suddenly, several long mournful howls echoed through the forest all at once: the rest of the pack couldn't have been more than a few miles away, and as they listened, the whole group began to get an uneasy feeling in the pits of their stomachs. "Maybe we should call it a day?" Bryson suggested as he landed next to Ariana: "If the rest of that pack is looking for food and they're not picky about preying on humans, it might become a problem"

"So? We got four titans to keep us safe, what've we got to worry about?" West shrugged casually: kneeling down and gently tapping his shoulder with the tip of his finger, Shadow grabbed West's attention as he spelt out, : He's got a point. It could become problematic, especially if you run out of gas. Take the children home and we'll sort them out. It shouldn't be a problem: "You sure about that?" Evrard asked disconcertingly. : Quite sure, it's okay: Shadow shook his head.

"Okay; well? Don't forget tonight" Tyto reminded him, "The usual place at the usual time?"

: Don't worry, we'll be there. See you later kids: Shadow spelt out, before leaning over and gently pulling Ariana's hooks out of the tree, and allowing her to recall her lines: Walking over to her favorite titan, she stroked the side of his hand as she smiled up at him, "See later big guy". The other children all voiced their goodbye too before following their fathers out of the clearing, with Bryson and West bringing up the rear. Tyto removed the knife from the wolf's neck: picked it up and slung it over his shoulders, and handing Ariana her knife back. "Waste not, there may not be much fat on him but we can still get a decent bit of meat, as well as a nice pelt" he smiled. Gazing down at his daughter, Tyto could tell what happened back there was a real shock for her, as she gazed down at the blood on her knife, seemingly lost in thought: "...Oh don't worry about it darling" he tried to assure her, "A strike like that to the back of the neck? He wouldn't have suffered for very long" "It's not that," Ariana gazed up at him as she wiped the blood off on her sash belt, "I was just thinking how sad it was that he had to take such a desperate measure like that, and risk death to get a meal"

"Sad but true," Tyto sighed, "When any creature, man or beast is forced to take extreme action for the sake of their survival, they are often forced to make a choice they wouldn't normally make. And sometimes, it means having to change the very nature of what they are, in order to try and beat the odds"

Ariana didn't press the subject any further, as she pondered on how things might have been different if there had been a herd of deer nearby. On the way back to the road, the children and their tutors stashed their ODM gear away in a large tree cave that was situated in a hollow, surrounded on all sides by thick tall bushes, a perfect hiding spot for the gear to remain hidden: as bringing it back to their homes in Shiganshina was not permissible by their elders, least it would attract unwanted attention.

Once they were done, the sound of soft titan footfalls caught their attention as Angel came running up to join them. "Ah, you want to go and see Carla huh?" West smiled, and Angel nodded enthusiastically with a string of happy chirps, "Well off you go then, we'll see you later tonight" Bryson told her. In a flash of pale blue light and white sparks, Angel shrank in the blink of an eye into her dove form, and took off for the city. "I'm amazed Grisha hasn't thought about putting her in a cage yet: the amount of time she spends at their place? He must think she's a pet" West thought aloud, "As far as the good doctor is aware she's just a common dove who knows Carla's kitchen is good for breadcrumbs, she doesn't go inside the house while he's there remember?" Falken pointed out.

"So? Are we _really_ going to see 'the fruits' of all your hard work at long last?" West gazed over at Bryson, "Only, you guys have been really secretive about this whole 'titan study' thing: _three years_ you've been at it, and the rest of us have only seen a handful of pages in all that time" Belle huffed, "I know it's been a long time, and I apologize for testing the limits of your patience" Bryson gazed down at the children, "But I can finally say at last that we've got a good body of work in place, and that we're ready to present our findings to all of you tonight" he smiled. "So what _have_ you guys discovered about the titans, exactly?" Gale smirked: "Ah If I told you, it wouldn't be a surprise" Bryson smiled slyly. "Dad? Any hints?" Ariana grinned up at her father, "I'm not saying anything, you'll have to wait until tonight!" he chuckled.

As they listened to the human's voices drift away into the distance, the three remaining gods stood there in silence, contemplating the day's events. **"They're defiantly getting good on those gears"** Javorin thought aloud as he folded his arms: **"If any of them join the military, they'll practically sail right through half the training"** Herne concurred, **"I'm just wondering about tonight's meeting: will they** _ **really have**_ **anything good to show for all their efforts?"** Hecate pondered aloud in a deadpan tone, **"After three years of studying and experimenting? I should hope so!"** Herne exclaimed, **"I wouldn't worry about it too much: it's not like they've been met with absolute failure: they** _ **have**_ **made significant strides during that time"**

Hecate passed a heavy sigh, trying to let go of her doubts: **"...Sorry. I guess I'm just being worrisome as usual...We reveal our powers and share our blood with an amateur scientist, a doctor, a soldier, an architect, a couple of blacksmiths and thieves (excuse me,** _ **former**_ **thieves), and four Celts who've somehow managed to retain their skills at reading the hand of the ancients, along with all their brats, who're now proficient** _ **flying**_ **brats...In the past, this kind of thing was usually a recipe for disaster"**

" **Old habits die hard hm?"** Javorin offered a reassuring smile: **"And then some"** Hecate shrugged with a small smile, **"But then I suppose that's just the realist in me?"**

" **That's understandable"** Javorin nodded, **"But, considering how closely we've been working alongside them for the last three years? I think we can safely conclude no one's making an attempt to bring about Ragnarok any time soon. Besides, it'll be interesting to see the finished results.** _ **All-father knows**_ **how many journal's Claude must have gone through by now?" "Well? I guess, for an amateur scientist he's not a complete crack-pot: better** _ **him**_ **than a rouge wizard"** Hecate shrugged. Herne was about to throw in his opinion, when the distant howls of the wolf pack echoed through the trees yet again: **"Oh, I better go see to them"** he sighed as he took off into the trees, **"Catch you two later!"**

" **So, we got some time to kill before tonight: fancy some 'people watching'?"** Hecate joked, **"Maybe another time** " Javorin sighed as his mind turned to other things: mostly Ariana and her two other best friends Eren and Armin: **"There's something I need to see to before the meeting" "Eren again? ..."** Hecate raised an eyebrow, to which Javorin gave her a sideways glance; she sighed dubiously: **"...You** _ **know**_ **how Carla feels about 'this situation' of ours: and she's made it clear she wants to keep him out of it for as long as possible"**

" **I respect Carla's wishes; it's not 'us' I'm concerned about"** Javorin explained, **"... The boy has changed much this past year, and I fear his new-found drive and determination could prove problematic for his friendship with Ariana. She still holds him close to her heart: but I fear his own heart's desire could lead him down a path she may not be able to follow"**

" **You think he may do something to hurt her?"**

" **Not intentionally"** Javorin sighed with a vexed frown, **"But, I fear his resentment towards his circumstances** _ **could**_ **get the better of him, and he could do something bad without realizing the consequences"** he gazed over at Hecate, **"Ariana is aware something isn't right with him, she's also aware of the responsibilities she holds with us: but at the same time, having been best friends since they could first remember, she feels bad for keeping both Eren and Armin 'out of the loop'"**

" **Well? She can't have her cake and eat it: she's going to have to choose eventually"** Hecate shrugged. " **I hope it doesn't come to that: but for now, she and Armin are a good influence on him"** he replied as he glanced over at her, **"I'm going to head back, I'll see you tonight" "Bye** " Hecate sighed as she watched the god change into his hawk form, and fly off in the direction of Shiganshina.

* * *

A short while later:

The flight to Shiganshina from the forest was barely ten minutes for Angel, as she soared over the wall and picked out the roof of Carla's home from among the many hundreds of other rooftops in the city: she knew it by heart as she glided down to the street the house was situated in, perched on the kitchen windowsill, and tapped on the glass pane with her beak. As usual, Carla opened the window for her with her warm welcoming smile and Angel hopped right in, perching on the rim of the sink: "I was wondering when you'd show up" she smiled, "I'm just about to get dinner started, you don't mind do you?" Angel shook her head, and watched curiosity as Carla started talking about her day, and all the other gossip from the past week.

Ever since the titans revealed their amazing shape-shifting powers, it had become a regular thing for them to visit their human friends in Shiganshina disguised as animals: usually dogs, cats, rats and mice, but usually they preferred to be seen as birds. For Carla and Angel, this was a nice arrangement as it meant Angel got to hang out with her best friend, and Carla didn't have to worry about leaving the house to go to the forest. Disguised as a white dove, Angel would often come to the Jaeger house three or four times a week: if Grisha and Eren weren't in, Carla would let her in, but if the family were home she'd often perch under the eaves of the roof, and listen to their conversations; she found there was a lot to be learnt by listening, rather than asking questions all the time. By now, Carla could pick her out at a mere glance: while her disguise as a dove fooled everyone else, those pale glistening blue eyes were unmistakable; like two tiny blue topazes sitting in freshly fallen snow, as well as the glistening iridescence of her feathers, reflecting all the colours of the rainbow when she caught the light just right. She'd usually leave a book out for her to read by the windowsill, and sometimes Angel would try to help her with her chores around the house, but often than not, the two would usually talk, with Angel spelling out her words with her 'smoke light' with the flap of a wing.

As Carla got the vegetables ready, Angel plucked some herbs from the window boxes around the back of the house, and brought them to the sink to be washed: she told her about the welcoming party for the neighbor's new baby across the street, and in turn, Angel told Carla about her activities out in the forest: patrolling the tree lines to make sure the Disciples were gone for good; 'people watching' the woodcutters, the poachers, the foresters, and all the other humans that lived out in the forest. She told her about the kids ODM gear training, and about Jaye's close encounter with the wolf and how Ariana saved him just in time.

"Mrs Jaeger?" Ariana stuck her head in through the kitchen window, making Carla jump out of her skin and giving Angel such a scare that she fell off her perch into the cooking pot, landing feet up amid the diced vegetables. "Oh goodness Ariana, don't sneak up on me like that!" Carla tried to slow her beating heart as she patted her chest, reaching down to get Angel out of the pot "Sorry" Ariana sheepishly smiled as she adjusted the bow that was slung over her shoulder. "Are you okay? Angel just told me about the wolf" "Oh him?" Ariana remembered, "Its okay, no one was hurt, and we're having wolf steak for dinner tonight; have you seen Eren around?" "He should be in the usual place with Armin: if you see him, tell him dinner's on the way" Carla replied, "Okay thanks bye!" Ariana waved as she took off down the alleyway along the back of the house. "Good thing I wasn't about to place that in the oven huh?" Carla smirked, to which Angel ruffled her feathers in annoyance.

Running down the alleyway and cutting down a small side street, Ariana kept her eyes peeled for her two best friends: she didn't have to look for long though, as the sounds of their voices reached her ears first. Heading in their direction, she turned the corner in time to see Eren being beaten up two older boys, while two others were laying hard into Armin. "HEY!-" Ariana angrily shouted: recognizing the older boys right away as she reached for her bow and got a couple of arrows out of her quiver, locked one in place while holding the others between her teeth and aiming at the leader: "QUIT THAT RIGHT NOW OR YOU'LL GET IT IN THE SHOULDER THIS TIME CARL!"

Looking up, Carl smirked as he advanced towards her, "Heh! What're you gonna do ya lil' blue-eyed freak?!" he mockingly laughed, and without hesitation Ariana fired, landing the arrow right at his shoulder, piercing his clothing and flesh, causing him to scream in agony as he clutched at the wound. The arrowhead in question was a tiny triangular tip with barbs on the sides, not lethal, and she hadn't drawn it back far enough to make it go any deeper than the skin, but the barbs meant that trying to remove it was very painful. Stupidly, his friends thought trying to tackle her would be a good idea, only to find out that she was very quick on the draw, as she fired another three arrows in rapid succession, each hitting their target in each of their shoulders. "NOW GET OUTTA HERE BEFORE I PUT ONE UP EACH OF YOUR ASS HOLES!" she barked angrily: not wanting to push their luck, the boys took off running in the opposite direction with the arrows still lodged in their shoulders.

"God _I swear_ those idiots get dumber every day! ..." Ariana huffed as she helped Armin back up on his feet, "You okay? They didn't hurt you too bad this time did they?" she asked him disconcertingly as she wiped away his tears with her sleeve, "I-, I'm okay" Armin sniffled, "Eren, you alright?" Ariana reached down to help him up, but Eren smacked her hands away, "I'm fine! I don't need your help!" he snapped; taken aback by his attitude, Ariana watched as he got back up and turned around, she gasped in alarm when she saw his bleeding nose: "Oh god! Eren you're _not_ fine! Here, let me take a look at that-" she reached out to have a closer look at his face, but Eren only pushed her away, "-I SAID I'M FINE!" he barked angrily, making her jump. Suddenly realizing the look on her face, Eren immediately calmed down, and awkwardly tried to apologize, "I-,...I'm sorry: really, I'll be okay"

"Really?" Rowan folded his arms as he came up behind him with Ash and Dale following close behind: "You'll be okay? Just like all the other times you were 'okay' with getting your ass beaten up?" he frowned sarcastically. "Nice timing guys: _where the hell_ were you a few seconds ago?!" Ariana frowned at them, "From the looks of things you had it all well in hand" Dale commented with a cheeky grin. "Let me guess, Carl Ludwig and the Huber brothers?" Ash asked with a deadpan stare: to which Ariana nodded, "...Right" he frowned darkly. It was no secret the three brothers didn't get along with those boys, their rivalry had been ongoing for years now, and with Eren and Armin as their new punching bags, they seemed to be getting more ballsy of late. "Okay, take em' home and get them patched up: we'll go have a little 'chat' with Carl and his buddies" Ash patted Ariana on the shoulder as he, Rowan and Dale strode away down the street, "-Hey I said I'm okay!" Eren barked at them, "Just _shut up_ and let Ariana see to your injuries, before _I_ give you more" Rowan glowered, giving him the hairy eyeball.

Not giving either of them the chance to argue about it, Ariana grabbed them both by the sleeves of their shirts, and dragged them back to her house, where she frog-marched them inside and into the parlor where the basic medical kit were kept. There, she prepared some hot water, some medicinal herbs, and some dressings and bandages and got to work, starting with the graze on Armin's knee. "Doesn't hurt too much does it?" she asked as she placed the mashed up herbs in the dressing, and pressed it against the wound: Armin flinched, but didn't recoil too much this time, "Uh, no? It's okay, really!" Armin assured her with a forced nervous smile; she knew he was lying, Armin would feel pain at even the smallest pricks or cut's, she knew he only put on a brave face for her. Fortunately, it was only the graze on his knee this time, she then turned her attention to Eren, who by now had reluctantly accepted her help and had had some time to calm down.

As she treated his bloodied nose and a small cut on his arm, she was half tempted to ask what the altercation was about this time: but knowing Eren, he would either dismiss it as nothing or say they were asking for it. She really couldn't be asked to care about such petty things anymore, and it annoyed her that he kept refusing her help more and more of late: deciding she didn't what to know, she changed the subject: "So? Are we still on for tomorrow?"

"Kinda" Eren shrugged, "Dad's going to see the Ackerman's for a check-up: he wants me to come along. He thinks meeting their daughter will be a good thing for me; making a new friend or something like that", "Well? You can never have too many friends" Ariana smiled, "I dunno? I haven't even _met_ her" Eren frowned, "You want me to come along? 'Break the ice' so to speak?" Ariana asked offhand, "I guess?" Eren shrugged in an uninterested tone. "So uh? What'd you and your cousins get up to in the forest today?" Armin smiled, trying to lighten the mood: "She bagged her first wolf is what she did!" Ashlyn poked her head in through the door, "Yeah, damn thing was about to take my head right off before Ariana got it in the back of her neck with her knife" Jaye added; "You took on a wolf?! _With your bare hands?!_ " Armin gawked at her. "Well? It wasn't much of a fight really? I kinda caught him off guard" Ariana dithered, "Hm, and you get picky over _me_ getting into a fight?" Eren huffed in slight annoyance.

Ariana frowned in incredulousness: "It's not the same thing Eren: if you tried to take on that wolf all by yourself you wouldn't last five seconds in its jaws", "Yeah, the only reason Ariana won that fight at all was just blind luck" Josefa shrugged as she glanced over her brother's shoulder, "The wolf was desperate for food and he miscalculated: pure and simple, kinda like those idiots that keep beating _you_ up". "I can handle them by myself just fine" Eren frowned at her, "I _don't need_ _anyone's_ help!" "Oh really?" Jaye deadpanned with a raised eyebrow, "And _who_ was it that shot those arrows? Allowing you guys to escape?" Josefa added sarcastically before leaving with Ashlyn and her brother. Glancing back at Eren with a mother-hen look, Ariana sighed in disappointment as she put the medicine kit away and beckoned for the boys to follow her. Heading upstairs to the attic, they climbed out onto the roof and sat by the chimney stacks, gazing out over the city and listening to the wind as it whipped over the top of wall Maria.

"...What're you trying to prove Eren?" Ariana sighed in frustration, "Because, I've been trying to understand you for a long time now, and I don't know why? But you just don't seem to want to talk to me about _anything_ anymore," she gazed at him with a pleading look, "We're still best friends aren't we? Best friends can talk to each other about anything, right?"

Eren stared at her for a moment: seeing the look in her eyes, and sighing in reluctance as he nodded, "... Yeah, we're still best friends..." shuffling a little close to her, he laced his fingers together as he explained, "...Do you remember last year? When you showed us that book you found in your Grandpa's attic?" he glanced over at Armin, who simply nodded, "... Well? That day, when you showed us that book and you said it was all about the outside world? I didn't believe you at first; but as you flicked through the pages and I saw all the different places that were out there: the ocean, the fields of burning sand, the wastelands of ice and snow; that was the first time I had ever thought about what lay beyond the walls...Up until then, I used to spend my days wandering the forest or gazing up at the clouds; but when I heard you talking about those things, and I saw the look in both your eyes, "he glanced at Ariana, "You both looked like you were staring into an incredible dream of some kind: and it was then I realized I had nothing: no dream, no ambition, that's when I realized for the first time in my life, that I wasn't free" he frowned.

Ariana stared at him surprise: "You're not free?" she echoed in confusion,

"That was the day I realized I'd been living in a cage my whole life: the titans, those _monstrous things_ had stolen my freedom, the world was so big and vast and yet I'd been forced to live in this tiny cage since the day I was born; that was when I knew, I could _never_ forgive them" he frowned bitterly. "When I turn twelve, I'm _going_ to join the Scouts and I'm going to see the world beyond these walls, I'll slay every titan in my path, and I'll make it to see the ocean"

Ariana stared at him, and let her gaze drop in a mix of disbelief and disappointment. She remembered that day well: when Armin showed them both that book and explained how the world they knew they was so much bigger, filled with so many more wonders that there was no way to possibly see them all in a single lifetime. Who wouldn't fall in love with such a dream? A world full of things, animals and places that had never been seen since before the titans consumed humanity. She remembered gazing at the pictures in the book, and thinking how _amazing_ it would be to go and see them herself. Gazing up at Armin, she saw the wonder and awe practically swirling around in his bright blue eyes: for the first time in his life he was truly alive; emboldened, unafraid, and determined to do something to realize his dream. But when she looked over at Eren, she saw how dazed and taken aback he was: at the time she just assumed he was as amazed and in awe as they were: but now? She realized it was something totally different. He _had_ seen the wonder of the world that lay beyond the walls, and it had _infuriated_ him that he had no way to reach it, other than to join the Scouts and risk death to get it.

"...So that's how you really feel..." Ariana sighed as she gazed at him ruefully, "... And nothing else will make you happy?" she asked in concern, hoping that he still remembered what was important. "No, how can _anything_ make me happy when I don't have _the one thing_ that should have been mine from the start!" Eren fumed. "The one thing? What's that?" Ariana glanced at him in concern: "MY FREEDOM!-" he snapped, "Because of those _damned titans_ , I'm forced to live in this cage along with all the other fools who are content to live their whole lives as cattle! Doing _nothing_ with their lives, happy to live in blissful ignorance!" he seethed.

"But, Eren" Ariana turned to face him, "You _are_ free"

Eren stared at her in complete bemusement, while Armin gazed at her curiously as she continued, "-I mean, okay we live inside these walls: but, _how can you think_ you're not free? With all the things we've done together as best friends? The fact we are a part of this world and all the other living things within it, means you already have _your own_ measure of freedom; and it's _the one thing_ nothing and no one can ever take away from you, no matter how many walls stand in your way!" she explained confidently, and with a sense of surety and belief.

But Eren only frowned in annoyance: "... You don't know what you're talking about!" he fumed as he got up, climbed his way across to the roof next door, and stormed across to his bedroom window. Feeling dejected, Ariana pulled her knees up to her chin, and sulked as Armin put his arm around her, "Don't feel too bad Ariana, I already tried to explain things to him once or twice, and he thinks I'm a little crazy too" he smiled awkwardly, "Seriously Armin?" she gave him a sideways glance, knowing full well he was lying to try and cheer her up; getting the hint, Armin quickly removed his arm and scratched the back of his neck nervously: "Eh, am I really _that_ obvious?"

"Only to me. You get away with everyone else," she smirked slyly, before turning serious: "... Armin, do you think Eren is going to be okay with this? Even if he does join the scouts and ventures into the outside world, I fear he's only going to be met with disappoint"

"Are you saying you're not okay with him going? Because you know? I intend to join him when I turn twelve too. I want to see the ocean as badly as he does" Armin admitted, feeling as though he was shooting her down, "Even if that means risking death at the hands of the titans, I believe its dream worth dying for"

"Armin, you're _way too smart_ to die" Ariana couldn't help but smile as she patted him on the back: "Hell, with all your bright ideas I wouldn't be surprised if make commander within your first year after graduation: I _know_ you'll find a way to ocean one way or another..." she hesitated a moment, "...I'm just-, worried that determination alone won't be enough to help Eren realize his dream too: and if he's not willing to listen to reason, well then, what can either of us do?"

"Hmm..." Armin let his gaze drop as he contemplated her words, "...You really believe we're born free? All of us?"

She looked him in the eye, and stated sincerely: "Yes I do," she gazed back up at the sky with a hopeful smile: "I've always believed we are born free, that everything is the way it is for a reason. Even if it's so big and vast that I can't see all of it? Or that I can't make out what it is? I believe we're all born with the freedom to pave our own paths through life, and the fact we are given to _discover_ that knowledge is a gift in of itself. Some of us realize that, others become lost through their own choices or because of things that happen beyond their control: but I believe those who're still trying to make sense of their lives, still have a chance to find their way: they just need a little help somehow"

"That's-, pretty amazing" Armin stared at her with an impressed smile, "Where did you learn that?" Thinking back to the night she first met Shadow and how everything that happened since then seemed to fall into place, as if it were a complex pattern: pointing her in a direction, that was leading to somewhere she could never have envisioned. Something: that while it had been difficult along the way, held the promise of a kind of hope at the end of it. Gazing over at Armin, and seeing that awe he still had in his eyes, she smiled: "...Let's just say, I've got some good friends that helped me along the way"

Gazing down at the street behind him, and seeing Ariana's cousins and friends playing in the street together, Armin realized (or rather, he _believed_ ) what she meant, and smiled in thoughtful contemplation: "...I see..." he gazed at her, "And? Have _I_ helped you along the way too?" Ariana gazed at him in surprise, as if confused as to why he even needed to ask at all, " _Of course_ you have silly!" she threw her arm around him and pulled him in for a hug, "Who else would I ask to beat me at chess? Or think up some start way to get around Josefa and Jaye's pranks?" she rubbed his shoulder, "Seriously, there's a lot me and Eren couldn't have done without you"

"Seriously?" Armin blinked in surprise, before shying away with a sheepish smile: "Come on, I'm nothing extraordinary: I don't have your stealth, or Eren's fiery attitude" "No, but you have a _damn smart_ brain, and you know how to use it better than the two of us put together" she smiled, "I don't think you realize it now? But one day, that brain's gonna help a lot of lives, not just mine and Eren's..." she gently grasped his hand and stood up: standing next to her, Armin watched as she pointed to the wall: "I believe one day, you _will_ get to see the ocean. That wall right there? It's just bricks and mortar, and the titan's? Eh, they'll be a piece of cake, knowing you? You'll come up with some smart idea to either avoid them, or kill them in a way that doesn't involve anyone having to risk their lives"

"...Will you be with us? ... Only? I don't think it would be right: me and Eren going to see the ocean and leaving _you_ behind..." he asked her with a sense of anxiety. Gazing into his eyes and realizing he was serious: Ariana thought about Shadow and the other titans, and what it would mean having to leave them behind. Living half her life in secret with them _and_ her heritage, she couldn't just abandon them and her family without good reason, and even then, would the reason be worthy of perusing if the cause was just enough? Going to see the ocean; would it really be worth it? Leaving everything she'd come to know and love, to pursue the dreams of her two best friends? The _only two friends_ who didn't know about the titans? The fact she's a Celt? Or the numerous things that had happened to her along the way? "...Because?" Armin continued with a hopeful smile of his own, "I _really_ believe you'd make a great scout"

Smiling as she blushed a little, Ariana looked away in embarrassment, "Oh shut up your just saying that..." she gazed at him, curiously, "...You really mean that?"

"Armin?!" Freya's voice suddenly disturbed the moment, "Your Grandpa's here! Time to go home!"

"Yeah, I do!" he chuckled as he headed for the attic window, "Well? See you tomorrow when you get back" he waved goodbye, and climbed down through the window back inside. As she watched Armin leave with his grandfather up the street, Ariana gazed up at the blue sky, and smiled with a small fluttering butterfly in her stomach, "...He really thinks I'd make a good scout?" she thought aloud.

As she gazed across the city, she saw a hawk with vivid blue eyes watching her from the chimney stack, and right away she knew who it was: "...Of course _you'd_ be eavesdropping..." she smirked. The hawk flew up above her, and in a flash blue light Shadow resumed his titan form: but he wasn't entirely solid, his whole body was semi-transparent, and his weight was virtually nothing as he sat down on the roof of the neighboring house without causing so much as a creek or a groan from the rafters. Ariana knew he was invisible to everyone in the vicinity but her: a trick he'd shown her a long while back, and one that came in handy for talking to him face to face, so long as she kept her voice down.

"So how long were you listening this time?" she deadpanned up at him, : Long enough: he spelt out with a smirk, "You guys really have no concept of privacy do you?" Ariana couldn't help but smile; but as she gazed up at him, she began to contemplate the implications of what Armin was asking of her: with a defeated sigh, she asked bluntly: "... _Am I wrong_ to go with them? To see the ocean I mean? ...I know we've talked about this before but now? I'm beginning to think about this more seriously"

Sensing her mind was troubled by this, Shadow asked her,: I sense you wish to remain loyal to them, and that's fine. But you do know what joining the Scouts will involve. And if you go out on the expeditions, I will not be able to guarantee your safety:

"Yeah _I know_ all that, Bryson's lectured me enough on it already" she waved off, "It's just- keeping you and the others a secret from them for so long? _I owe them_ you know? I mean, I talk about stuff with you I don't tell them about, and vice versa I tell them things I don't tell the others about. Having to lie to them like this? All because Mrs Jaeger doesn't want Eren to feel 'burdened' by the guilt of keeping this secret of ours? Maybe three years ago when we kept this from our own parents it applied then, but now? We're growing up, things have changed, and I don't feel like Eren's a liability; he may have a chip on his shoulder but I don't believe he's dangerous in any way" Ariana vented, before heaving a heavy sigh, "... _It just doesn't feel right_ ; you, Midnight, Boar, Angel, and everyone else? You're _all_ my friends, but so are Eren and Armin: and _I don't want_ to choose"

: Nobody's asking you to: Shadow spelt out, : But the thing is; it's possible that your lives will head off in different directions over time, and that being together the way you are now? May not be possible. I'm not saying you'll stop being friends. It just might be that you'll have to be prepared to part ways, if it ever comes to that: "...If it ever comes to that..." Ariana sighed as she thought about it: knowing in the back of her mind that he had a point, it was a possibility she didn't like; but one that could well come to pass. "...Then I guess I'll have to make the most of it while I can huh?" she smiled up at him, reaching his other hand down to stroke her cheek, he smiled and spelt out, : Most definitely:

Glancing down and around the street to check to make sure no one was watching, a crafty glint lit up in Ariana's eyes as she got an idea: "So, we're not meeting the others until much later: think we can go for a quick fly before then?" : Oh, I don't think that'll be too much trouble: Shadow replied with an equally craft grin: and in an instant he transformed into his elemental form, picked Ariana up with his strong updrafts, rendering her invisible as well, and took off up into the sky with Ariana giggling with elation.

Meanwhile down on the ground: Belle watched as Ariana disappeared into mid air, seemingly shooting straight up into the sky, "Where're they going?" Josefa asked offhand, having just caught a glimpse of the same 'disappearing act'; "Eh, probably flying off somewhere?" Belle shrugged: "She was talking to Eren and Armin a few minutes ago" "I know, I saw Armin leave" Gale interjected as she passed a sigh of vexation: "Be honest with me guys, do you think Eren's still the same guy we used to know? I mean, he used to be nice to hang out with, but now? He's just- _angry_ at everyone; and I can't figure out why?" "You and me both" Hawk sighed, "I have to admit, he's got me stumped: the only people he doesn't seem to be annoyed with is Armin and Ariana, and I think that's more to do with the fact they know what makes him tick" "I think it's kinda sad" Poppy sighed ruefully, "We used to play together all the time when we were little; now? He just pushes everyone away" "he wasn't always like that though" Clay pointed out, "Do you remember after the floods three years? He spent a lot of time with his mum and Ariana, and I think _that_ was out of guilt for believing they were both dead, and at the same time happy that they were alive" Hazel added,

"You know, come to think about it? I don't think Mrs Jaeger told him _or_ Doctor Jaeger about what happened up at the sanctuary" Fox thought aloud, his little sister nodding in agreement, "Well? Even if she had gone the MP's the cult would've probably flat-out denied it, or worse: they might have tried to finish the job" Lucius frowned as he folded his arms, "That doesn't bare thinking about" Lucy worried. "You know? Maybe we should try and do something nice for Eren, try and get him to lighten up a little?" Ashlyn suggested, "I mean, Ariana's the only one out of all of us who still hangs out with him: he must still be a good person at heart if she's willing to spend half her time with him?" "Yeah but Ariana will hang out without _anyone_ she feels could use a friend: unlike Eren, she always looks for the good in others" Bemadette pointed out. Clay was about to say something else, when Ash, Rowan and Dale came walking up the street: looking slightly bedraggled, and Rowan holding Ariana's arrows in one hand; "Oh hey you guys" Hazel greeted offhand, "Did Carl put up much put a fight this time?" Josefa asked, "He did at first, until I yanked the arrow outta his shoulder" Ash sighed as he straightened his shirt and took the leather cord out of his hair to redo his ponytail: " _Seriously_ , what is with those guys? It's like their brains keep shrinking every other month" Belle frowned.

"What's 'with them' is that Ludwig's old man is a pompous blowhard that lets his brat have the run of the place," Pascal frowned as he stepped outside the Inn with a wooden tankard of mead in one hand, "Lunch break already?" Gale blinked in surprise, "Eh, business is slow today" Pascal shrugged as he took a swig of his drink, "So, those four idiot's been giving you grief again?" he smirked at the three brothers: "Us? Hardly, Ariana shot them in the shoulders for beating Eren and Armin up again" Rowan replied as he gently trailed his finger over the barbs; "Considering how proficient she is with that bow of her's? I'm amazed she hasn't killed them already" he raised an eyebrow: "So uh? Any idea what we can expect from the genius's tonight?" he asked offhand. "Your guess is as good as mine" Clay shrugged, "I don't get why they've been so secretive around us? Everyone else I can understand, but we helped out with some of the experiments remember? We should've at least been mentioned in the footnotes" Jaye thought aloud, "I think it was out of necessity for double-checking everything: you know? Make sure all the information was correct?" Dale offered, "Besides, have you _seen_ how cluttered Claude's 'laboratory' is? You can't swing a cat in that place (believe me, I tried it with Boar once), and Breck, Bryson and Derek are very touchy about letting anyone into their 'privet spaces'. Dad's been pretty elusive too, but he's been really excited for the last few days; I think he might have finally cracked the-, _you know what's_ "

"Really?" Gale blinked in surprise, "After all this time he might have finally done it?" "Eh I don't know, all I get is from what I hear with my ear pressed to the basement door late at night" Dale shrugged, "I guess we're just gonna have to wait for him and the rest of them to tell us in person"

"Tell you about what?" Lawrence smiled as he poked his head around the corner of the building, "What're you guys talking about?" "Nothing" Ash shot him a reprimanding look, "You shouldn't be eavesdropping on other people's conversations Lawrence: you might hear something you're not supposed to" "Like what?" he asked curiously as he stepped out and approached the group, "Like how I'll pound the living shit outta ya if I catch you doing it again!" Rowan frowned at him as he raised his clenched fist: Lawrence quickly got the message and bolted back to his house; he took one last glance back at them before retreating down the alleyway between his house and the Jaeger's place. "Nosy lil' brat! He's getting too damn good at sneaking up on us like that!" Rowan fumed, "Remind you of anyone?" Dale shot him a sarcastic sideways glance. "Might wanna start thinking about bringing these kinda conversations indoors kiddos" Pascal suggested casually, "You never know _who_ might be listening?" he turned to head back inside, but before he did, he glanced over at Ash and told him: "Oh by the way, next you beat up Carl Ludwig? Tell him to tell his old man he still owes me money for that little 'altercation' in the bar last week: or I'll be paying him another visit. Well? See ya tonight" he waved goodbye as he stepped back inside the bar.

* * *

As she leaned down to check on the pheasant that was roasting in the stove, Carla heard little footsteps outside beneath her kitchen window, and right away she suddenly got the feeling she was being watched; turning around, she spotted Lawrence peeping over the edge of her windowsill, watching her curiously. "Rowan chased you off again huh?" she smiled as she approached to get some more herbs from out of the window box, "He caught me eavesdropping" Lawrence huffed as he climbed up and rested his elbows on the windowsill: "Well it serves you right: it's _rude_ to listen in on other people's business" she told him. "That's what Ash said" Lawrence shrugged: he was about to say something else, when something odd caught his eye and made him raise an eyebrow in bemusement: "Um? Mrs Jaeger? You _do_ know you got a bird sitting on your table, and it's reading a book, right?" Glancing over at the dove sitting on the kitchen table, Carla only smiled: "Oh that's just Angel, she visit's me regularly for breadcrumbs: she likes to read too" she joked, "She reads?" Lawrence frowned in confusion, "But her brain's the size of a pea, how can a bird read?" he exclaimed; the dove snapped its head in his direction and ruffled her feathers with an annoyed coo, as if offended by his remark: "I don't know? She just can" Carla shrugged.

"Lawrence!" his mother called out "Coming mum!" Lawrence shouted back, "I gotta go, see ya later Mrs Jaeger" he waved goodbye, "Oh Lawrence wait-" she stopped him, "Would you like to play with Eren later? He and Armin usually like to hang out with Ariana in the afternoons?" she offered. Lawrence hesitated a moment, as a look of slight worry crossed his face: "Uh? That sounds cool an' all? But I got chores to do this afternoon. Thanks anyway" he smiled awkwardly, before jumping down from the window and going to meet his mum at the back door of his house: as she reached for a small knife and placed the herbs on the chopping board, Carla heard a little of their conversation drift down the alleyway: "What was all that about?" she heard his mother ask, "She wanted me to play with Eren, but I don't want to: he's _always_ grumpy and he gets angry over the stupidest things" Lawrence huffed, "I know darling, but at least be nice to the lad, he hasn't got many other friends remember?" she reminded him.

Hearing that, Carla suddenly felt her heart sink a little, so much so that she placed the knife down on the counter, and wandered over to the table: sitting down next to Angel, who immediately picked up on the fact that she was now upset. Hearing Eren's footsteps creek the floorboards upstairs, Carla gazed up at the ceiling instinctively and heaved a heavy rueful sigh as she contemplated her predicament. This past year had seen a real change in her son, he didn't socialize like he used to, he always seemed to be loathing over something: and his friendship with Ariana had become a little more strained than usual, as she was now more frequently having to fix the cuts and bruises he was receiving at the hands of the neighborhood bullies. Of course she'd tried talking to him, what concerned mother wouldn't? But every time she broached him about it, he'd avoid it one way or another. But what really hurt the most, was that before all this began he was a happy and well-adjusted child: after the flood and the storm three years ago, he had been closer to her than ever before, out of fear that he'd lose her again and happy that she was alive and with him; but now? It was as if he was turning into a completely different person, and she didn't know why?

Seeing the troubled look on her face, Angel approached her and got her attention with a gentle tugging at her sleeve: Gazing down at the disguised titan with a tired look in her eyes, Carla watched as she stretched out one wing, and spelt out the words, : Thinking about Eren again? :, Carla merely nodded; Elysia was well aware of the situation with Eren, she knew it vexed Carla to no end, and for the immortal life of her she wished she knew what to do. But when you're a weather goddess who's had very little to no previous experience with humans and the nature of their relationships, you're not equipped to handle the situation with the sensitivity and tact it requires: a fact Elysia was all too aware of, and it both annoyed and grieved her to not be able to help out somehow. She'd asked Javorin or Herne if she could (though she and Hecate were okay with each other, she didn't trust the goddess to be able to figure out how to deal with this), but she had a feeling they'd only tell her to let Carla deal with it in her own way; but at the same time, she valued their wisdom, and knew they knew what to do when it came to dealing with complex human things.

Flapping her wing again, Elysia spelt out, : I could talk to Shadow if you want? He might know what to do? : Carla forced a small smile, and gently stroked the dove down her back, "Thank you, but I'll figure something out" she sighed. : You've been saying that for the past year now: Elysia pointed out, : I don't think it's that simple, is it? : She asked disconcertingly, before adding, : I know it's not your fault, you didn't do anything to make him like this: "But _something's_ made him like this" Carla frowned, "I just wish-..." she pressed her hand to her forehead as she leaned her elbow against the table, "...I just wish he'd _talk_ to me; god only knows, _I don't know_ what to do?"

"Best thing you can really do, is just let him come to you in his own time" Freya smiled sympathetically as she stood at the kitchen window: "Oh, Freya" Carla smiled as she got up and went over to the window: "Sorry for eavesdropping, But I couldn't help myself" she smiled as she leaned closer to the window, "Sorry I can't stop long: I just came to ask if you'll be joining the 'heretics and traitors' for their meeting this evening?"

"Oh, sorry, could you give Tyto my apologies please? I'm not really up for any of that at the moment" Carla sighed. Freya knew it wasn't a one-off: she hadn't been 'up' for anything in a very long while; she knew Eren was on her mind all the time now, and it troubled her to see her worry so much: "Certainly" Freya smiled, before reaching up through the window and placing her hand on Carla's, "You know you can always come and talk to me right? That's what best friends are for: and I hate seeing you worry yourself so much," she assured her, "Listen, me and the girls are going to be working on that embroidery piece tonight, the one with the pink roses and blue birds? Why don't you come along and help us the get rid of a bottle of brandy-wine that have been sitting in the pantry for over a year now?" Freya smiled with a cheeky glint in her eye: picking up on her friend's hint, Carla couldn't help but smile: "That's not a request is it?" "Nope, be round our place seven sharp, and I _won't_ take no for an answer. You need some good friends, some good gossip, and a little wine to help ease your troubles. See you later" she waved goodbye, "Won't miss it" Carla smiled back.

: Well at least I know you'll be okay tonight: the dove spelt out, her 'smoke light' dissipating as a breeze blew from the window, "It's been ages since I've had an evening with the girls" Carla thought aloud with a hopeful smile, "It's nice to able to talk about-... _things_ you can't talk about with your family..." the smile faded from her face as she thought about the fact Eren didn't know about the titans, nor did Grisha; keeping the titans a secret had become a double edged sword for her. On the one hand she knew she was keeping her family free from the burden of having to live with such a big and profound secret, and yet she couldn't confide in them about it when things got tough: and on the other hand, she enjoyed Angel and her company, as well as Shadow's, Midnight's and Boar's whenever they came to visit, but vice versa, there were things about her family she couldn't confide in with them, for the simple fact she didn't want to make her burden's theirs too; that wouldn't be fair, and with Eren being the way he was at the moment, she hadn't been as open with everyone as she used to be.

Seeing the look on her face, Elysia reminisced on happier time's past, and spelt out, : I miss the old days you know? When you used to come up to the forest to visit me? : "I know, I miss those day's too" Carla nodded, "But hey, you come to see me every day here, that's not so bad is it?" Elysia dropped her gaze in contemplation for a moment, before replying, : No, but ever since Eren starting behaving differently; it just doesn't feel the same anymore: Carla knew she had a point, and as her own gaze wandered down to the floor, the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs snapped them both back to the here and now: Elysia quickly flew off the table and landed in the window box outside, just as Eren entered the kitchen.

"Hey sweetie, been back long?" Carla put on her motherly smile, and went back to the stove to check on the roast pheasant: "I heard you talking, was anyone-" he suddenly noticed the dove: "Oh it's just Angel," he casually thought aloud, before glancing over at his mother; the dove had become a regular site at the kitchen window, and not something he'd really given any attention to, "I just came to ask when dinner's ready" he asked offhand. "Oh it won't be ready for at least another hour" she gave him an apologetic look. Seeing the deadpan look in his eyes, Carla felt another pang of concern go through her as she watched him leave: "...Eren?" she hesitated, he stopped at the door but didn't turn around: "...You know you can come and talk to me about anything right? If there's something troubling you, you don't have to be worried or afraid: I'm your mother, I'll hear you out no matter what..." she stated in a soft motherly tone; an uneasy pause passed between them, before Eren quietly replied in a monotone voice; "... It's okay mum, I'll be alright" and headed back up the stairs to his room. Feeling more uneasy, Carla stared down at the floor, wondering what was going on with her son.

Elysia shook her head in rueful disappointment: she _hated_ feeling so helpless; she made a mental note to talk to Javorin about this: doubts or not, she couldn't let Carla keep enduring this.

* * *

Later that night, the Black Stallion Inn:

"Have we got enough room _? I swear_ this cellar grows smaller every damn time we come down here for these meetings!" Pascal grumbled as he shuffled along, trying to make room for everyone else: "If I recall correctly you and West are only down here as an 'interested second party', your being here is entirely optional" Claude pointed out. "I'm not complaining, just as long as the drinks are free" West threw his hands up: "You two _live_ here! You get _all_ your drinks for free!" Breck exclaimed, "So do you!" West shot back, " _I'm_ the local doctor! I only get mine at a discount!" Breck frowned. "Hey, save it for when we're done" Gustav grumbled, "This is _supposed_ to be a secret meeting remember? So keep your voices down!"

The wine cellar was pretty cosy as everyone attending the secret meeting filed in: Gustav, Bryson, Breck, Claude, Derek, Bren, Tyto, Evrard, Falken, and Eraman all took their seats at the table, while all the kids bar Ariana followed after them, sitting up on the ale and mead casks. As everyone got themselves as comfy as possible, Ariana was last to arrive with the titans in hand: perched on her shoulders in their raven and Sky lark forms were Midnight and Boar, and Shadow and Angel were perched on her arms in their dove and hawk forms. The four birds flew onto the table, and sat at the four corners as if they were their designated seats. And when everyone appeared to be seated, Tyto addressed the room: "Okay? Shall we begin?" everyone voiced their agreements, and Evrard added, "Very well, who'll start the meeting?"

"Well? Claude's the 'head researcher' here, I think he should start" Bryson suggested, "Oh really? Uh very well..." Claude smiled nervously as he reached for the bag at his side, and pulled out twenty large well-used and very full journals, placing each of them in front of him, along with several large rolled up pieces of parchment. "... Well? As you are all aware, these last three years have been spent in the pursuit of knowledge: studying closely the unique and mysterious nature of our 'titanic' friends and their strange yet miraculous powers," he gestured to the titans, before pointing to the journals, "These journals are all the accumulated data we have collectively assembled together: between Bryson's knowledge of the 'regular titans' outside beyond the walls, Tyto, Evrard, Falken and Eraman's broad knowledge of their people's 'Celtic rune-symbols', my scientific smarts, Derek's mastery of a paintbrush and fine-nib ink pen (along with his eye for minute detail and numbers): as well the input from the titans themselves of course. This gentlemen (and children), is the result of _all_ our hard work. Go ahead, take a look"

Taking a journal and parchment each, flicking through the pages and passing them around, everyone was astounded at the level of detail, as well as the amount of information contained therein each book. **"Whoa, I knew Claude was eager to study us, but this in incredible"** Angel stared bug-eyed at all the journals, **"This is all** _ **his**_ **work?" "Looks like it, it's mostly his handwriting"** Herne shrugged.

"You guys _really_ did all this?" Fox blinked in surprise as he looked at one of the parchments, which depicted Midnight's tomb from all four sides and above, with all the precision and detail of any architectural drawing. "My goodness, these are incredible" Bren breathed as he scanned his eyes over an anatomical drawing of Shadow's torso, along with all the markings covering it. "You really drew _all this_ Derek?" Ashlyn scanned her eyes over the parchments in amazement, studying every detail the watercolor and ink drawings: "Well? Being the only architect here, the tombs were kind of a no-brainer; but still, they are as unique as the titans: and I still haven't figured out what kind of granite they were carved from" he replied offhand. "It's a pretty extensive collection of work, and _that's just_ on the titan's anatomy and powers alone: Breck, if you'd care to show the fruits of _our_ combined labors?" Claude smiled.

"Certainly..." the doctor reached for his bag, and pulled out a collection of test tubes filled with various brightly coloured liquids, each with a large tag pinned to the corks listing an extensive list of details, along with a smaller journal that was filled with various tattered notes sticking out of it: "As you all know, the healing properties of the titan's blood has been _my_ particular field of research for the past three years: after what Ariana described the night she ran away and encountered Shadow for the first time, I got thinking as to how the blood could be used medicinally, _without_ changing one's eye colour, _or_ any other potential side effects. Between my knowledge of medicine and Claude's unorthodox scientific approach, we took samples of all four of the titan's blood, and combining other medicines and various other organic substances, conducted extensive testing on a variety of different animals and plant life as our test subjects. It wasn't easy and it wasn't without its fair share of pit-falls and draw-backs, but I believe our efforts have finally paid off," he held up one of the test tubes, which contained a pale blue transparent liquid that seemed to shimmer with gold as it caught the light: "...Pay attention now" he smiled as he took a scalpel out of his bag and cut the back of his hand: everyone bar Claude gasped in alarm, but Breck calmly uncorked the test tube, and poured a few drops of the liquid onto the cut; within seconds the wound glowed faintly blue as the blood stopped oozing out, and the skin meshed back together, closing up entirely until only a scar was left in place. Everyone stared at his hand in amazement as Breck corked the tube and placed it back with the others.

"My god, you finally cracked it!" Derek grinned, as did the kids: "Well? I can't take all the credit" Breck admitted humbly, "It was Midnight that helped us to get the right blood-to-saline ratio" he gestured to the raven: who held her head up high with an air of smugness about her.

" **Blood-to-saline ratio?"** Javorin raised a figurative eyebrow: **"Hey, they had to dilute it with** _ **something**_ **, using our blood in its purest form isn't necessarily a good idea, remember?"** she shot him a look, **"Besides, throwing medicinal herbs into the mix actually helps to improve the quality of the desired results"**

"Needles to say, through this prototype 'healing elixir', we've managed to create an _entirely_ new range of medicines that can heal serious wounds _and_ cure a number of diseases; some of which are not curable _or_ treatable with the conventional treatments we have currently available. Suffice to say, this could _potentially_ be the future of modern medicine" he grinned.

"Indeed...And _I'm_ please to say my contribution to this endeavor has yielded some promising results," Bryson nodded as he cleared his throat, and took out a small notebook from his breast pocket: "While my own 'field of research' has not been based in science or medicine: I feel it is a particular field of expertise that will serve mankind _greatly_ in the war against the titans," he stated as he placed the notebook on the table, and flicked through a few pages: each depicting a series of study drawings and notes on the titans powers and their combat manoeuvres: "From their observations in the field, shadowing the Scouts on their expeditions as well as fighting the 'regular titans': the titans have described in great detail the powers and manoeuvres they employ to ensure a minimum loss of life, while at the same time remaining invisible. Through extensive experimentation, utilizing their combined knowledge, along with my own combat expertise, as well as Lucy, Lucius and Dale's head for strategy: we have created a series of tactics and manoeuvres that ensure an effective means of keeping the scouts safe, while also taking into account their own strategies and combat procedures"

"Bryson used himself as our 'test scout' for the new moves with his ODM, and the results were pretty good: he didn't even know they were there, even in open spaces" Dale added. "In short, with these new tactics being used by the titans, they can cut the Scouts annual mortality rate by _at least two thirds_ " Bryson stated enthusiastically, "It'll be a vital tactical advantage for the Scouts, and one that could see them gain more ground than ever before"

"Wow, no wonder you were keeping this all secret" West smiled in amazement, "This is incredible stuff you guys have been doing. But? What about _your_ research on your people's 'rune-symbols'?" he gazed over at Tyto curiously.

"Yes, I was hoping we'd get to that," Tyto smiled nervously as he reached for his backpack, and pulled out a large rolled up leather hide, and placed it on the table next to all the other items: "Suffice to say, our own 'field of research' into the titans markings and the engraving on their tombs _did_ yield results. Albeit-... We're _still_ not a hundred presence sure _what it is we've found_ , exactly"

Glancing at one another in curious bemusement, the gentlemen, children and four birds leaned in to listen as Tyto tried to explain as simply as he could: "...Thanks to Derek's eye for detail, recording the titans markings and the engravings was not an issue, it was when we tried to _make sense_ of them that we ran into a number of problems"

"To begin with, each of the titans individual markings, on their own each tell a different set of meanings: like Midnight's for example, her markings correspond to the patterns that denote the night, the moon, the stars, darkness, and the balance between good and evil in the world. Boar's correlate to hunting and the balance between predator and prey, and the need to respect all animals of every kind. Shadow's is more complex, his is a number of different symbolic representations denoting wisdom, guidance, balance, and even nourishment. And while Angel's is smaller and simplistic, her's represent the sky and the wind" Evrard explained.

"You guys _really_ got _all_ that? Just from the markings?" Pascal blinked in surprise,

" **Is that true?"** Angel glanced over at the other gods: **"The Celt's interpretation of the hand of the Ancients always had a few variations in places: but by and large, our own markings denote our divine duties** _ **and**_ **the substance that our own individual powers are derived from"** Midnight answered: **"This isn't new, but as to** _ **why**_ **we have the markings in the first place? ...I have a feeling** _ **they**_ **found something we missed"** Herne frowned as he continued to listen carefully.

Falken went on to elaborate further: "By themselves the titan's markings are a artistic depiction of our people's beliefs in the spirits and our shared relationship with the earth; how everything and everyone is connected, and how those connections are, by their varying natures, as simple as they are complex. In short, the markings are each a page in a chapter of our people's spiritual connection to the world. But that was _only a broad part_ of it: it was Tyto that made the crucial breakthrough"

"When we got all the markings down on parchment and we looked at them in their entirety, I noticed a certain 'pattern' that seemed to emerge between the different designs: a series of 'joining's' that interlink them into one whole design; but _how_ they linked together and in what sequence? _That_ was the really tricky part, and when we looked over the engravings, we realized they corresponded to the whole design as well"

"In short, _all_ the titan's markings, as well as all the engravings on their tombs, _are all part of the same depiction_ " Eraman added as he unrolled the hide: Claude, Breck and Bryson moved all the journals and test tubes off the table to make room as Eraman and Tyto laid the hide flat on the surface. Standing up for a better look, the gentlemen and children all gazed down at the pressed leather in amazement: the elaborate artwork was as detailed as it was complex, a non-symmetrical mass of swirling, coiling, sweeping lines and interlocked shapes, all interlinked by one non-symmetrical form after another, forming a circular design that didn't repeat itself in any particular pattern. "Whoa..." Bryson blinked in surprise, "I knew the rune-symbols were complex, but I never expected anything like _this_ "

"Neither did I" Claude admitted, "But look, he's right: the markings _do_ join up" he pointed to what was part of Shadow's left arm markings, to part of Boar's lower back markings, "And they connect at multiple points throughout the design, with the symbols from the carvings acting as 'jigsaw pieces' to combine them together"

"It's beautiful for sure, but what does it mean?" Bren frowned in bemusement, "That's just it..." Tyto sighed in disappointment as he scratched his beard, "We don't know _what_ we're looking at; I was rather hoping you guys might have some idea-..." he glanced down at the birds: "...Uh, guys?" Tyto tried to grab their attention, but the birds simply stared down at the image intensely, completely focused on it.

" **Guys, do you have any idea what this is?!"** Herne gasped, **"-I know I know!"** Hecate exclaimed in disbelief as she ruffled her feathers, **"By the all-father! Of all things I was expecting to see tonight I wasn't expecting** _ **this!**_ _ **This is what our markings were this whole time?!**_ **Why didn't** _ **I**_ **see it?!"** **"What?! What is it?! What're we looking at here?!"** Elysia panicked: **"Wait-, you've never** _ **seen**_ **one of these before?!"** Hecate gawked at her; **"No! What is it?!"** she shot back impatiently.

" **Kid, this is a** _ **Semitam!**_ **"** Herne grinned, **"A Semitam? What the hell's** _ **that?**_ **"** Elysia cocked her head to one side in confusion: **"It's an enchanted map protected by a special concealment spell, that keeps the location of something secret from anyone the user doesn't want to know about"** Javorin explained as he scanned his eyes over the design, **"In addition to several other magics the seal might be hiding: basically, it's an all-in-one map with the spells and charms required to find your way to where you want to go"**

" **And Tyto** _ **actually figured it out**_ **(albeit he doesn't know what he's found)** " Herne added: **"-Hang on a sec! Tyto's** _ **not**_ **a wizard a mage** _ **or**_ **an alchemist, so how can he use it if he, or any of the other humans here don't have any magical potential?!"** Elysia frowned, **"That's the convenience of Semitam's kid, the magics they utilize don't necessarily require anyone of any magical potential to wield them: you just need to have the key to unlock it and you're good to go"** Herne explained.

" **So? Our markings and the engravings on our tombs was a hidden map this whole time?"** Elysia blinked in surprise, **"But-, a map to where?! And what's the key to unlocking it?" "Don't know, but you can bet your tail feathers we're going to find out!"** Hecate grinned **. "But wait! Is that really a good idea?!"** Elysia panicked, Herne and Hecate stared at her: **"You just said it yourself Herne, Tyto doesn't know what this is,** _ **none of the humans do!**_ **And you all want to try and unlock it?! Without knowing where it leads to? You said it might be hiding other magics, well what if it's got a curse placed upon it? What if we unlock it and something bad happens?!"**

Hecate and Herne's train of thought came to an abrupt stop; both sighed in regret as they knew she had was right: " **Far be it from me to bring the mood down, but Elysia** _ **does**_ **have a point"** Javorin stated in a serious tone: **"** _ **We don't know what**_ **this Semitam might contain, and for all we know it could well have some corrupted magics tied into it. Plus, the key could be** _ **anything**_ **, and there's no way to know for sure, unless we take proper precautions and study this properly"**

" **We've also got another problem,"** Midnight suddenly realized,as she was aware all the human's attention was now focused on them: **"Do we tell them the truth? Do tell them what this** _ **really**_ **is? Even though they may not be able to comprehend how it works?" "Well? They managed to get their heads around** _ **our**_ **powers, why shouldn't they be able understand how a Semitam works?"** Herne suggested, **"It's not** _ **that**_ **simple"** Hecate frowned, **"We're talking about an inanimate object that contains magics all of its own; it's** _ **not**_ **on the same level as ours!"**

" **But it's magical never the less, and this isn't the kind of magic you run into every day: they** _ **need**_ **to be aware of that..."** Javorin stated seriously, as he carefully thought about what to tell the group: he knew this was a big jump into the deep end, but what other choice was there? He couldn't lie to them even by omission, and he couldn't afford to be blasé about it either. The humans all continued to watch the birds in a mix of concern and curiosity, waiting for an answer of some kind: until finally, after a long uncertain pause, Javorin stepped around the hide to stand in front of Tyto, and with his outstretched wing, formed the words, : It's called a Semitam, and it's a hidden map:

Everyone stared at the hawk in a mix of bemusement and amazement: "Wha-, _a map?_ " Gustav exclaimed, "A map to where?". : We don't know: Javorin clarified,: But we'll help you find out, its magical in nature so you're going to need help if you want to unlock its power:. Everyone paused in confusion, glancing at one another as they tried to make sense of his words; leaning down in front of Javorin, Tyto tried to speak his confused thoughts as best he could: "...Are you saying, that this 'map' hold's some kind of power? All of its own?" the hawk nodded, and answered, : Yes, It's hidden by a special power, and requires a key specific _to it alone_ ; to reveal the map concealed inside: "A key?" Derek blinked in surprise, "But, what would that be?" : We don't know that either. That is why, with your permission we'd like to borrow this: the hawk pointed to the hide with his wing, : So we can try and figure it out, and make sure nothing bad is hidden inside:

"Bad?" Bren swallowed hard, "You mean-, there could be some kind of 'bad magic' inside that thing? Like _a curse_ or something?" he pointed to the hide. "Uh? Hang on, before we all go to cuckoo-land together: What _proof_ is there that this 'map' has any 'power' of its own'? Unless I see something in the way of a little Hocus-Pocus, I ain't buying it" Pascal glanced down at the hawk with a skeptical frown; nodding in acceptance of his challenge, Javorin waved his wing as he spelt out, : Repeat. Audite-me-et-videte, I command you reveal that which you hide:

Frowning at the first four words in confusion, Tyto didn't know what they meant or what their significance was: but he didn't question the hawk, and so clearing his throat, he spoke aloud, "...Audite-me-et-videte, I command you real that which you hide" The design suddenly glowed in a myriad of colours, lighting up the whole cellar and making everyone jump in surprise: like ripples bouncing around the circular edge of a pail of water, the glowing seemed to shimmer and glisten as a strange soft ringing sound filled the air; but just as suddenly as it had started, the glowing died down until it stopped, and the ringing sound dissipated back into silence. Leaving everyone in the room stunned and amazed.

"Whoa, that's cool!" Bemadette grinned: "... What was _that?_ " Clay stared at the hide, wondering what it was he just saw. : That was the Semitam's power being awakened: Javorin replied, "But-, it _didn't do anything_ , it just glowed and then, nothing" Bren waved his hands in confusion. "Because it wasn't the key," Dale suddenly realized, "He said it's hidden by a special power: that glow _was_ the power," he glanced over at Tyto, "Shadow didn't touch it or do anything to it, all you did was repeat what he spelled out" he pointed out.

"That was a demonstration, wasn't it?" Bryson gazed down at the hawk, having regained his composure, "That was the only way to prove it". Javorin nodded, and spelt out, : Yes, the magics that lie within this design cannot be broken, even if it is spilt up into pieces and scattered far and wide:

"...I figured as much..." Claude frowned as he rested his chin on his laced fingers: glancing over at the amateur scientist, everyone saw the look in his eyes, that look that told them the cogs in his head were turning and his mind was going a thousand thoughts a second. He was getting another of his 'big idea's', and judging from the smile that was slowly spreading across his face, it was a grand one. "...What're you talking about Claude?" Falken asked offhand, **"Yeah,** _ **what are**_ **you talking about?"** Midnight frowned at him. **"...I think I know: and I think he might be right on the mark"** Javorin frowned, as he watched the man's aura thrum with the blossoming of a great epiphany.

"Think about it" Claude explained, an air of eager enthusiasm laced in his voice: "These titans have been 'asleep' in those tombs for goodness knows how long, and when they wake up they find they're covered in Celtic rune-symbols that they didn't have before going in, and their tombs are covered in the same markings: all of which combined together, create _this_ ," he gestured to the design on the hide, "A map, hidden from our eyes by a power all of its own (and aptly demonstrated), divided between the titans and their tombs: reconstructed by those who know how to read them and how to piece them together" he grinned like a maniac, "...Don't you all see it? This was _deliberate_ : someone went to _a great deal of trouble_ to keep this map a secret, along with the titans themselves. Whoever did this had it in their mind that one day: in the far future, the titans would awaken, piece the map back together, and find the location of whatever it is the map is hiding. It's the _only thing_ that explains all this!"

Everyone stared at Claude in silence for a moment, trying to wrap their heads around his theory: "...But, if that is the case, who or what was the map being hidden from?" Shyla pointed out; "Whoever went to the trouble of hiding it the way they did; did so with a preview to the titans being able to _outlive_ them: it _would_ explain why they were in those tombs for so long" Claude replied confidently.

"Is it just me? Or is anyone else weirded out by the fact that dad just spoke an incantation to make that design 'come alive'?" Dale nervously pointed out. "Uh? I don't follow" West frowned in confusion. Getting down from the cask he was sitting on and approaching Javorin, Dale leaned to down to meet his eye level, and asked apprehensively: "Is it-..." he tried to get his thoughts straight, "Is it _possible_ , for anyone to 'bring magic to life'? So long as they know the incantation? Or? _Any incantation_ that can do what just happened?"

The four birds paused hesitantly a moment as they glanced at one another, as if taken aback by the question: Javorin raised his wing, and spelt out, : It is possible; but for all of you, it's _not_ advisable _._ For three important reasons. 1. You may have been studying magic and how it works these past three years, and while you have displayed a healthy open-mindedness and respect for it, you do not practice it or know how to use it; they are two very different things, and theory does not always correlate to practice. 2. The nature of magic is complex and vast; it is not a singular force but rather many different ones all colliding and interacting with each other to form the substance that shape them into what they are. It's like the forest; it's not just plants and animals, it is _many_ organisms all living together in equilibrium, and it is they, that make the forest a living entity as a whole. And 3, while it is possible for you, or anyone, to learn some 'simplistic' and 'basic' magics, unless you understand what you are dealing with, you _could_ cause something _bad_ to occur. And the damage magic can do can often have a lasting effect, with _severe consequences_ attached in some cases:

"So? ..." Pascal frowned in contemplation: "Essentially it's a 'just because you _can_ doesn't necessarily mean you _should_ ' kinda thing?"

: Exactly: Javorin replied, : And while I have no doubt all of you would make observant students in learning some simple incantations; for the time being, while this Semitam is in your possession, I wouldn't recommend broaching us on this subject again, until we can be sure you are ready. Do you understand? :

" ... Well? Better to have the ground rules in place, least we know or _not_ know what we're dealing with I suppose?" Claude sighed was a regretful shrug: everyone glanced at him confusion: "You're taking it very well: I thought you'd be more bummed than this Claude?" Fox frowned, "Bummed? Yes: and while my curiosity have been vigorously renewed at this latest revelation; as a man of science it would be reckless if not totally irresponsible to overstep my mark. I am a scientist, not a wizard, and I don't pretend to be otherwise" he stated confidently, "Although, if there's _any way_ I can effectively 'train' to be 'ready' do let me know ol' chap?" he smiled pleadingly down at the hawk, :We'll let you know, don't worry: Javorin replied with a warbling chirp that sounded similar to a chuckle.

"So, if you guys manage to unlock the Semitam's power, and the map is revealed, what will we do then?" Ariana asked. Everyone glanced at one another in realization: "...I have _absolutely_ no idea..." Tyto admitted, shaking his head.

* * *

The following morning:

The morning air was unusually cold for mid spring as Ariana watched the steam on her breath rise up into the air: the heavenly scent of freshly baked bread was wafting through the street from the bakery across the road, sharpening her hunger, despite the fact she'd had three fried eggs, three sausages, four rashers of bacon and three slices of toast for breakfast. As she waited for Eren and his father, she checked over the new batch of arrows in her quiver: the broadhead's carved from amethyst were filed down to razor-sharp edges; she hoped she'd get some decent target practice done later.

As she waited for Eren and his father, she contemplated last night's meeting, and how the revelation of the Semitam had had quite an effect: everyone had come away from that meeting eager and curious to know what the map was and where it lead to, but at the same time, the possibility that a 'bad magic' of some kind could be hidden inside was a daunting thought. But it was the _implications_ that the Semitam posed that really got everyone thinking: and questioning what they previously thought they knew about the powers the titans commanded. After all, if it was possible for an inanimate object to hold a magical power of its own, and possible to 'awaken' magic into being by speaking certain incantations, _what else_ was possible?

Suddenly, her father stirred her from her musings as he stepped outside and sat on the front step beside her: "Got everything you need?" he smiled: "Yep, I'll go straight to the usual place when I'm done with Eren; I don't know how long we'll be so don't wait for me okay?" she replied as she adjusted the bow on her shoulder. Sitting in quiet contemplation for a moment, Tyto then turned to her and spoke his thoughts aloud: "... Quite the meeting last night huh?" "For sure" she nodded, "...So? What're we going to do? When the titans eventually unlock the map I mean" she looked over at him, "To be honest? I don't know what's more mind-blowing? The fact that all those markings and engravings were an enchanted map this whole time: or the fact that our ancestors must have been able to wield magic? Because, if our people's rune-symbols and that 'Semitam' were one and the same thing? That can _only_ mean that our people were somehow connected to the titans ending up in those tombs"

Realizing he had a point, Ariana's eyes grew as big as saucers: "...Whoa..." she breathed in amazement, "Have you talked to Claude about it?" "I'm going to, later: although, _knowing him_ he's probably already figured it out by now" Tyto sighed, "Are you going to tell mum?" she asked, "I'm still trying to figure that out: I don't think she'll freak out per se? But-, this is _big_ " " _You think?_ " Ariana glanced at him in surprise. An uneasy silence passed between them, before Ariana changed the subject; just thinking about the Semitam was giving her a headache: and as Eren came back to the forefront of her mind, she asked: "...So listen, There's something I want to talk to you about later, about-, _my future_ : I haven't made my mind up about something, and I'd like to know what you think about it" "Really? What?" Tyto blinked in surprise: "I'll tell you later, but it's just between us okay? I don't want mum knowing about it just yet" she added, "Very well" he smirked as he stood up: "Listen, I've got to get going, I'll catch you later okay?" he placed a kiss on her forehead, and walked off down the street. "Bye!" Ariana waved, "Bye sweetheart!" he called out.

As she watched him disappear around the corner of the bookshop at the bottom of the street, a soft gust of wind drew her attention up to the roof, where an invisible Shadow hopped down, and kneeled beside her: with the street empty of people and traffic, she didn't have to worry about anyone seeing her 'talking to nothing'. "You're off back to the forest right? You got the-, _you know what?_ " she asked. Shadow held the rolled up leather between is finger and thumb, and leaned down lower so his eye-line was closer to her's. He could sense her mind was still spinning from last night, but as she gazed up into his vivid blue eyes, he could see she wasn't so vexed that her smile wasn't genuine: "...So you're gonna try and get a start on figuring out what'll open it?" he raised his hand and spelt out, : Yes, but it's going to take quite a while, so don't hold your breath okay? : "Well? If it's' like trying to figure out the piece to a puzzle, then yeah, it's not going to be straight forward" she reasoned offhand, "But, what you said about us being able to learn 'basic' magic: is that _really_ true?" : Essentially yes, but like many things in life it takes practice, patience, focus, persistence, and many other things to get it right; after all, _you_ didn't become a skilled archer over night, right? : Running her hand over her bow, Ariana nodded in understanding, : It applies to magic too, and you _cannot_ afford to be complacent with it; believe me, I learned _that_ the hard way when I was much younger : he spelt out with a sheepish smile. Reaching out her hand to run her fingers over his free hand, Ariana gazed up into those vivid blue eyes of his, and asked, "... If and when you think I'm ready: will you teach _me_ how to do magic?" Smiling down at her warmly as he leaned right over so she could stroke his cheek, he spelt out, : Of course I will; no doubt about it: "Thanks big guy" she smiled back as she placed a kiss on his chin. : I really need to get going, I'll see you later okay? : "Yeah, I'll catch you guys later" she waved goodbye as he stood back up, and completely vanished from her sight; a stiff gust of wind telling her he was already in his elemental form, and was speeding away up into the sky.

The sound of a door opening made her glance up the street, in time to see Eren and his father leaving their house, bidding Carla goodbye before setting off in her direction. "Ah Ariana, been waiting long?" the doctor asked offhand, "Only five minutes Dr Jaeger" she smiled as she joined them at their sides, "Okay, well we better get going" he smiled as he set the pace, heading down the street in the direction of the inner gate. Falling into step behind him alongside Eren, Ariana glanced at him with her usual welcoming smile, only to see him glance back at her with a blank expression; her smile dropped, she knew that wasn't a good sign. "... So um? ..." she was careful to keep her voice hushed as she glanced over at him, "Are we cool?" she asked hesitantly, "I guess" he shrugged in a casual tone, "But that doesn't mean I agree with what you said" he stated flatly, "Well? That's okay, you're entitled to your opinion, the same as everyone else" she tried to sound encouraging, before changing the subject to try and lighten up the mood, "So where're we going?" "Up the mountain past Rotenberg" the doctor replied, "Oh I know that place!" Ariana smiled, "Dad took us hunting there last autumn, it's not a very big mountain but the Elk love it up there" "Ah, so you know your way around the place?" he asked, "Only one side of it, where the road ends at the bottom? And I think there's a house right near the top?" she frowned as she tried to remember: "You'd be correct, that's where the Ackerman's live: and that's the only check-up I have booked for today" he replied.

As they passed by the bookshop, Ariana waved to Claude through the window, who waved back as he stacked several books on top of a shelf above the counter; "Where'd you like these Claude?" his assistant asked offhand as she walked out of the back room with a small box of papers inside, "Oh just put them in the office Gertrude, I'll see to them this afternoon" he pointed to the office just past the back room: "Is there any more books to stack Claude?" a small voice beamed from behind several large piles of books just beyond the counter; the voice in question came from a small boy with pale ash blond hair that fell around his face in short wispy bangs , and bright blue eyes that gazed up at Claude with an eager smile. "Oh, thank you young master Drake, but you've done enough already, why don't you go and steal yourself away in the natural history section, those new books on the birds of southern Maria just came in last week; once your mother's done sorting the papers, you can help arrange the display in the window" he pointed to the shelves over on the left side of the shop floor. Drake headed for the shelves in question, removed two of the largest books, and sat himself down in the small gap between two of the larger book cases. Checking the time on his pocket watch, Clause headed for the stairs behind the counter, "Gertrude? Could you watch the shop for ten minutes? I just need to see to something upstairs!" he called into the back room, "Not a problem!" she smiled.

Heading up the stairs to the landing, and then up a smaller staircase into the attic: Claude entered, what was essentially his 'laboratory' and own privet library, the middle of the room had a large table which was filled with a cluttered myriad of different equipment used for conducting scientific experiments; everything from tests tubes to beakers and flasks, to jars and bottles filled with different substances; at the far end of the room was a huge bookshelf containing his own personal library of scientific knowledge, and a number of 'illegal' books about the outside world, and to the right side was a desk and oil lamp, cluttered with various papers, books, notes; and of course, the journals containing all the information on the titans. Sitting at the desk writing out some note, Bryson glanced over at Clause as he navigated around the mess, and turned to face him as he placed his quill down next to the notes.

"I'm just about done here" he said as he stood up and maneuvered past Claude to get to the door: "You going to be long?" "Oh just ten minutes, I need to get started on the itinerary for the new research" Claude replied as he sat down at the desk, opened the top drawer and reached for the brand new journal that was sitting therein. "Already?" Bryson blinked in surprise, "But of course: time waits for no man, and I've got to get a handle on it while the thread of thought is still fresh in my mind" he stated as he picked up the quill, dipped it in the inkwell, opened the cover and began writing. Thinking about the meeting last night, Claude stopped, and passed a sigh as he thought aloud: "...What Shadow explained last night: on the one hand I _can't wait_ to start learning about this 'basic' magic and how to use it; but at the same time, part of me is wondering if there's something much more to all this" "You mean the tombs? Yeah I was wondering about that too" Bryson frowned as he folded his arms, "The Celtic rune-symbols and the Semitam are one and the same thing: if Tyto's ancestors were capable of wielding magic, and were (presumably) involved with putting the titans into those tombs somehow, and leaving that map for them to find; one has to wonder what happened all those long years ago? What kind of 'conspiracy' was at work that prompted the 'titan trappers' to do what they did?"

Thinking about it, Bryson felt a sense of unease at the implications that question posed: "... I don't know?" he shook his head, "...But whatever it was: it must have been _pretty dire_ if the titans were locked away on the basis of their longevity: that's the only thing that confounds this mystery; what was so terrible, so _catastrophic_ that the 'titan trappers' or maybe even the titans themselves, had to take such drastic measures to hide that map?"

"Whatever it is, when that map is finally revealed: I think we're probably going to be left with more questions than answers" Claude sighed as she picked up his quill and got to work.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Black Stallion:

"Order for table three!" Mabel called out to everyone in the kitchen as she walked through from the guest house's breakfast room. In the bar: Gale, Poppy, Belle, Shyla, Fox, Pascal and West were cleaning the bar and getting ready for when opening time would rolled around. Over by the fireplace, Gustav, Bren and Bemadette were having their breakfast before heading out to the forge to start the day's work, while Derek sat with them eating his own breakfast.

"So? If and when that map is finally cracked: do you think we'll mount an 'expedition' to go and find the place its hiding?" Belle grinned, "That all depends on the place in question; for all we know it might not be anywhere _even remotely close_ to wall Maria, it could be somewhere way _waaaay_ out on the other side of the outside world. Virtually _impossible_ to reach, even with the titans tagging along; and for all we know the regular titans might not be the only threat we'd have to contend with?" Derek stated, "It's an appealing idea for sure: but _way too impractical_ , given that we know next to nothing about the outside world; besides the fact its crawling with regular titans"

"Shadow and the other titans are _bound_ to stand a chance if they went by themselves: they could turn into geese and just fly long-distance over every titan in sight, they wouldn't even have to worry about food, provisions and other things like that" Gale thought aloud as she polished the bar clean, "...Yeah, but it wouldn't be the same without them" Shyla sighed: everyone stopped cleaning and eating for a moment, as they let that sink in: "...Do you think they'd come back?" Poppy thought aloud ruefully, "What? _Of course_ they'd come back! This is their home and they're practically one of the family! They'll _always_ have a home with all of us" Belle dismissed, "They _know_ that: and nothing will change it. You'll see"

"Maybe?" Shyla suggested, "...If they unlock the map and decide to go and find the place its hiding: we should have two big family portraits drawn; one for all of us, and one for them to take with them. So they'll remember the family waiting for them" "You know what? That sounds like _a grand_ idea!" Derek smiled, "I'll need to collect everyone's portrait for reference" "So Pascal?" Gustav grinned, "Think a little 'real magic' will add some kick to your parlor tricks?" "Oh hell! Do think there might be a spell or something for melting metal?" Bren suddenly thought aloud, " _That_ would come in real handy"

"Heh, hard to say?" Pascal shrugged as he placed the clean glasses back on the shelf behind the bar: "Personally, if it sounds too good to be true? That's because it usually is; and if it's easy to abuse then that's a risk I'd rather not take" he turned to place the tankards under the bar: "Although, I say that only because I'm older and wiser: there _was_ a time once, if I'd have learned about 'basic magics' when I was younger? I'd have been the most successful thief in all the three walls" "You _were_ the most successful thief in all the three walls: the MP's used to gripe about us enough, along with half the nobles in Mitras" West chipped in, "Only because I had _you_ to plan the heists and take care of the minor details: don't put yourself down just because you prefer to stay at my side rather than take the lead" Pascal told him, "Yeah, but I never had your 'special touch', remember?" West glanced over at him with a knowing look, "You're the one who was born with 'the gift'" "The gift for what?" Poppy asked; "For not getting caught" Pascal replied matter-of-factly: "But then if you had that to begin with, why would you want to learn how to use 'basic magic'?" Fox asked with a curious frown. "Ah, when you're young you believe you can do _anything_ : and that everything is yours for the taking" Pascal smiled nostalgically "And if there was anything that would help me to achieve that, you can be _damn sure_ I'd have taken it without question"

"So how did you learn not to?" Shyla asked; thinking about it for a moment Pascal smiled and shrugged: "...Life, learning things the hard way, _nearly_ getting caught: and having to rethink a lot of things I thought I knew to be true" he gazed over at her: "...Kinda like you kiddo: you had to rethink some things too" he stated with a sympathetic look in his eyes, to which she nodded. "...I did too..." Fox admitted quietly. "And do you feel better for it?" Gustav asked, knowing what he was referring to: Fox nodded confidently, and got back to work.

"...You know? ..." West thought aloud as he changed the subject, "This whole magic think kinda makes me think" "About what?" Gale asked, "...Well?" West stopped what he was doing, and stood there as the cogs in his head turned: "...The day we first arrived here in Shiganshina, we met _you_ kids when you snuck away in our cart: six months later I stumbled across Angel's tomb _while_ she was still inside it, and that same night she and the others broke out. Then a month later _that crazy day_ happened, and around a year later a massive storm blows into Maria, and by the end of it we end up _here_ , keeping the place free of pimps and gangs for a living (which worked out okay I guess? I really can't complain)...I didn't usually used to think about this kinda thing before? But after _everything_ that's happened to us; deep down, part of me can't help but wonder if this was all _meant_ to happen?"

"What? Like destiny an' stuff like that?" Gustav raised an eyebrow, "I don't know?" West shrugged offhand, "All I know is what I feel in my gut, and after last night, my gut's telling me we're _all_ heading in the same direction together: where we're going remains to be seen; but I'm convinced the titans will be following us every step of the way"

* * *

Meanwhile, deep in the Marian forest:

The grove of giant trees was quiet as Javorin reappeared and rematerialized with the leather hide in hand: **"Okay, I know we're all keen to get started trying to crack this thing, so let's get right to it"** he smiled as he approached Hecate and Herne. **"Not just yet, we've got a slight problem,"** Hecate huffed in annoyance as she thumbed over to Elysia's root cave, **"The brat refuses to help out or even listen in. Go see what's bugging her will you?"**

Blinking in surprise, Javorin approached the cave, where sure enough, Elysia was sat tucked up in her nest, sulking as she wore a sour look on her fair face: **"Hey, what's wrong?"** he asked worryingly. **"I won't be going with you..."** she frowned up at him, **"If you crack the spell and reveal the map; wherever it'll go, I** _ **won't**_ **be going with you"** she stated like a stubborn teenager. Passing a deep exasperated sigh, Javorin tried to explain **: "Elysia, we are a** _ **very**_ **long way off from** _ **even considering**_ **that possibility: and until we have determined the Semitam's magic and confirmed it's not cursed in any way, we're not going anywhere else in the meantime either"**

" **Even so,** _ **I don't want**_ **to abandon Carla and the others: it wouldn't be fair to leave them behind"** she sulked, **"But would it really be fair to bring them along too?"** Herne approached her, **"For all we know that map could lead to somewhere on the other side of the world: and the humans of this era haven't stepped outside Wall Maria in over a hundred years;** _ **we don't even know**_ **if the titan's are the only problem we'd have to contend with?"** Sitting down next to the mouth of the cave, Javorin sighed as he confessed his thoughts: **"... Even if we had to consider leaving: I wouldn't want to go either"**

Elysia blinked in surprise: **"You wouldn't? ..."** her gaze softened as he elaborated: **"...I don't know what's happened to the rest of the world; if these three walls really are the last refuge of the remains of humanity? If the rest of our kin have passed from the mortal plain to go and join the Ancient ones in the eternal realm? Or, if something worse has happened and it's still out there somewhere? ...The Semitam was drawn up a very long time ago, and there's** _ **no way**_ **of knowing if the place it's concealing even still exists anymore?"** he thought aloud ruefully, **"...I guess what I'm trying to say is? When we finally unlock the concealment spell and the map reveals itself: we'll make our decision based on where it is, and how far we'd have to travel. Of course,** _ **actually getting there**_ **won't be an issue for** _ **us**_ **, but if the humans try to convince us to let them come along? Then probably no: since they have no knowledge of what lies beyond their walls, it's a risk I won't allow them to take"**

" **...You promise?"** Elysia pleaded: **"...** _ **You know**_ **I can't make any promises Elysia; the nature of my divine duty** _ **cannot**_ **assure any certainty. The unknown destiny of my charges is** _ **the will**_ **of my father, and I cannot change that no matter how much I want to..."** Javorin explained in a more serious tone, though he still felt for her as he reached down and placed a hand on her shoulder: " **Besides, I couldn't shake them off even if I wanted to"** he smiled, **"We're practically one of the family as far as their concerned: and families don't split up just like that"** Feeling a little better, Elysia got up and maneuvered out of her nest: stepping back to allow her to get out of the cave, Javorin put his arm around her shoulder, and led her over to where Hecate was standing. **"Don't worry okay? It's going to take a good long while to figure out the Semitam's key anyway: and it's not like we'll be leaving the humans out of the loop"**

" **Well you** _ **certainly**_ **didn't leave them out of the loop last night"** Hecate rolled her eyes in annoyance, **"You know what's going to happen now don't you? Claude and the brats are going to be up here later today** _ **pestering**_ **us for incantations!** _ **I swear**_ **if that little know-it-all four eyes thinks it's going to be** _ **that**_ **easy to- "-Alright calm down,"** Javorin patted her on the shoulder as he stood next to her, **"** _ **I'll**_ **sort him later: we won't have to resort to turning anyone into a pillar of salt, okay?"** he smiled. **"TCH!-,** _ **fine**_ **, but don't go loosing another battle of wills to the brats alright? Their already annoying as it is on those ODM gears!"** Hecate frowned at him.

Turning his attention back to Elysia, Javorin changed the subject: **"Listen, why don't you head on back to Carla's place? Eren and Grisha won't be back until later and I'm sure she could use your company" "You sure? I mean, you don't need me to help out with anything here?"** she asked offhand, **"Eh, I'd say we got this covered kid, it's gonna be pretty boring anyway; a lot of complex incantations, spell recitals, charm prayers: you know, the tedious stuff? You won't be missing anything spectacular..."** Herne waved off. **"Well okay, But I'd have thought you'd have gone with Ariana?"** the younger goddess gazed up at Javorin: **"Oh she'll be fine by herself for the morning: and anyway, she wants to spend some quality time with Eren"** he smiled.

* * *

Some time later:

The walk from the inner gate to Rotenberg had taken a good hour, and it was another forty five minutes before Doctor Grisha's destination was now less than half a mile away. The mountain they walked up was not so much of a mountain but rather an exceptionally large sloping hill covered with sparse pine forest and numerous copses of oak and birch trees. Along the way, Ariana had succeeded in being able to get Eren to cheer up a little, and the two friends talked about various things, with Doctor Grisha joining in the conversation here and there. As they rounded the last bend in the road, a small cabin surrounded by a large garden and fence came into view through the trees: "Finally, I swear this road get longer every time I come up here" Grisha joked. "Hey dad?" Eren suddenly changed the subject, "When're you gonna show me what's down in the basement?" he asked bluntly.

Ariana recalled Carla saying something about the basement in their house a while ago, about how her husband would spend most nights of the week down there and wouldn't go to bed until well after Carla and Eren were asleep. In all the time she'd known him, he never once spoke about what he did down there: and when asked he'd simply dismiss it as 'important medical matters'; which, could well have been the case. But at the same time, there had always been a nagging feeling that he wasn't telling the whole truth, and that there was something about his 'secret' that made him on edge whenever the subject was broached. Glancing down his son for a moment, Grisha didn't express any particular emotion and simply stated: "I guess? When you realize what's most important to you" "... What's most important to me?" Eren echoed, frowning in confusion: "How will I figure _that_ out?" "When the time comes, you'll understand" Grisha simply replied cryptically. The doctor glanced over at Ariana with a look in his eyes that told her she _wasn't_ supposed to have heard that: she submissively glanced down at the ground to avoid his gaze; but surprisingly, he said nothing and continued on walking as if nothing had happened. Ariana and Eren both glanced at one another, equally confused by the doctor's response: but neither of them said anything, and continued to follow him up the road towards the cabin.

As they opened the front gate, Eren pulled his red muffler tighter around his neck: "So? Her name's Mikasa right?" he tried to remember the name of the girl his father had told him about the previous day: "Yes, and she's just about your age: there aren't many other children around here so try to get along okay?" Grisha told him, "As long as she's nice us then we won't have a problem" Eren glanced over at Ariana: who simply shrugged, "Eren, if you only look for the bad in people, that's all you'll see" Grisha tried to sound encouraging. As they walked down the path towards the front door: the scent of blood suddenly made Ariana stop in her tracks, as she breathed in the scent and stared at the door, a biting cold knot began to grow in her stomach: "Hm? Ariana? Why have you stopped?" Grisha asked offhand. "Dr Jaeger?" Ariana swallowed hard, her voice laced with worry, "... Something's not right". Frowning in concern, Dr Grisha knocked on the door, but no answer came. As he continued to knock, Eren came up alongside Ariana, and seeing the look of dread in her eyes, he realized something was indeed wrong: "What is it? What's up?" he asked in alarm, "I smell blood" she whispered.

"Mr Ackerman? Its doctor Jaeger..." the doctor knocked a third time, and this time, the door opened ajar slightly, "...That's odd, are they home?" he thought aloud as he opened the door: "...Hello? Is anyone there-" the doctor gasped under his breath as he froze: his eyes wide with horror as he stared into the gloomy space inside. As he stood there, the scent of the blood hit Ariana's nose with full force, and she realized that something bad had happened: "... Dad? What's wrong?" Eren asked. The doctor didn't reply as he stepped inside, peering in through the door, the children both stared down at the motionless forms of two dead people: a man, who'd been stabbed in the heart and was slumped over next to a table, and a woman who was lying in a large pool of blood with her back to them. Leaning over her to check her pulse, Grisha cursed under his breath as he gently laid her hand back down. They had arrived too late; "Look around, both of you, do you see the girl anywhere?". "...I don't think so Doctor Jaeger" Ariana replied as she regained her composure. Standing back up, Grisha returned to the door, knelt down on one knee, and holding them both by their shoulders looked them both straight in the eye: "Listen to me: _this is bad_ , I need to go and alert the Military Police while the trail's still fresh: both of you wait for me at the foot of the mountain. Understood?" Ariana nodded, but Eren seemed to be staring into nothingness: "Eren! Repeat what I just said! Word for word! EREN!-" Grisha tried to snap him out of it, "-We'll go wait at the bottom of the mountain!" Ariana blurted out, "Don't worry, you go get the police" she assured him. "...Alright, now both of you get going!" the doctor stood back up and ran back out the gate, taking off back down the road as if the devil were on his heels, until he disappeared among the trees.

Glancing back at Eren, Ariana suddenly got a terrible feeling as she saw the look in his eyes, a look she had never seen in him before, one devoid of emotion, but at the same time stunned; glancing back over his shoulder at the dead couple, he then turned to Ariana and spoke in an alarmingly calm voice: "We're going to save her" "Wh-what?!" Ariana gawked, "You said you know this mountain, if they took her alive, where would they have taken her?" he demanded, "Eren, there's no way we can-" "-THIS ISN'T ABOUT US!" he grasped her tightly by the shoulders and glared her in the eye; " _Do you understand what's happened here?_! These people were _murdered_ by a bunch of sick twisted bastards! And their daughter has been _kidnapped!_ My mum nearly got taken by the same animals five years ago remember?! There's _no way_ we're letting them get away with this! If it was one of your family what would _you_ do?!" he growled through his clenched teeth, letting go of her.

Knowing he had a point and realizing they still had a chance to save her, Ariana forced her fear to one side: and as she breathed in the scent of the blood, another collection of scents stood out: "There were at least two of them" she realized, "One was smoking, and the other was drinking whiskey" Stepping out into the middle of the garden, she suddenly noticed the scuff marks in the grass: recalling all her knowledge of reading both animal tracks and human footprints, a picture of what had happened soon began to form: "She didn't put up a fight: she either didn't have it in her, or they knocked her out" she turned to Eren, who was hanging on her every word: "There's only one other house around here, a large cabin we used to cut up the elk in before heading for home: it's way down the other side of the mountain, but I know the way there" she frowned as she reached for her bow, and took an arrow out of her quiver. "Come on!"

Running out of the garden and into the sparse woodland, Eren stayed on Ariana's heels as she ran through the thick undergrowth, the ground steadily becoming steeper and rockier the further along they ran. In her mind, Ariana steeled herself for action, she knew this was going to get dangerous, and there was a chance they might have to fight: but she had a basic idea of what to do, she knew the layout of the cabin well enough, and she knew these woods; she remembered her father's words, as she recalled the hunt they conducted last year...

 _Remember kids, part of being able to hunt efficiently lies in the memory of the terrain: where you hunt can determine how well you can hunt. So if possible, try to choose the right location to trap your quarry_

As they leapt over a log, Ariana stopped Eren and pressed her finger to her mouth in a shushing motion: before he could ask what she was doing, Ariana pointed to the cabin down below, and whispered: "Stay quiet and follow me". Nodding in acknowledgment, Eren tried to slow his breathing as Ariana quietly crept towards the building. The cabin was situated right at the bottom of a steep narrow dell, with the only road leading to it winding its way out through the thick wooded slopes. There was plenty of cover here, and the back of the cabin was just about visible through the thick overgrown ivy covering its walls and roof. As the smell of tobacco smoke and whisky suddenly wafted past her nose, Ariana knew they had the right place: straining her ears, she could hear raised voices coming from inside as they crept around the front of the cabin, being careful to stay right beneath the windows as she could hear they were in the back room to the left of the building. Creeping around to the front porch, the children carefully snuck up to the front door, the men too engrossed in their argument to notice the creaking of the wooden boards, and as they kneeled down next to the door, Ariana turned to Eren and whispered: "You hear them right?" he nodded, and leaned in to explain: "Okay listen, I got a plan: we can't take them on at the same time, so we need to lure them out one at a time: if you can fire your arrows and hit them right the neck they'll be dead before they hit the ground, and _then_ we go in and get her; sound good?"

Ariana frowned as she listened to the men: it sounded like a sound plan, quick and clean with no chance for a fight to break out, but at the same time, her gut instinct was screaming at her that this was very risky: "Okay, but here," she reached down to her leg and handed him one of her hunting knife from out of its holster, "Take my spare in case things get dicey: You _sure_ about this Eren?" she asked him worryingly. That look in his eyes hadn't changed, he was now too calm and too measured, and _that_ wasn't right; _that wasn't like Eren; what on earth_ was going through his mind? (If he still had it at all?). "I'm positive, you trust me don't you?" he frowned at her. Ariana hesitated a moment, before staring him down: "I trust you to _stay calm_ and don't do anything rash!" she told him firmly, " _Eren promise me you won't do anything stupid!_ " he merely stared at her with those alarming calm predatory eyes; and stated in an equally calm tone: "... _I promise_ ; now get ready..." he reached for the handle, gently opened the door and snuck in leaving it wide open.

As Ariana kept her ears on him, she got herself into position: drew back the arrow half way, and aimed at approximately where the first man's head was going to emerge. This was _very dangerous_ and she knew it, without knowing their heights there was no way to accurately guess where the neck would be on each man, and there was the risk of missing the target all together, or even hitting Eren by accident. As all this ran through her mind, Ariana tried to keep her hand steady as beads of sweat ran down her temples. Listening closely, she heard the arguing had stopped: a door creaked open all the way in the back of the building, and she could just faintly hear Eren's hushed voice whimpering something incoherent. She couldn't make out what the man replied, but a dull thud from something heavy hitting the floor immediately alerted her. Suddenly, one of the men was shouting as the door creaked closed, only to suddenly burst open again and Eren started screaming in a blind rage; he was so angry she couldn't make out any of his words. Fearing the absolute worst, Ariana was up on her feet and running down the hall to the back room. Within those few seconds she was sprinting with her arrow drawn, she heard Eren clearly: "-THIS IS WHAT YOU GET YOU SICK BASTARD! YOU'RE AN ANIMAL! A DISEASE! YOU DON'T DESERVE TO LIVE! JUST DIE! DIE! DIIIIIEEE!"

"EREN!" Ariana screamed as she flew through the door with her arrow drawn right back, only to come to a screeching halt when she laid her eyes on the scene before her. the two men were lying dead on the floor, one by the door with his throat sliced open and bleeding out, the second one lying on his back a with a broom hilt protruding from his chest, which had a large knife tried to the end of it, with multiple stab wounds and blood pooling around him. Sitting on top of his chest, Eren was panting hard, holding her spare hunting knife in one hand with his hands and sleeves covered in blood. Off near the corner of the room, a young girl with long black hair was laying on her side: hands tied behind her back and looking dead to the world as she stared at Eren, too scared and traumatized to move or speak. Getting up and wiping his brow, Eren regained his composure: "The hard part's over, your safe now" he told the girl, and glanced over at Ariana: "You too, you're both safe". All Ariana could do was stare at the carnage in horror, and at the blood on Eren's hands: "...Eren, what-... _what did you do? ._.."was all Ariana could mutter as she tried to comprehend what she was looking at: but Eren paid her no attention as he sliced the binds on the girl's wrists: "...You're Mikasa right?" Eren asked her in a calmer voice, "I'm Eren, I'm Doctor Jaeger's son: my dad met your parents a few times before. We were coming by your house for a check-up" as she rubbed her wrists, Mikasa looked over at Ariana: "That's Ariana, she's my best friend" Eren told her, "... What happened to the third one?" she asked in a weak little voice.

Ariana suddenly snapped back to reality as she heard footsteps coming down the hallway, "The third one?" Eren asked offhand. Within a second and acting on instinct, Ariana threw away her bow and arrow onto the floor and slammed the door shut, grabbing her hunting knife in double quick time: she tried to hold onto the handle, but the man on the other side kicked the door open with such force that it hit her hard in the side, and she flew across the room, crashing into a bookcase and slumping down onto her front, only for the bookcase to fall right on top of her, pinning her by her legs to the floor. She was trapped: half dazzled and helpless. In the same instance, Eren tried to reach for the spare knife he'd put down by Mikasa's side, but the man was too quick as he kicked Eren hard in the gut, crashing him into the wall. With his hands clutched around his abdomen, Eren was powerless as the now enraged man picked him up by the scruff of his neck and began to throttle him with both hands. YOU LITTLE BASTARD! THIS IS _YOUR_ DOING ISN'T IT?! YOU DID ALL THIS! I'M GONNA _KILL YOU WITH MY BARE HANDS!_ " he snapped as his anger boiled over into an uncontrolled rage.

Unable to move for fear paralyzing her whole body, Mikasa sat there and stared up at Eren in horror. "EREN! EREN!" Ariana screamed as she struggled like mad to try and get out from under the bookcase, but it was just too heavy, and her bow, arrow and hunting knife were all too far away for her reach. As he struggled furiously against his attacker, Eren glanced down at Mikasa with that look in his eyes, and growled out: "...T-take him out! _Fight!_ Kill or be killed! It's the only way to live! ..." Mikasa took the spare knife and stood up, but her whole body was shaking all over as she clasped the knife between her hands, "I-I can't! I d-d-don't think I can do this!" she squeaked. As she saw Eren's lips begin to turn blue, Ariana was now desperate: Mikasa was the only one free and armed, and _this man_ was the one she had to beat. But she could see she couldn't do it, she was too scared to do anything: " _You have to fight!_ " Eren continued to growl loudly, "If you want _to live you have to fight!_ "

"MIKASA LISTEN TO ME!" Ariana shouted desperately, "You have to strike him! _He's killing Eren!_ You have to fight back right now!" "B-b-but-, I-I CAN'T!" Mikasa began to cry, shaking more and more. As Eren began to lose consciousness and his arms went limp, a wide sick smile spread across the man's face as he took pleasure in the boy's waning life. As she stared up at the look of contempt on his face, Ariana felt something snap: a rage she never knew she had began to well up, and manifest on her face in a look of pure hate. But unbeknown to all in the room, including Ariana herself, her right eye was starting to glow bright blue as she watched the man drop Eren to the floor: "Kill him" she gasped, "-KILL HIM!" she screamed at the top of her lungs as her eye burned pure white for a tenth of a second: lighting up the room in a vivid blue aura, and sending out a ripple of energy that shook the whole building to its foundations, and all the trees to their roots outside. It was so fast, neither Ariana nor Mikasa noticed it.

But as the energy wave washed over everyone the room. Mikasa suddenly stopped shaking: she was as still a rock, eyes focused and every muscle in her body was totally under her control. Mikasa gripped the knife so powerfully she broke the wooden hilt, and her foot hit the floor so hard it almost went through the floorboards as she charged the man, screaming with adrenaline coursing through her veins, wielding the knife like a sword as she struck him in the back.

* * *

At the same moment, elsewhere:

As Javorin sat with his leg's crossed and his hands and fingers positioned in the gyan mudra, silently meditating on the Semitam: a sudden sharp wave of raw emotional energy washed over his whole body, bringing an intense feeling of pain, fear, anger, and desperation. Causing his tattoo's to glow as he activated his power to shield himself, and jerking in alarm as he on his feet within a few seconds. He stared into empty space: his eyes wide open in shock and every muscle tense in readiness to move as he reached his power out through the roots of all the trees around him, desperately searching for where that energy wave had came from. His lightning fast jump scared Herne and Hecate half to death as they quickly snapped their heads up at him, about to demand what just happened, when the thousand mile stare on his face immediately told them something was very wrong. **"Javorin?! What's wrong?!"** Hecate demanded.

Javorin didn't know what was more alarming: the fact that the energy wave was a portion of his own power; or that fact that he felt Ariana's aura attached to it. As he scanned the combined auras of the entire forest through the vast network of the trees root system, he couldn't 'see' her aura anywhere: she was either too far out of his reach or she was in a place where she was physically out of contact with the forest floor. With no time to waste he ignored the others, transformed into the wind in double quick time, and took off up into the sky like a hurricane; the chaos manna up in the air acted as a mist that shortened his ethereal vision, making reading the auras back down on the ground hard to make out. Regardless, he _had_ to find Ariana: _she was in danger_ , that much he knew and time was against him as he searched far and wide: **"Come on Ariana where are you?!"**

* * *

The children had stepped outside the cabin for some much needed fresh air: Eren was alive, albeit very wobbly on his feet as he leaned against the porch, breathing hard as his throat felt very sore and feeling like it was still half crushed; but his raw anger hadn't subsided as he still looked like he wanted to kill something. Mikasa sat on the front steps staring into nothingness, she wasn't shaking anymore, but now her eyes reflected the trauma of what just happened, she felt sad, lost; her parent's blood-soaked faces coming back to the forefront of her mind. Having been freed from the bookcase, Ariana emerged out the front door with her hunting knife in its holster, and her bow and quiver slung over her shoulder; she stopped at the bottom of the porch steps, her face blank, but her eyes filled with a trembling storm of emotion as she tried to get her head around what just happened.

"At least, we're all safe now" Eren breathed as he tried to keep himself upright: but in a blindingly fast moment Ariana slapped him hard across the face, making fall over backwards on his ass, and making Mikasa jump as she stared at Ariana in alarm. Eren simply stared up at Ariana in shock, as she glared down at him with the most hate-filled stare she could muster: "Do you have any idea, _ANY IDEA_ OF THE DANGER YOU PUT US IN BACK THERE?!" she raged, leaning over him as she continued: "I told you not to do anything stupid! I told you not to be rash! WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED EREN?! I could've taken them out quickly and cleanly, we wouldn't have had to go through all that! WE WOULDN'T HAVE HAD TO _NEARLY DIE!_ " she stepped back and toned her voice down: "...What?-" She shook her head as she held her hand to her forehead, trying to comprehend the carnage she first saw: "What the hell were you thinking?! _Why did you do that?!_ Why did you have to _butcher_ them like that?!-"

In one quick move, Eren was on his feet and slapped Ariana hard across the face: making her stumble back a little and taking her completely by surprise; now it was her turn to stare at him in complete shock as he stared at her with a hate-filled rage of his own: "Why? WHY?!-" he yelled in her face, making her flinch back: " _THEY WERE ANIMALS_ THAT'S WHY! SICK TWISTED DEMENTED ANIMALS! THEY HAD NO RIGHT TO LIVE! THEY DIDN'T DESERVE A QUICK DEATH: THEY DESERVED TO SUFFER FOR WHAT THEY'D DONE! _ALL OF THEM!"_ he paused to catch his breath, still in a fit of pure rage: "- _This world is a cruel one_ , and you don't get to choose how you're born into it! _You either fight or you die!_ If you don't fight you don't win, if you don't win you don't get to live! _Fighting is the only way to survive this world!_ And being soft about it is _weakness!_ You think those monsters will have been willing to listen to you back there?! You think they'd have been willing to talk things over?! After what they did how the hell can you think they'd be worthy of any form of redemption?! _Any form of kindness?!_ You nearly died back there because you hesitated! _You nearly died because you're weak_! And because of your weakness we _all_ nearly died! SO GET OUTTA HERE AND GET OUTTA MY SIGHT! _I HATE YOU!_ "

Silence

A silence so thick you could have heard a pin drop from the other end of the dell: Ariana stared at Eren, dazed, confused, and with a growing ache in her heart as tears began to run down her cheeks; Mikasa stared at them in complete shock, wondering what the hell just happened.

As he caught his breath, Eren suddenly snapped back to reality, realizing what he just said: and all at once his whole body and mind was filled with horror and disgust: 'what- what did-, _what did I do?!_ ' his mind reeled with panic as he saw the pain and hurt reflected in Ariana's eyes, her one vivid blue eye glistening brightly like a cut blue topaz as tears continued to stream out of her eyes, and she instinctively backed away from him. "...Ariana..." Eren trembled as he raised his hands, "Ariana I-, don't know what I-, _please_ I'm-" he stammered as he grabbed her wrists, trying to make her stop: "-DON'T TOUCH ME!" she screamed, pushing him away as she started to sob: "... _I hate you!_ Don't you come anywhere near me!" she cried as she took off down the road. "ARIANA wait!-" Eren cried out as he took off after her: staring after them in surprise, Mikasa got up and took off after them; not having a clue what was going on.

"-Ariana wait! I'm sorry! _I'm so so sorry!_ " Eren pleaded desperately as he stayed on Ariana's heels, but she was too fast for him: "Go away and _leave me alone!_ " she cried as she tried to see straight, her tears half-clouding her vision as she wiped her eyes with the back of her arm. She felt like shit, _worse than shit_ ; her stomach felt like it was going drop right out of her, her mind was spinning with hurt and disbelief, and all the while her heart was breaking straight down the middle. "-Please! I didn't mean any of it! _You have to believe me_ " he called back desperately. Their verbal exchanged carried on for another hundred yards as they ran down the steadily inclining wooded road, weaving down a tight hair-pin turn before running up the crest of a steeply descending stretch of road that ran straight down to the other end of the dell, where the central valley could be seen beyond, stretching for miles all the way to the eastern forest on the other side of the district. Eren was just about catching up to Ariana, but as she crested the rise in the road, she suddenly screeched to a halt and Eren ran right into the back of her: she didn't fall over, but Eren nearly fell over backwards from the recoil, fortunately Mikasa ran up behind him and pushed him forward to stop his fall. "Uh, thanks" he groaned he rubbed his sore head, stepping around her so as to face her, " _please_ , can I just-" he was about to try and plead, but he saw Ariana was staring at something up ahead; something that had caused her tears to stop, and a look of shock to fill her eyes.

Looking behind him, Eren gasped as he spotted what she was staring at.

About eight hundred yards down the road, there was a cart with four men seated inside, plus the driver, and six others walking alongside it, slowly making their way up the dell; some were armed with guns while the rest were armed with large machete-like knives; they were talking and laughing among themselves, oblivious to the children standing in the middle of the road at the top of the crest. As they talked, their voices echoed up through the bare rocky walls of the dell towards the three youngsters: just vaguely coherent...

"So what kind price do you think we can get for the brat and her mother?" one laughed, "A good premium if their not too badly beaten up: Orientals always go for a high price in Sina," another commented, "Let's just go pick up the merchandise and get outta here: the valley's crawling with MP's and we still got another ten kids to snatch by the end of today"

 _We still got another ten kids to snatch by the end of today_

Those words rang through the children's ears like church bells, freezing their blood and snapping them to attention as adrenaline surged through their bodies once more. Wiping her tears away, Ariana tried to calm her breathing as her mind began running a thousand thoughts a second: the walls of the dell were too tall and steep to climb: the thick woodland that grew around its base could only offer so much cover as the trees were spread wide apart. There was no way to sneak past the gang, and the only way out was back the way they came, where the bottom of the mountain trail met the back of the cabin. Gazing at Eren and Mikasa, and seeing the looks of fear on their faces, it was clear they both realized they were outnumbered and outgunned, _literally_ , and with no weapons to hand they had no idea what to do _._ It was at that moment Ariana realized, she was the only one who could get them out of this; but at the same time, she knew those men couldn't be allowed to get away. She knew this valley, she was armed, and she had to get Eren and Mikasa out of danger. "Eren? Mikasa?" she tried to grab their attention, "EREN! MIKASA!" they both snapped their heads towards her, "Follow me!" she ordered sternly, and ran back up the road.

"What're we going to do?!" Mikasa exclaimed as she tried to keep up, "I have a plan, just follow me and do what I say!" Ariana frowned. Getting back to the cabin, Ariana entered through the front door, ignoring the scent of the blood from the three dead bodies in the back room, and headed straight for the kitchen: heading down into the basement. It was common practice for many hunters and poachers in Maria to keep a certain supply of lamp oil, flint stones and dry kindling and logs in abandoned buildings that were in the more remote areas of the forests, so that if someone found themselves stuck out in the wilderness, they would be able to light a fire to keep the cold night air from freezing them, and thus have a chance of surviving until they could get home; the hunting community was considerate like that. Having hunted in this valley before and using this very cabin to butcher her prize in, Ariana knew where the large canisters of lamp oil were and knew they'd be pretty full. Grabbing the canisters and hurrying back outside, Eren and Mikasa followed Ariana as she ran around the back of the cabin and back up the trail: once they were above the cabin she diverted onto another trail, one that ran towards the dell's rocky walls and cut steeply upwards into the pine forest some fifty yards above. Up here they had a clear view of the road and the top of the cabin some forty feet below, and as they glanced down into the dell, they saw the gang where just about to go around the hairpin turn. From up on her perch on an overhanging rock, Ariana got a better look at their weapons, and realized there might be a way to use them to her advantage.

"Those gun's look like blunderbusses," Ariana panted, trying to keep her voice down as she set the canisters down behind the rock, uncorked the lid on one, and taking out one of her arrows from out of its quiver, dipped the head in the oil, "Which means they'll be carrying a large supply of gunpowder with them" Suddenly realizing what she planned to do, Eren and Mikasa both nodded in understanding: "I get it, if you blow up the cart you can take them all out" Eren realized, "Hopefully," Ariana sighed as she reached for the flints in her pocket and handed them to Eren, "Now light me!" she held the arrow head up, and striking the stones together, Eren produced a spark that set the arrowhead alight. Taking the arrow and locking it into the bowstring (being careful not to burn her hand): Ariana glanced back down at the gang. They were just coming out of the hairpin turn, and as if by luck she spotted one of the men loading his blunderbuss up with gunpowder and slugs; the power was in a small wooden cask in the middle of the cart, and as she aimed her flaming arrow for the target, one of the men pointed up at her: "Who's that up there?"

She let her arrow fly, nearly burning her fingers as she released it. The arrow sailed down through the air, over the tops of the trees, and struck the inside cask:

BOOOOM!

In an instant, all the men in the cart disappeared into the fireball that erupted outwards, setting the surrounding trees on fire and catching the rest of the men in it flames, while the horse (who'd had its tail and hindquarters singed by the fireball) went insane: desperately kicking and thrashing about until it broke free and galloped back the way it came. The cart and its now-dead passengers burned where they'd stopped, while two of the men that had been walking right alongside the cart dropped to the ground, moaning and crying out as they rolled around in the dirt, finally putting the fires on their bodies out. "Whoa, good shot" Eren watched the burning wreckage in morbid curiosity. Looking over the destruction, Ariana remembered seeing six men walking alongside the cart: two were out for the count, but where did the other four go?

BOOM!

The rock in front of Ariana exploded, knocking her off her perch and forcing her to take cover behind another: "They've spotted us!" Mikasa pointed down to the road, where one of the men was lowering his gin, and the other three were running towards the cabin. "Quickly! Get up to the trees!" Ariana pointed to the forest above, Eren and Mikasa ran on ahead while Ariana poured the remaining oil all over the trail and up the rock face, she then grabbed the flints and struck them, setting the trail ablaze: making sure the remaining gang members couldn't come this way; forcing them to go back and take the long way around. Grabbing the remaining canister, Ariana quickly caught up to Eren and Mikasa who were waiting just beyond the tree line, but Ariana didn't stop as she carried on running. "What now?" Eren asked as he chased after her. "Those men have got to cut back and come up around the slope to get to us, but we got the advantage of the forest!" she replied. "But what do we do? One of them's got a gun!" Mikasa pointed out, "If that guy's got powder on him then _he's_ the one we need to beat; first rule of surprising the prey, the first one's always a freebie because their too stunned to move, but when the rest of the herd jumps into action you pay full price: now, the _real_ hard work begins" Ariana frowned as she bolted on ahead, knowing full well where she was going, and what she was going to do.

" _Where the fuck_ did those brats go?!" the shooter angrily exclaimed as he caught up to his buddies, "They carried on up the trail into the pines" one of the men replied as they ran towards the tree line at the top of the slope, "Then we got them trapped! Come on!" the shooter growled as he charged towards the woods, having reloaded his gun, he held it up to his shoulder and kept it aimed: "Remember, _don't shoot the black-haired girl!_ " one of them snapped, "Shut up! I know what I'm doing!" he grunted back.

"Quickly! They won't find us over here!" one the kids cried out some twenty meters away: pinpointing where the voice had come from, the shooter took off into the pines: "THIS WAY! HURRY!"

The four men ran down an incline into a small clearing in the trees, where up ahead, the shooter spotted part of the boy's brown jacket peeking out from behind a tree on the other side. With a sick grin he aimed and fired at the tree, but to him and his comrade's alarm, the jacket fell to the ground off the broken branch it had been hung from. Suddenly, an arrow shot straight down from above and struck the shooter in the back of the neck, killing him instantly: his friends glanced up and gawked at the three kids who were perched high up above them: the archer girl was loading another arrow into her bow while clenching another two between her teeth, while the boy and girl each threw a flaming pine cone down at the ground. Suddenly, the whole clearing went up in flames as fire rapidly spread around the three remaining men in a wide circle, cutting off their escape route.

One by one, Ariana fired her arrows down at the remaining men who were panicking like mice in a cage full of cats: despite running around in circles, she managed to land a blow to the right side jugular on the first, a strike to the heart on the second, and one straight to the left side jugular on the last; all were dead within half a minute. Ariana breathed a sigh of relief: glancing over at Eren and Mikasa, they were both just as relieved.

"-COME HERE!" an angry voice bellowed as Ariana suddenly felt a large hand grab her by the ankle and drag her down out of the tree: "ARIANA!" Eren yelled as another man dragged her towards the fire: he and Mikasa were about to jump down and tackle him, when they saw the base of the tree was ablaze, the remaining lamp oil having been poured all around it and set alight. Glancing up at him, Ariana saw the whole right side of his face was badly burned: she then realized it was one of the two men that were right next to the cart when it exploded. With a loud feral howl he swung her up and around, throwing her into the fire, but fortunately he misjudged his aim and she landed inside the ring of fire instead; but even so, Ariana was now trapped as the flames grew higher, and Eren and Mikasa were both trapped at the top of the tree, trying desperately to escape the flames. Reaching for her knife, Ariana armed herself as the man jumped through the flames and circled her like a mountain cat eyeing up its prey, reaching for his bigger knife.

"Do you have any idea what you've done?" he fumed as he pointed the blade at her, "Do you have any idea how _fucked up_ you are right now?!" Ariana was petrified, but she held her knife up and assumed the fighting position Bryson had shown he once, when how to engage someone in a knife fight. " _No one_ does this to me and gets away with it! Especially not a little bitch like you!" he lunged at her, swinging the blade down. But Ariana easily dodged it, tripping him up as she ducked out of the way of the knife; he rolled over but grabbed the ground in time to stop himself rolling into the flames, and quickly got back up. "COME ON ARIANA!" Eren shouted, "-KILL HIM!"

"I'm going to let your little boyfriend up there _burn_ , and then I'm going to take you and the oriental! An eye as pretty as yours will fetch a high price!" he ginned: "You want me? COME AND GET ME!" Ariana shouted. The man howled in a rage as he charged her, Ariana took her knife by the blade and threw it right at his leg, impaling his thigh: the pain triggered a knee-jerk reaction, forced him onto his knees mid-step, and seeing her opportunity, Ariana ran at him, placed a foot on his shoulder and leapt over the circle of fire: the flames and intense heat brushed up past her, but didn't catch her clothes as she just barely cleared the inferno and ran to where her bow and quiver had fallen. Taking the chance to escape, Eren and Mikasa both jumped down: landing hard on the ground on the opposite side of where Ariana had run to. Ariana grabbed her bow and an arrow, but Mikasa's scream made her spun round and draw as she locked the arrow in place: running around the burning pine tree, she gasped when she saw the second (much larger) half-burnt man standing there, holding Mikasa by the waist with his knife right up against her neck, and Eren lying flat on his front with the man's foot pressing down on his back, keeping him pinned in place as the boy glared daggers up at him.

With her arrow aimed and drawn at the man's neck, and his blade dangerously pressed up against Mikasa's jugular, the two were at a draw as they intensely stared each other down. The forest all around them was beginning to catch fire and burn: the heat was growing unbearable as embers danced up on the hot air, and the burning trees creaked and cracked with the flames as they danced higher and higher up into the sky. But neither of them budged, and as Ariana remained focused on her target, she suddenly remembered something...

 _When any creature, man or beast is forced to take extreme action for the sake of their survival, they are often forced to make a choice they wouldn't normally make. And sometimes, it means having to change the very nature of what they are, in order to try and beat the odds_

The wolf

It was the same as yesterday: sure the circumstances were different, but the principle was exactly the same. Looking into the man's eyes, it was _that same look_ she saw in the wolf's; even in death the desperation was there to see, and it was no different for this man. This _evil monstrous human_ who was willing to go to the very extreme, who was willing to do the unthinkable, and for what? Money? It was such a cheap and pointless reason; there was no sense or logic to it. But then, sense and logic didn't seem to have a place in this intense moment: it was life or death, pure and simple, and it was either his life, or theirs.

Time seemed to slow as Ariana gazed into his eyes: and for a moment she wondered what this man's life must have been like; what cruelty and indifference made him into this wretch? This desperate unforgiving man, who was now willing to risk being burnt to death, all for the sake of one girl? Was there really no way to disarm this situation? Was there any way to bring some kind of resolution that didn't mean having to kill anyone else? Was he still human enough to listen?

" _It's over!_ " Ariana shouted angrily, "Put the knife down and I won't have to kill you!"

"Are you shitting me?!" the man laughed, "Do I look like I'm taking orders from you?!"

"Think about it, my arrow's going to kill you _before_ you can slit her throat: _You're already dead!_ You just don't know it! NOW PUT THE KNIFE DOWN!"

The man stared at her blankly for a moment, before a disturbingly calm smile spread across his face: "You know? It's a damn shame. This lil' misses here would've fetched a very good price on the black market...But do you know what I love more than money? ..." he grinned: Ariana felt her stomach drop, as she knew what was coming next: "The sound of little children's gargled screams, as I slit their necks wide op-

TWACK!

The arrow struck him right in the jugular, missing Mikasa's head mere inches: he stared at her as he dropped to the ground, and continued to smile as his blood arched out of the wound and pooled around him. Mikasa helped Eren back up as Ariana approached them, making sure they didn't have any injuries, and as they stared down at the twisted psycho, they watched as his eyes glazed over and he breathed his last breath, his head rolled to the side and his whole body finally went limp.

"... Come on, let's get out of here!" Ariana yelled over the roaring flames as she beat a hasty retreat back to the trail through the trees: Eren and Mikasa didn't hang around as they stayed on her heels. "Your dad should be back on the mountain by now: let's go find him!" Ariana glanced over at Eren: "Yeah!" he nodded.

As they passed by the circle of flames, an inhuman animalistic scream made the children jump out of their skins: suddenly, the first burnt man run through a gap in the flames in a blind rage, wielding both his blade _and_ Ariana's hunting knife as he charged them at full speed. Staring wide-eyed in sheer disbelief, time seemed to slow once again as the children tried to jump out of the way, but Eren wasn't quick enough as the man swung his blade down: the knife missed him but his clenched fist slammed into Eren's face, knocking him out cold in an instant; enraged, Mikasa tried to grab him by the arm, but he swung his arm up and slammed her head-first into the trunk of a tree, knocking her out too. In the same moment Ariana readied her bow and remaining arrow, and aimed point blank up at his neck: but his arm thrust out straight at her, trying to cut her with her own knife and knocking her aim off; he missed her face but sliced the string of her bow, and with his arm still outstretched he punched her hard, sending her flying and landing half a meter just short of one of the burning trees. Time sped up again as the man pounced on her, saddling her hips and raising both arms up with another inhuman howl, ready to carve her up like a piece of meat.

Ariana gasped as she was about to scream, but at the last possible second, something up in the sky immediately caught her eye.

A huge black and white blur descended rapidly from out of the thin clouds, and crashed down right on top of them, shaking the ground and vibrating their bones as its feet hit the rocks and dirt: a bitterly cold wind blasted down into the forest and howled like a winter storm coming off the mountains, making every tree bend over and every loose branch break off as it dispelled the intense heat of the fire, putting out all the flames in less than a second. A loud bird-like screech pierced the air, forcing Ariana to cover her ears: she couldn't make out what the hell it was; all she could see was that it was ENORMOUS, and had a distinctly humanoid shape to its outline, while its gigantic wings blotted out the whole sky. The man screamed as the giant entity picked him up, and carried him off up into the air, the cold wind following it upwards in a powerful updraft. And just as rapidly as the whole thing began, it was over in less than several seconds.

Ariana sat there in a daze, watching the sky as the black and white blur disappeared into the clouds, and vanished from sight. Removing her hands from her ears and cautiously sitting upright, she looked around and saw the entire inferno had been extinguished; the trees and ground were black and white with burnt wood and ashes, with embers still hanging in the air, and the still-hot pines creaking and squeaking as they contracted and expanded with the sudden change in temperature. The dead men's bodies were only half cremated, but the smell of their burnt hair was horrible; noticing her hunting knife sitting in her lap, Ariana gazed up at the sky as she breathed a sigh of relief: "Thank you Midnight" she whispered as she placed the blade back in its holster. Glancing over her shoulder at where Eren and Mikasa still lay unconscious, Ariana got to her feet and ran over to them, laying them on their backs and pressing her ear to their chests, the sounds of their breathing and heartbeats assured her they would be okay. "Eren! Eren wake up!" Ariana shook him awake, and sure enough Eren's eyes opened, and he gazed up at her. "...Ariana?" he frowned in confusion as he sat up, "You okay?" she asked worryingly, "Yeah I think so?" he rubbed the side of his face, "...Hey, what happened to the fire?" he blinked in surprise. "I don't know" Ariana lied convincingly, "One minute that guy was right on top of me and the next, everything went-, _black_...I don't know how long I was out?"

Eren stared at her in confusion for a moment, but his head was too sore and the rest of him too exhausted to think about that right now, so he didn't press the subject. After bringing Mikasa back around and making sure she was okay, Eren helped Ariana to pick up all the arrows that had fallen out of her quiver as well as retrieve her bow: when Mikasa was back on her feet, the three children took one last look at the burnt out clearing, and then headed up the trail back to the more open ground. Once the trees opened up and the sky could be seen more clearly, they stopped and stood there, taking another breather: as she gazed out down the side of the mountain, watching the smoke from the still-burning cart, Ariana was nearly so lost in her thoughts, that she nearly jumped when Eren gently placed a hand on her shoulder: "...Um?..." he awkwardly tried to speak in a more subdued, quieter tone: "..Listen: _I'm sorry_. I didn't mean to say any of those things-" tears began to well up in his eyes as he forced himself to continue: "...I didn't mean to hurt you like that, _I swear!_ You have every right to hate me and be angry at me, and if you don't want to talk to me ever again that's fine; but please, _please_ believe when I tell you: _you're my best friend_ , and I _don't ever_ want to see you-

Eren gasped as Ariana threw her arms around him, and hugged him tightly, tears streaming down her face as she held him tight: "What? But-, how?-, _why?_ I thought you'd be mad with me?!" He sobbed, "...I don't care about any of that: I'm just glad you're alive," she cried, her breath hitching as she let go, and held him by the hand, "... Let's just go home, okay?" Staring at her in dumbfounded confusion, Eren didn't know what to say; "Um? ..." Mikasa spoke up in a little voice again: "...So? Can you show me how to get home? It's cold out here, and there's nowhere else for me to go"

Ariana couldn't help but smile as she wiped her tears away, "Cold? We were standing next to forest fire not too long ago, I'm boiling hot" Ariana rubbed her bare arms, realizing that the heat had caught her skin, and her arms were now red and sore. Eren took off his muffler and wrapped it around her, covering her head and neck, "Will this do?" he asked. Unsure what to say, Mikasa gently ran her fingers over the muffler, and in an instant her eyes lit up: the depth of how much this simple gesture had touched her reflected in her eyes; and as she began to cry with gratitude, Eren gently took her by the hand, took Ariana by her hand, and told them both: "Come on, let's all go home"

As they walked back up the trail, heading in the direction of Mikasa's home, a sudden gust of wind blowing over the tops of the trees drew Ariana's attention: glancing up through the canopy, she saw a very worried looking Shadow staring down at her, seeing the look on his face, she gave him a smile, and a discreet thumbs up by her side out of Eren and Mikasa's line of sight. Waving one hand up, he quickly spelt out,: Are you okay?! :

"I'm fine, I'll explain everything when I get home, okay?" she mouthed to him: he disappeared but she knew he hadn't left, the way the winds whipped around the trees told her as much. And as they carried on walking, she wondered why Midnight hadn't stuck around back there.

* * *

One week later:

As she stood on the roof of her house, gazing out across all of Shiganshina: Ariana listened as the wind blew high above her head, carrying the sounds of the city below high up into the blue sky; but she was too lost in her thoughts to listen to any of them, as she thought over the events of the previous week...

With the adrenaline long since died down and the incident dealt with and concluded by the MP's as an attempted kidnapping by human traffickers (and subsequent rescue mission by the children): hindsight had been at the forefront of Ariana's mind, as she tried to make sense of what happened, and where she went from here.

The whole thing was probably doomed to end the way it did right from the very start: as she analyzed all the little details, she wondered what would have happened if she'd done things differently; if they hadn't gone after Mikasa's kidnappers in the first place, would the MP's have reached her in time? If she went into the cabin first instead of Eren, would she have been able to disarm them without killing them? (An arrow to the knee wasn't necessarily fatal, but it could cripple an opponent quite effectively) and if they'd retreated back up the trail rather than kill the rest of the gang, would that have avoided trouble? The only thing that bugged Ariana about that particular question, was that if they'd avoided the gang and subsequently let them live, they would in all likelihood have gone through with the rest of their evil plan to kidnap ten more children that day. That would have meant ten more families would have been destroyed, an untold number of people killed needlessly, and ten children whose lives would have turned out for the very worst; in hindsight, making sure those men didn't harm anyone else was probably a good thing, but did it really have to go down the way it did?

Sure, it was a desperate situation, and desperate times call for desperate measures; those men _were_ killers, they were going to hurt them if they caught them, and there would be no room to try and talk their way out of it. Ariana had to accept that, part of her still wanted to believe things could have turned out differently, but that was part of her nature: she always tried to look for the positive, to try and find the good in others; but now? Having encountered and escaped those who had no goodness in them at all? She realized just how naive she'd been all this time; the wall cultists were no different, they tried to do the same thing. _How could she forget that?_ How come she didn't see it sooner? As she gazed down at the people in the other neighboring streets, Ariana couldn't help but wonder how many amongst them were wolves in sheep's clothing? How many of them harbored dark and malicious thoughts towards their fellow man? How many secretly had blood on their hands? But as she glanced down at her street behind her, and saw her cousins and friends playing together while Carla and Armin's grandfather shared a few cider cups outside the Inn with Miriam, Gustav, Rosemary, Mabel, Claude and her mother: her heart couldn't deny that there were still good people in the world. Good people who made this cruel world worth enduring, who brought a little light into the darkness: and it worthwhile.

Ariana didn't know how to feel about all this; she wasn't proud of taking those men's lives, but at the same time she felt like she had brought some small measure of justice, by making sure they couldn't go through with the rest of their plan. She still cared about Eren, and she knew deep down that he was truly repentant for his outburst towards her, But still, seeing him like that: so consumed by his resentment and rage that he hadn't stopped to realize what he'd done until after the fact, made her realize he wasn't the same person she'd known before. _He had changed_ , and what happened last week only seemed to prove that as he'd shown no remorse for his actions, and his contempt for those men was still as strong and unyielding. He had still been moody and slightly hot-headed at times since that day, but now he was being careful around her; still too painfully aware of what he'd done to her to try and fully apologize to her face. Although she never told anyone about Eren's outburst, it was clear to everyone that _something else had happened_ up on that mountain, besides the trauma of what Eren and Ariana did. In a way she felt tainted by it: although her actions were deemed as self-defense by the MP's (thus avoiding the charge of wilful murder), Ariana didn't like the fact she had to take lives; she knew she'd probably carry that guilt for the rest of her life. It would be a constant reminder of the insidious nature of some people, the nature of this cruel world, and how you can never be complacent with it. And worse, the fact that her friends and family would never see her the same way again: knowing she was capable of doing what she did, pained her to think of the fear and doubts they must be harboring over her.

She felt like she had come to a crossroad: she had been through something horrible, something that had changed part of her outlook on life, and could never be taken back no matter how much she might try. She still cared about her best friend Eren, she always would: growing up together since either of them could remember, they shared far too much to simply part ways on bad terms. But knowing what he was capable of, that he was willing to walk the bloody path regardless of the consequences, she couldn't find it in herself to trust him the same way she did before: that thread of their bond was broken, and she wasn't sure if he could find it in himself to do what needed to be done to heal it. But at the same time she knew he wasn't the only one guilty of recklessness: even if Eren was the one to kill those first two men, she _willingly_ went along with him, and not once did she try to stop or dissuade him; even if she didn't know what he was planning, she should have done more to stop things getting so out of hand.

Was she worthy of redemption? Her parents and Shadow seemed to think so, but in her heart of hearts Ariana could sense it wasn't that simple, or straightforward. She and Eren had killed monsters in men's flesh, but were _they_ so different for stabbing, burning and firing arrows into them? As she contemplated what paths lay before her: Shadow's words began to haunt her conscience, as she began to come to the understanding, that maybe, she and Eren would not be able to walk the same path together through life.

As she let her gaze wander back to the rooftops, she saw Armin, Eren and Mikasa climbing up onto the roof of the house outside Eren's window, and made their way towards her; since the incident up on the mountain Ariana and Eren hadn't really spoken, mostly because neither of them were sure what to say without making the awkwardness between them even more uncomfortable (That, and receiving some harsh lectures from their parents had been somewhat time consuming). But as they came closer, Ariana could see Eren was looking a little surer of himself as he jumped over onto her roof and approached her. Armin and Mikasa hung back, as Eren scratched the back of his neck in anxiousness: "Um? Hi"

"Hi" Ariana offered a small smile, "You're looking better" "You too: uh, you're smiling again?" he nervously smiled, "Yeah, I haven't many reason's to smile of late: but that's not entirely because of you okay? I've kinda been torturing myself over-, you know" she shrugged; a moment of silence passed between them, before Eren heaved a heavy sigh, and sheepishly tried to explain: "...Listen, I'm really sorry I put you through what happened: I just thought that, by going into that cabin first I'd be keeping you safe, that there wouldn't be the opportunity for them to hurt you" Ariana gazed into his green eyes for a moment as she felt a little piece of her heart sink: in his voice she could hear he was telling the truth in some measure, but she could also hear a lie hiding behind his words: "...But you're not sorry for killing those men, are you" she let her gaze fall to the gutter: Eren frowned a little in disappointment, "Look, If your gonna stick up for those sick-

"-I'm _not_ sticking up for them!" Ariana sternly exclaimed, making him blink in surprise: "Those men were _evil_ and the world is better off without them: I'm excusing _or_ forgiving what they did; they were beyond _any_ form of redemption ..." she stated, before returning to a calmer yet more serious tone, "...But what _you_ did? You didn't just kill them you _butchered_ them, you weren't any different to _them_ in that moment. How can you claim to be a 'good' person if you can't bring yourself to recognize what you did was an act of suffering and cruelty; yeah what those men did to Mikasa and her parents was horrendous and there's no excusing that, but what you did was _just as bad._ And if you can't see that then-..."

She paused, passing a bitter sigh as she stopped herself from trying to turn this into a rant: "...Eren, _I'm scared_ of what you have allowed yourself to become: all because you can't stand the fact that your _here,_ inside these walls, unable to see the outside world. _You really think you're the only one who thinks that?_ That there aren't other people who secretly share that same frustration? It's a grievance practically half this world shares, and _you_ going on about it won't change that. And _I_ don't need to be constantly of that fact either!..." she exclaimed angrily: turning away from his surprised expression and gazing up at the sky, Ariana passed another deep sigh; she just couldn't _not_ be annoyed with him over this, and it sucked: "...I want to see the ocean too, I really do: but after what happened last week? I have to wonder what you'd be willing to do to achieve that dream: joining the scouts and eliminating all the titans is one thing, but what lengths will you _really_ go to? Would you care if anyone got in the way? Would you care if the titans somehow breached the walls and began consuming humanity? ...You know? As much as _I hate myself_ for thinking this: part of me dares to think that maybe? Deep down, there is a part of you that would simply gaze upon that horizon, and just _run_ : run from everything, from the pain, the suffering, maybe even all your friends and family, if that's what it takes to see the ocean..." she paused a moment, heaving another deep bitter sigh: "...But? ...At the same time? The rest of me _knows_ you won't do that: for all the anger and resentment you hold, that's _not_ the kind of person you are..." she glanced sideways at him, meeting his sorrowful gaze as she turned back to face him: "...You are a good person Eren, in _my eyes_ at least: your kind, selfless, brave, and _you will always be my best friend, no matter what._ But if you're willing to do what you did? If you: or _any of us_ are willing to discard our humanity for the sake of our dreams? ...That's a path I can't follow you down: because once I go there, if I allow myself to be consumed by that kind of darkness, and become one of those evil people for the sake of myself? I'll never come back..."

Eren stared at her for a moment, his eyes filled with regret, before tears welled up and his breath hitched in his chest: knowing he was hurting as much as she was inside, Ariana hugged him, and as he wiped his tears he asked: "...How can I make it up to you? Even if you don't want to see the ocean with me, I still want you to be in my life; I still want you, _to be my best friend too_ " Letting go of him but keeping a hand on his shoulder, she looked him in the eye and told him: "...Listen, I don't know how this can be fixed, if at all? I've been trying to figure out a way, to try and get back what we lost between us...But honestly? I just- _don't know..._ " she sighed in regret, before adding: "But-...if you _really_ want to make it up to me? You can start by apologizing to your mum"

Eren blinked in surprise, wiping his tears away as Ariana elaborated: "Yeah, I heard you two arguing the other day, and take it from me; _you hurt her_ as much as you hurt me with what you did: and besides, ever since you started obsessing about being stuck within these walls, _she's been going out of her mind_ wondering what the hell's wrong with you. I know she probably won't understand if you try to explain it, but at the _very least_ you can tell her it's _not_ her fault, and that she's _not_ a bad mother, alright?"

"Um? Okay?" Eren let his gaze drop in slight confusion: Suddenly, Mikasa was at his side, gently holding his hand: "Don't worry, I'll make sure he tells her" she told her in a monotone; "Still got that muffler huh?" Ariana smiled offhand: "I really like it" she quietly replied, pulling it up over her nose. Mikasa hadn't taken it off since she went to live with the Jaegers: in fact, the simple act of wearing it seemed to bring a measure of comfort for her; a reassurance that gave her the confidence to carry on in the wake of losing her parents. One other thing Ariana had noticed about the Jaeger's adopted daughter was how she followed Eren everywhere: always by his side, never leaving him for any reason, and more amazingly he actually seemed to tolerate her constant presence. "...Um? Listen," Ariana's smile dropped as she gazed at Mikasa with an apologetic look, "I know we haven't talked since-, last week: but, I wanted to say sorry, for making you having to go through all that. It should _never_ have gotten that bad and you didn't need to be put through any more than what you already had to endure"

Blinking in surprise, Mikasa grabbed a hold of Ariana's hand and looked her in the eyes: "You don't have to be sorry for anything: _I'm alive_ because of you and Eren, and if you hadn't come to save me, I wouldn't be here at all. So please, don't think that you made things worse, because you didn't. I'm grateful, to both of you...And those other ten children somewhere out there? Whoever they are, if they knew what had happened? I'm sure they'd be grateful too" Ariana mentally facepalmed: in all her mental angst over the incident and the questions of morality attached to it, she had all but forgotten about Mikasa, and how indeed, she had been saved because of them: "...Thanks Mikasa..." Ariana smiled, feeling somewhat comforted by her words: "Hey, you've been following Eren everywhere right? Have you run into Carl Ludwig and the Huber brothers yet?" "Ran into them, and gave them a taste of their own medicine" Mikasa stated blankly; "Good, you can help me keep an eye on Eren, he seems to get himself into a lot of scrapes with those idiots" Ariana commented, "What! But I- Eren tried to protest, but Mikasa simply started dragging him back to his bedroom window: "That won't be a problem" Mikasa stated, "Hey! Where're you taking me?!" Eren demanded "To go see your mum so you can have that 'talk'" she replied, shooting him a look.

As Eren continued to wriggle out of her firm grasp, Mikasa simply paid no attention as she picked him up by the back of his shirt, and threw him head first through the window, jumping down after him. Armin jumped over onto the roof as Ariana chuckled to herself: "You know? I think she's going to be alright" she thought aloud. "Yeah, I hope so" Armin sighed with a sheepish smile. Noticing that Armin had been hiding something behind his back since he arrived, Ariana was now curious: "Okay, what's the surprise?"

Ariana blinked in surprise as Armin showed her: "Your book?" she stared at him puzzled, "Yeah, I want _you_ to have it" he smiled, "What? No Armin this is yours! It means the world to you!" "I know, which is why I want you to have it" he stated. Confused, Ariana listened as Armin explained with a regretful tone in his voice: "...Listen, ever since last week, it's become clear that-, that incident _changed_ you somehow: you haven't been the same, and I think it's because you realized just how different you and Eren are..." She stared at him in surprise, somewhat taken aback by this, but she remained silent as he confessed: "...The truth is? I've been watching you two for a long while now, and? Well? I kinda got the impression that you guys just don't seem to get along like you used to: I mean don't get me wrong, I'm thankful and relieved that your still on talking terms; but by and large, you just-...Seem to be heading off in different directions, and, I don't know if you would be willing to follow him, or? If he would be able to follow you?" he hesitated as he tried to clarify, "I guess what I'm trying to say is...I think, I _kinda_ already figured that you won't go to see the Ocean with us"

Ariana just stared at him for a moment, and sighed in defeat: "...Your right..." she admitted, turning to gaze across the city: "Don't get me wrong Armin, it is _an amazing dream_ , and one I won't stop you or Eren from trying to achieve; but if we're being honest with each other? Going to see the ocean just seems like something a coward would do to me...I mean, running away from everything within this walled world? Yeah, _I get that_. But why should it just be you two? Doesn't _everyone_ deserve the chance to lay their eyes on such an amazing sight? Look, this world isn't perfect and it's not easy, but there _is_ goodness to be found within it, within other people, you just need to look for it. And those good people? _They_ are what make this world worth all the struggling, all the pain, the suffering, the endurance to get up in the morning and carry on afraid and undaunted by the cruelty that we constantly have to face. Running away to find the ocean might be your idea of solving all _your_ problems, but it won't help everyone else: and the only way we can get anything accomplished, the only way for humanity to _succeed at anything_ , is if _we all work together_ : and not put our own wants before everyone else's needs...I guess? What I'm trying to say is? I feel my path-, _my life_ , will be in the service of others: to help those who cannot help themselves, to fight for those who don't have the strength to fight back, and show compassion to those who have been shown none. If I ever do join the military? Be it as a Scout, a Garrison troop, or one of the Military Police? That's what I'll do"

Staring at her, Armin smiled: "Well? I'm glad that, at least you know what you want to do and that it will be for a good reason" he suddenly thought of something else, "But, tell me one thing; have _you_ ever had a dream of your own? Something you wanted so much that you'd be willing to risk everything to achieve it?" Thinking about it for a moment, Ariana smiled, and gazed at him fondly: "...To be honest? I never really needed one: I always had you, and Eren, and everyone else I can call my best friends" Armin stared at her in awe as he felt his heart swell with affection: "...I-..." he stammered as he tried to ignore the butterflies in his stomach, "...I don't know what to say? ..." he couldn't help but smile.

Ariana took the book, and gazing down at the cover, realized why he wanted her to have it: "...That's why you want me to have this, right?" she glanced up at him, "Something to remind me of you two, when you finally reach the ocean, and you venture to the horizon and beyond..." she held the book in one hand as she reached for the crystal pendant around her neck. It had been a little something Boar made for her and the other kids when they were younger: during the time Carla worked as a delivery driver, and they'd go to spend to time together in the grove of giant trees. There, he commanded all kinds of strange and beautiful crystals to erupt from out of the ground for their amazement and enjoyment. The children then took their treasures home and fashioned them into their own jewellery and trinkets. For her's, Ariana made an amethyst dagger pendant, bound with an ochre coloured leather cord, and decorated with a couple of red glass beads and beautiful green Teal duck feathers; taking it off, she gave it to Armin: "...Well? If you're giving me something to remind me of you, I want something to remind you of me"

"Your crystal dagger?" Armin blinked in surprise: "I won't take no for answer" Ariana smiled: "You're willing to give me something you've coveted since the day you first laid eyes on it, this dagger is precious to me too: so I want you to have it. And remember me when you reach the ocean, okay?"

"...Okay" he smiled as he took the pendant and looped the cord over his head, holding the dagger between his finger and thumb, he could see the various shades of purple sparkle in the light, along with the feathers and beads: it was a pretty little thing, and he felt privileged to have it, "Thank you" he smiled, "So? You haven't made your mind up whether you'll join the military for sure?" he asked offhand. "Eh, I got three years to think about it, there's plenty of time" she waved off, "I take it your still intent on joining the Scouts?" "But of course" he smiled, "Who else is going to keep an eye on Eren?"

"...About that..." Ariana sighed as she put the book down next to her feet, and held Armin's hands as she gazed at him honestly and pleadingly: "...I know I've never asked you for anything Armin, and I wouldn't ask anything of you, least it might become a burden; except? If we really are to part ways one day? Then I would ask that you do one thing for me" "Of course, anything" he nodded, "I want you to promise me that you'll watch over Eren: please make sure he is able to make the right choices; that he don't get into any trouble he can't get himself out of, and above all, be there to _think_ for him. Use that amazing brain of yours: and be the one to come up with all the brilliant ideas to help him out" "...Well? I don't know about amazing or brilliant?" Armin thought aloud sheepishly: "But I'd like to think I have my moments?"

Ariana couldn't help but chuckle, "You're way too modest...But one day, _everyone's_ going to see how great you are, and you'll see just what you can do too. _Don't be afraid_ , and don't be sacred to face what scares you the most, okay?" "If you say so" he smiled nervously, "I know so..." she smiled as she leaned in and planted a kiss on his cheek, taking him completely by surprise. "Besides, it'll be- Ariana paused as she suddenly saw Armin's face turning red a strawberry as he blushed uncontrollably and stared off into space, seemingly in shock as his heart felt like it had sprouted wings and was trying to burst out of his chest, while his stomach felt like it was filling up with more butterflies: "Uh? Armin? Are you okay?" she asked offhand, "Uh-, I uh I think so?" he stammered in a daze.

"Armin! Time to go!" his grandfather called up to the roof, "C-c-c-c-c" Armin couldn't reply as his tongue got tied up: "He'll be right down!" Ariana called out, "Come on, let's get you to the attic window" she led him over the edge of the roof, and helped him down into the attic. "Hey, see you around tomorrow?" she asked as she stepped down off the windowsill, "Uh? Yeah, sure?" he glanced up at her, still looking in a daze and blushing like mad, "Alright, see you then" she waved goodbye as she returned to her favorite spot next to the chimney stacks: as he wandered over to the staircase, Armin gently touched his cheek where Ariana kissed him, and smiled like an idiot: "...She kissed me..." he squeaked.

Watching Eren and his mother talk from up on the roof (with Mikasa making sure he couldn't run away), Ariana smiled to herself in satisfaction. A sudden gust of wind on the back of her neck made her roll her eyes as she turned around, and saw all four (invisible to everyone else) titans watching her: Shadow and Midnight were leaning against her roof, while Angel and Boar watched her from the Black Stallion's rooftop, each with a knowing smile of content. "You guys really don't get out much when you come here to Shiganshina, do you?" she deadpanned up at Shadow, who merely leaned in closer for her to approach and stroke his jaw: "...I guess my 'soul searching' is done for the time being?" she thought aloud, "But what I said? About my life being in the service of others? I really do feel that's where my path is going to take me... And-, you were right you know?" she gazed up at him with a regretful sigh: "...I guess our paths really weren't meant to follow one another huh?"

Grabbing her attention with a friendly hum, Shadow spelt out, : Maybe not, but I am proud of you, for handling it the way you have: he nuzzled her with his nose, to which she couldn't help but chuckle as she stroked the bridge of his nose and his cheek, before turning her attention to Midnight: "Hey Midnight? ..." she approached her, "I know I didn't say it sooner, but I meant to thank you" : For what? : She spelt out as she raised an eyebrow, "For saving us from that guy up on the mountain, and for putting the fire out" Ariana replied, assuming she knew what she was talking about.

The titans stared at her in alarm as Midnight quickly replied, : Ariana, I was in the grove with Boar and Shadow, I didn't go anywhere near that mountain all morning: "But-," Ariana stared up at her in confusion, "That _had_ to be you I saw: you're the only black and white titan around here" glancing at Shadow, Midnight nodded as she gently picked Ariana up off the roof, and placed the tip of her claw to her forehead.

 _Let that which is known to you, also be known to me_

Ariana's eyes shot wide open as she felt her memory explode into the forefront of her mind, taking her back to last week, and the fight with the two burnt men amid the forest fire. Scanning through her memory to the moment in question, Hecate watched in alarm as the giant black and white entity came down and put out the fire: flying back off again with the screaming man in its sharp talons. From Ariana's view point it could only have been her, it was huge, black and white, and obviously had magical powers of its own. But looking through the memories with her keen ethereal eye, Hecate could see it _wasn't her_ , it was bigger, had shorter hair, and although Ariana hadn't got a good look at its face, she saw she had caught a glimpse of its glowing purple eyes...

The eyes of a Night Roamer

Hecate broke the connection and jumped back in shock, while Ariana held her spinning head, feeling someone had just drummed their fingers up against the inside of her skull: **"What did you see?"** Javorin asked as he took Ariana from her and let her lay down in his palm to recuperate.

" **...We are not alone"** was all she could reply.

* * *

 **Well, at just about 100 pages long, this chapter was a pain to put together, I started off okay but then realized it wouldn't be taking it in the direction I wanted it to go: so in the end I cut out over 25 pages, modified 15 of those pages into new dialogue, and ended up writing 7/8 new paged from scratch before continuing with the rest. So I apologize for this chapter taking slightly longer to post than usual: that, and the whole semi-bust-up between Ariana & Eren was emotionally draining; it turned out well, but still, I feel for my bebe TTT_TTT And yeah, that was a new god that came swooping in to save the day :D I will be posting some new stuff on my Devientart page in the near future. Profiles of the other gods I got planned to make an appearance later on in the story, and I have to say, I'm pretty pleased with how they turned out. On that note, future chapters probably might take slightly longer to post, on account I'm going to try to knuckle down to get some much needed fan art & doodles done.**

 **Anyway, do hope you all stay tuned, because next time: it will be the day...the day, humanity receives a grim reminder...You know what I'm talking about, so be sure to keep your tissue boxes handy and brace your feels for impact because it's gonna be blood, titans and death scenes galore! Oh, and don't forget to R &R before clicking off, thanks!**


	12. Chpt 11: Life Forever Changed

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Chapter 11: Life Forever Changed

845, July, the Marian forest:

"WATCH YOUR LEFT!" Bryson shouted as he flew through the trees on his ODM gear.

"Don't worry I see him!" Ariana shouted back as she glanced over her shoulder and caught a glimpse of Shadow quickly closing the gap between them,

The fifteen meter titan was quick to stay on her rear as she flew between the giant trees, while Bryson hung back; keeping on Shadow's left side and following them both at a distance where he could watch the action unfold. Ariana shot her lines out to pull a hard right around the back of a tree, and recalled the cables in half-way so as to catapult herself around and off the trunk: a move that proved to be too fast for Shadow, as he grabbed the trunk of a smaller tree nearby, and used it to make the hard turn, skidding right around and running after where he thought Ariana would be; only to find she had vanished. Skidding to a halt, the titan looked all around, his ears flicking back and forth as he tried to locate her: but when he looked up, he was too late to react as Ariana silently dropped out of the trees and struck him on the nape with a pair of dull wooden pairing blades: firing her cables back into the tree so as to swing down to the ground. Sighing in both defeat and relief, Shadow kneeled down next to her as Bryson landed on his shoulder, and after moving some of his long thick hair out the way, carefully inspected where the blades had struck. A pair of blade strikes marked by a thick red paste indicated the mock wound would have been fatal: satisfied, he shot his lines into the tree and swung down next to Ariana's side.

"Well?" She asked nervously as she detached the mock blades from their anchors in the hand grips, and placed them back into the sheath boxes. The blades had been coated with a red paste that took hours to dry: a simple yet effective means of both simulating and marking a blade strike. "Pretty good" Bryson nodded in a matter-of-factly tone, "Catapulting up into the canopy like that and then dropping down silently? Good way to get the drop on your quarry, literally" he then turned serious, "But you're going to have to start improving your reaction time when you first sight your target: you were nearly _two seconds late_ getting off the ground; a delay like that can cost lives: next time, _don't stop for anything_ , understand?"

"I-, Yes" Ariana nodded, "Yes what?" Bryson frowned, "Yes sir!" Ariana immediately straightened up and saluted; "And you-" he glanced up at Shadow with a distinct look of disappointment written all over his face: "What the hell was with that move back there?! You're _supposed_ to be simulating a regular titan! You should've run right into that tree and fallen flat on your ass: regular titans don't have the coordination or reflexes to pull off such a turn!"

Realizing his blunder, Shadow held up his hand, and with his glowing 'smoke light' spelt out,: My apologies Bryson, I wasn't concentrating:

"No, you weren't" the former scout frowned, before letting go of his frustration: "...Still..." he contemplated as he gazed back at Ariana, "Being able to outrun a titan in such a way, and still be able to stay ahead of him? That's a not a bad move to keep in mind" he then glanced down at his pocket watch, "...What'd you say we call it a day? We've been at this for most of the afternoon, and I'd say you two have earned yourselves some downtime"

"About time" Tyto smiled as he emerged from the thick greenery of the undergrowth, "I was wondering when you were finally going to call it quits"

"How long have been standing there? Only, I didn't see you down on the ground" Bryson smiled: "Eh, that's Celtic stealth for you" Tyto shrugged, "And I gotta say, these 'training' exercises are really paying off: you're getting faster on that thing" he smiled down at Ariana, "Eh, just lot's of practice really, there's nothing much else to it dad" she shrugged with a small smile, "So? If your here, I guess it's time to go home huh?"

"Ah not just yet" Tyto smiled, "Everyone's waiting for you back at the grove: shall we?" he gestured in the direction of the grove. Gently picking the humans up and placing them on his shoulder, Shadow stood back up and steadily began walking through the forest; his feet hardly making a sound as he careful stepped over the thick greenery and between the much smaller other trees. "So tell me? How've you been doing? I only caught the last five minutes of that chase back there" Tyto glanced over at his daughter.

"Well? I finally polished off the sharp turns without overshooting my landing spot?" Ariana shrugged, "Oh and the latest batch of 'fake titan blood' paste works better: it didn't dry out as quickly as the last lot" "Good, you can thank Claude when we get home: it's his own recipe apparently?" Tyto replied offhand, before suddenly remembering: "Oh, I nearly forgot, Mrs Jaeger's at the grove with Mable and Miss Rosemary"

"Really?" Ariana's eyes lit up as a smile spread across her face: she fired her lines out and took off at speed, "See you at the grove!" she called over her shoulder as she vanished into the canopy. Tyto sat in silence as he watched her disappear, and listened as the sound of her ODM gear's gas piston steadily grew quieter the further she flew away. He passed a deep sigh of contemplation, before turning to Bryson and asking in all seriousness: "So? How's she been doing?"

"Honestly Tyto? I think she's prime Scout material" Bryson smiled, "And I'm not just saying that because I still support the Legion: as a hunter (and a stealthy one at that) she's got a natural ability that would make her effective at being able to stalk or evade, even on an ODM gear; hell, even Shadow can't get the drop on her anymore"

: It's true, she's improved greatly these past several months: Shadow spelt out with his 'smoke light'

"Also, since she's known Shadow and the other titans since a very young age: there's a strong chance regular titans won't spook her as badly as they would other rookies on their first expedition. And with that nose of her's, I'd wager she'd be able to smell them coming a mile off" Bryson continued, "Plus, since we began these one-on-one training exercises a year ago, her speed and agility on the ODM gear has vastly improved, more so than me when I was in the training corps. Speaking as a professional: I'd say, regardless of whatever branch she chooses to join, she'd be a fine investment for the military"

"Well? That's good to know..." Tyto sighed as he let his gaze wander down to the forest floor: hearing the vexation in his voice, Bryson asked: "...Is something the matter Tyto?" "No it's just-..." Tyto hesitated as he met Bryson's gaze again: "Well? I'm glad Ariana will have something to offer in terms of her own individual skills: but part of me thinks this whole 'joining the military' thing won't be so straight forward"

"Well? You wouldn't be wrong there" Bryson sighed, "She's not going to be getting any breaks when she starts training for real; she'll be pushed to her breaking point and then some, and even then she'll have no one to help her out. But it's not all just about titans and how to kill them: there are a lot of other things she'll have to learn too" he pointed out, "Team work, tactics, hand-to-hand combat, among other things: being part of a good soldier means learning to stay flexible, and responding to each situation differently; and depending on which branch she finally decides to join, she'll have to be prepared to meet the challenge regardless of her own personal feelings"

"That's what I'm afraid of," Tyto confessed, "Ariana might have what it takes to be a good Scout in terms of her skills and ability: but I'm not sure if she has the heart to endure so much loss and grief; even with Shadow and the others protecting the Scouts from the regular titans, the Legion _still_ continues to suffer fatalities, and I don't know if she would be able to endure that kind of heartache...not after-" he hesitated as he passed a bitter sigh, disappointment evident in his eyes.

Bryson knew what vexed him about this, and couldn't help but sympathize with him: "...Eren," he sighed. "Ever since that day, up on the mountain: I've noticed things have been different between them. Unlike him, she feels she must atone for her choice, to prove that violence and anger are not the way to resolve conflict or injustice. I think that's part of why she wants to join the military, to help people who cannot defend themselves against those that would take advantage of them. Of course, the only branch that would allow her to do something like that would be the military police; but she has _no idea_ of just how deep the corruption runs in that organization. Her need to help and wanting to remain true to her principles would be sorely disillusioned: she'd encounter as much heartbreak there as she would the Scouts"

"Then I suppose the Garrison would be her safest bet huh?" Tyto glanced over at the former Scout, "Eh, from a pragmatic point of view yes: but cleaning cannons, guard duty at the inner gates and sitting around watching the walls all day? That would be a waste of her talents Tyto: and if I'm being honest with you? I couldn't bear to see someone of such exceptional talent be underutilized like that"

"Then her only choice would be the Scouts" Tyto frowned a little, to which Bryson tried to explain as prudently as possible: "I just feel-, for what she is able to do, for the skills she obviously has; the Scouts are a no-brainer...Unlike Eren: for the past year now, every time he and Armin have walked by the bookshop I've been hearing him going on about joining the Scouts and how he wants to 'slaughter' all the titans. The way he goes on about it though? It kinda has me worried he might be _obsessed_ with it in some way, and _not in a good way_ either"

"...Yeah, I figured that too," Tyto met Bryson's surprised gaze, "Listen, don't say a word of this to Carla, but once or twice I've overheard Ariana's conversations with Eren and Armin up on the roof: Eren's trying to work up a plan to run away and sign up to the military after he turns twelve. He knows his mother won't give him her blessings for joining the Scouts, so rather than tell her upfront, he figured he'd avoid the whole thing altogether and just run away"

"And, Ariana's on board with this?" Bryson blinked in surprise: "Fortunately no: I think she's trying to dissuade him, in her own way. Recommending different ways of how to 'break it to her gently' and all that; but honestly? The cat's going to be let out of the bag sooner or later: probably by Mikasa, I don't think she's keen on the idea of him joining the Scouts either, but then, I don't think she'll leave his side even if he does sign up?" Tyto thought aloud.

"You might be right there" Bryson nodded, "She's like his shadow, wherever he goes, she's never far behind" : Mikasa has been a surprisingly good influence on Eren : Shadow spelt out, : She has a knack for being able to calm him down, and she's quite efficient at being able to keep him out of the worst of trouble:

"Heh, Well? I'm glad he and Ariana are still friends, despite what happened up on that mountain last year" Tyto smiled: "Things might have changed between them, but at least they can still see what they share with each other" "That's true..." Bryson smiled, before changing the subject: "Oh I forgot to ask the other day; how's the 'key cracking' going with the Semitam?"

"Eh? To be honest I think we're starting to lose the will to live" Tyto sighed in exasperation, "It's been over a year since we discovered the true nature of the titan's markings and engravings on their tombs: and we're _still_ closer to finding out what the 'key' is?"

: We warned you from the start it could be almost anything: Shadow spelt out, : As long as an inanimate object has been imbued with a piece of the Semitam's power, the key could be hidden in anything, and even if you find it, you still need to awaken the power that lies within:

"So it's still pretty much a case of looking for a needle in a whole field of haystacks?" Bryson raised an eyebrow, : Not really. Despite being so small, a needle would still stand out in a haystack. It's more of a case of looking for a specific needle within a pile of different needles : Shadow replied, : And because a Semitam's power remains 'asleep' when not in use, it's not like I or the others can sense it. The same goes for its key too:

"That's still a disappointment" Bryson frowned. "Ah we'll find it one day: for all we know it could be hidden in the most unlikeliest of places, or, object in this case" Tyto assured him, "Look, I wouldn't go popping a blood vessel over it: wherever the map leads to, it can wait, right big fella?" he glanced up at Shadow, : I don't have any plans for the long term future: he spelt out with a smile, : Besides, I rather like it here : He spelt out before pointing ahead.

Gazing ahead to where he was pointing to, the two men saw the grove of giant trees come into view. As Shadow entered the grove and made his way over to the large clearing, he knelt down to place Tyto and Bryson back on the ground, before noticing the other titans and humans were all doing their own thing. Angel and Boar were sat down with Carla and the children at the edge of the clearing, reading a book while surrounded by a whole flock of different birds that were perched on the children's outstretched arms and feeding from their cupped hands: Mabel and Rosemary were busy amid the little fruit orchid that grew in the center of the clearing, picking the ripe fruits and berries and depositing them into the baskets that sat nearby. Off around the other side of the clearing, West was helping Evrard to balance upright on an ODM gear (which he'd somehow managed to squeeze his robust frame into), while Falken and Eraman were flying around the clearing in a wide circle on their kids ODM gear, much to Tyto and Bryson's surprise, and Shadow's amusement.

"Whoa! When did you guys learn to do that?!" Tyto called up to them with abroad grin of excitement: "About an hour ago!" Falken called down as he flew overhead with Evernight at his side, "It's not that hard you know! You should try it!" Eraman added with a broad smile spread across his face as his ravens flew after him, chirping and cronking happily at seeing their master being able to fly on invisible wings. "You know what? I think I'll try that" Tyto nodded as he spotted the kid's ODM gears sitting at the base of one of the giant trees: "Hey boys! Can I borrow one of your gears?" he called over to Ash, Rowan and Dale, "Sure dad! Just don't use up all the gas!" Ash called back, "Care to show me the basics?" he asked Bryson, "Sure, why not?" Bryson smiled as he shook his head, "But if anyone else comes to me asking how to fly 'Scout style', I'm going to have to start charging commission" he added.

Leaving the gents to their own devices, Shadow stepped over to the little gathering at Boar and Angel's feet, : What's going on here?: he spelt out as he sat down on the grass next to Boar, who had a variety of different birds perched on his tusks, mane, shoulders and tail, while Angel had a whole varying flock perched amid her flank plumes and shoulders, and a goodly number were perched on the humans shoulders and outstretched arms, feeding on a collection of different fruits, seeds and worms (kindly dug out of the ground by Boar).

"Claude gave me this for free" Carla pointed to a book in her lap, "It lists all the different bird species found in the Marian forest" she added as she fed three white doves perched on her arm. "The birds in the book are just line drawings with no colour, so Boar called them all here so we could see what they look like with their real colours" Ariana smiled as she let seven chattering magpies perch on her arms, "I like these guys, their so blue" Josefa smiled as she offered a strawberry to a pair of blue jays on her right shoulder, "You like anything that's blue" Jaye deadpanned as he stroked a trio of Steller's jays that were sitting contently in his lap, "So do you" she shot back. "Hey, blue's my colour too you know?" Belle frowned at them as she offered her hand to a couple of mountain bluebirds that were snapping up the worms on offer. "Well I like red so these little guys are a no-brainer for me" Poppy smiled as she fed a handful of flame-coloured tanagers, "Yellow's my colour of choice so these guys are my favorite, "Gale chipped in as she placed some seeds on her shoulder for a couple of yellow warblers. "We like these guys" Lucy and Lucius smiled as they fed a small group of snow buntings and snow finches: "Well, she likes the snow buntings, _I_ like the snow finches" Lucius clarified, "I love these guys! Their so cute!" Clay chuckled as he held two apple halves in both hands, letting a whole flock of waxwings perch all over him as they pushed and shoved each other aside for a few pecks of the apples, "I prefer this guy, he's fly's just like I do on the ODM gear" Hazel noted as she stroked an impressive Goshawk that sat in her lap like a cat. "He's good at flying through tight holes in the branches, but he can't hold a candle to these guys!" Ashlyn chuckled as a flock of swallows flew around her like a whirlwind, chasing after her as she ran around the clearing, trying to keep up with them, "Same here, these guys are real sharp on the dives" Hawk added as he offered his arms to a small handful of swifts that were twisting and turning on the warm air with the swallows. "Yeah well these guys seem to like us" Ash pointed to the two ravens perched on his shoulder, while Rowan was busy feeding a couple of rooks, "Maybe it's because we wear black?" Dale offered as he feed a trio of Jackdaws. "Nah, I think it's the food" Fox shrugged as he let several bullfinches eat some seeds out of his cupped hands: "Or maybe the titans just convinced them that we're okay, and that it's safe to come down out the trees" Shyla chipped in as she stroked a cuckoo that was perched on her wrist.

Holding out his hand, Shadow watched as some of the birds fluttered over and perched on his giant fingers, seemingly unfazed by his vast looming form. "How is it you guys are able to talk to birds when you can't talk yourselves?" Mabel thought aloud as she wandered over with a basket of cherries and strawberries tucked under one arm, "It's their powers, that what it is right big guy?" Ariana smiled up at Shadow, who nodded in reply. : It's nice to see you here again Carla: he spelt out with is free hand. "Well? Grisha's at the hospital today and Eren's with Armin and Mikasa, so I had a few hours to myself" She smiled up at him, "Besides, Angel's been badgering me for weeks to come out here, so of course I lost that battle of wills" she glanced up at her best friend with a mock impression of annoyance, to which Angel chirped and warbled proudly with a content smile. : Well it's great to have you back, if only for a few hours: Shadow replied. "Yeah, I miss this" Shyla thought aloud, "Me too" Ariana concurred, "Between 'scout-style' training and everything else, it feels like I've hardly had any time for anything else"

"Oh yes, you're still committed to joining the military Ariana?" Rosemary asked offhand, "Yep, still waiting for my twelfth birthday to roll around" Ariana sighed. "Well? You ain't going alone" Rowan gazed over at her with a sideways glance, "We're coming too" "What?! Like hell you are!" Ariana shot back, "You seriously think we're going to let our little sister take on the titans all by herself? They'd have to get through _us_ first" he stated seriously, "I haven't even made up my mind that I'll join the scouts for sure! For all you know I might still be contemplating the Garrison or MP's!" Ariana argued. "Staring up at a big-ass wall all day or sitting around on your ass doing shit-all unless you're bribed to do something? Yeah, like _that's_ going to happen" Rowan rolled his eyes, "You're gonna be a scout and you know it". "Ariana?" Carla grabbed her attention with a concerned look in her eyes: "You're not seriously considering joining the scouts, are you?" "No it-" Ariana huffed in frustration, "I'm still thinking it over: I've gotta choose _one_ of the three branches once I graduate"

" _If_ you graduate!" West shouted over to her, "I hear those training instructors can be real hard-asses!" "Whatever you chose, I just hope it'll be something that won't pose too much danger" Carla smiled, "...Yeah, I guess?" Ariana shrugged dubiously: pondering the three choices that she still hadn't made up her mind about, "But, at least with the Scouts, I know Shadow will be watching over me: even if I can't see him" she smiled up at him. "We're coming too you know!" Belle stated boldly, "What?" Ariana blinked in surprise, "She's right, we still want to join the Scouts and go see the outside world" Gale stated, "And besides, if you do join the scouts, we might all be placed in the same squad together!" Poppy smiled, "I'm coming too" Shyla stated, "Fox says he wants to join the scouts as well, and where he goes, I go" she stated, to which Fox shot her a look. "Does- Miriam know about this?" Ariana asked offhand, "Ah Heh, we uh? Haven't exactly broached the subject to her yet?" Gale sheepishly smiled, "But hey, we got two years to break it to her gently and let it sink in: I'm sure if we play our cards right (and get her drunk enough) she'll grow to be okay with it"

"Are you all sure about this?" Carla asked dubiously, "Do you have any idea of the danger that awaits you all beyond that wall? What kind of risk you'd be taking by joining the scouts?" "Well? Yeah?" Belle shrugged, "We kinda know that" "And it's not a decision we came to lightly, I can promise you that Mrs Jaeger" Gale added, trying to sound reassuring. "Same here, we know what kinda danger's out there beyond the wall: that's why we gotta keep an eye on Ariana, so she don't get eaten" Rowan threw in, with Ash and Dale nodding in agreement, "You guys! _Like hell_ you're gonna be babysitting me!" Ariana shot back at them, " _Like hell_ we're letting _you_ go off on your own" Ash frowned, "It ain't no use arguing about it, we're joining the training corps with you and that's it: end of discussion" "...HEY DAD!" Ariana shouted over to her father, "ASH ROWAN AND DALE ARE GONNA JOIN THE MILITARY TO BABYSIT ME! DID YOU OKAY THIS WITH MUM?!" "What?!" Tyto exclaimed, "- _Like hell_ I Okayed it! You three get over here and explain yourselves!" Tyto exclaimed: Ash, Rowan and Dale took off running into the trees, "-Traitor!" Rowan glared at Ariana over his shoulder as he ran for the undergrowth, with the ravens, rooks and jackdaws flying after them. Turning her attention back to Carla, Ariana tried to explain: "Look, Mrs Jaeger, it's not like I haven't considered the risks involved; but with Shadow and the other titans keeping a watchful eye over the expeditions, being a Scout isn't quite as dangerous as it used to be"

"Yeah, ever since Shadow, Midnight and Boar started invisibly tailing the scouts, the legion's mortality rate has been steadily decreeing, and with the combat strategies we helped Bryson's devise last year, the scouts now lose an average of four to six troops per mission. Why, last week's expedition only lost _three_ people on the entire trip: that's a new record" Lucius chipped in. "Hey, do you wonder if the scouts have noticed the decrease in their mortality rate these last few years? I mean, going from losing an average of twelve to fifteen people, way down to an average of four to six? Do they think they're real lucky? Or what?" Josefa pondered aloud.

: From what I've overheard around the campfires. Some are of the opinion that there's some kind of supernatural force at work: Shadow spelt out with a smile, : But by and large, many of the scouts believe it's pure luck. Most of the time the fatalities are usually the ones right out on the far edges of the column, or at the far front or rear, where they do not have the benefit of the 'herd's' protective numbers, and even then the titans that attack are usually the ones that are able to slip by us:

"So? ..." Carla hesitated, "There's still a real risk involved?" : Carla, there will _always_ be a risk no matter how hard you work to try to decrease it. The odds may be more in the scouts favor as a whole, but the odds of the individual soldier are still hazardous. But that doesn't mean to say they don't have a leg to stand on, a goodly number of them are able to hold their own during a fight, and since we started using the new tactics and strategies, they've certainly been able to muster a lot more tenacity then they had done in previous years: Shadow explained. "I wouldn't worry about it too much Mrs Jaeger" Ariana smiled, "With Bryson teaching me how fight, and Shadow playing the part of a regular titan, the titans would have to go _a long way_ to get the drop on me"

Carla wanted to object, but decided against it: it wasn't worth getting into an argument about it, not when Ariana had made up her mind about joining the military, and was quite likely looking at joining the scouts. The thought of it sent a feeling of unease up her spine, as she thought about Eren and the idea of him joining the same faction, only to come home dead and half eaten, or worse, not at all. How Tyto and Freya were okay with this she couldn't understand, but then, they were much more confident in their children's talents and abilities: and trusted them to know how to stay on top of things. As she let her gaze fall down to the book in her lap, Carla wondered why she was feeling like this: this sense of dreading the worst case scenario for Eren, and the thought of losing him. Where was this coming from? As she pondered on her thoughts, she wondered why she didn't have the same kind of faith in her child as Tyto and Freya did in theirs: was she _that_ overprotective? Did she worry so much that she hadn't taken into account that Eren would eventually grow up someday, and would have to stand on his own two feet? It was more of an annoying vexation more than anything else, and she didn't know how to work past it: could Eren really be capable of achieving the same level of proficiency as Ariana if he were to become a scout too? After all, her chances of surviving the regular titans were no greater or lesser than that of any other scout in the legion: and as Bryson had stated on many past occasions, even the best scouts had succumbed to the titans jaws. It was simply the luck of the draw.

As a mother, Carla's maternal instincts told her it wasn't wise to let Eren do anything that would incur the possibility of him getting hurt: but her sensibilities also told her that it was also unwise to hold him back. Whatever he wanted to do in life, be it safe or dangerous, he had the freedom to choose his own destiny. Seeing the look in her eyes, Ariana asked offhand: "...Hey, are you okay Mrs Jaeger?" snapping back to reality, Carla glanced down at Ariana and forced a reassuring smile, "Uh, oh I'm fine. It's just-, well? I can't help but worry is all; it's a 'mum thing', and worrying over any child kind of comes with the territory"

Suddenly, all the birds took flight, fluttering high up into the trees as a vast pitch-black shadow moved through the dark gloom of the canopy, before drifting down to the ground like a cloud of ink, and rematerializing into the form of Midnight, with Ash, Rowan and Dale gently clutched in one clawed hand. "Hey! Why'd you scare all the birds off Midnight?" Clay huffed. Ignoring the children's groans of complaint, the giant voluptuous black and white titan sauntered over to the clearing and sat herself down next to Shadow, placing the three brothers back on the ground who then quickly took off to the opposite side of the clearing as an annoyed Ariana laid eyes on them and quickly gave chase. As the children watched the scene and the grown-up's tried to calm the situation down; Midnight regarded Shadow with a smirk.

" **Looks like I missed something fun: I found the brats trying to sneak off back to the road and they tried to get me to pretend I hadn't seen them; what did they try to pull this time?"** Hecate asked offhand: **"They're going to sign up to the training corps so as to babysit their little sister"** Herne smirked. **"TCH!-** _ **That'll**_ **be the day: their good on the ODM but she'd be leaving them in her dust: you told them that yet?"** she smirked, **"Oh, their smart kids, they'll figure it out for themselves soon enough"** Javorin chuckled **,** before changing the subject. **"Anyway, where have** _ **you**_ **been all day?"**

" **Oh around, 'walking the estate' so to speak"** she shrugged, **"I know the Disciples are long gone but it never hurts to be doubly sure; that and, I've been searching for our elusive friend..."**

Javorin, Herne and Elysia blinked in surprise at her: it had been over a year since the incident on the mountain between Ariana, Eren, Mikasa, and the gang of human traffickers; an incident where an unknown god had decided to play the good Samaritan and save the children's lives. In the weeks following the event, the four gods had searched high and low for their mystery kin: traveling far and wide around the three walls, from the green forested regions in the south, to the open prairies and grasslands of the east, the lush marshlands and lakes of the west, all the way up to the cold mountainous regions of the north. They flew over all three walls at least twice, gliding over the lands of wall Rose and wall Sina, and even over the grand capitol city of Mitras. They even flew out into the outside world, but with no luck. Whoever it was had seemed to have only been passing through, and was long since gone.

" **A few weeks ago I set up a shrine at the top of Black Boar Mountain, the one at the north-eastern most range of the district? Nothing fancy, just a few offerings and an incantation to let them know we're here. I went to check on it this morning. No takers"** she sighed, **"Of course it's not that simple: but hey, nothing ventured nothing gained, right?" "True"** Javorin sighed, **"But then, with all that chaos manna in the atmosphere fogging up our powers, whoever it was is probably in the same boat we are. They might have flown right over our heads and never even saw us" "...Do you think it's worth going to ask your mother about it?"** Hecate suggested; Javorin glanced at her, before heaving a heavy sigh, **"...It's a possibility, and one I've been giving some serious thought to; if one of our kin is out there somewhere, and they're searching for someone too, then we** _ **have**_ **to know. The question is, will** _ **her**_ **powers be affected by the chaos manna too?"**

" **Considering she resides in the spirit realm it's a possibility: the mortal and spiritual planes** _ **are**_ **interlinked after all"** Herne shrugged: **"So? When are you thinking of 'paying mother a visit'?"**

" **Next week, when Lune's light is at her fullest: I want to be sure there's enough ambient manna to sustain me while I cross over"** Javorin replied: **"Can't you just go over to the spirit realm any time? I thought that place didn't need any specific 'requirements' in order to go there?"** Elysia asked offhand. **"Back when we were our normal selves yes, but with all the chaos manna in the atmosphere now there's no telling how a regular astral projection might be affected. Under the circumstances it's best to play it safe and wait until the full moon can naturally imbue the mortal plane with her energies"** Herne explained.

" **Her?"** Elysia raised an eyebrow; **"** _ **Oh hell!**_ **Don't tell me you don't know?!"** Hecate facepalmed, **"Know what?"** Elysia exclaimed. **"Kid, the goddess of the moon is Lune: Hecate's mother"** Herne smirked: Elysia simply gawked at Hecate: " **THE MOON IS YOUR** _ **MOTHER?!**_ **" "Wait-, you didn't know?"** Herne blinked in surprise: **"No of course not! How the hell was I to know the moon was a goddess! I just thought it was a big fat white rock in the sky!"** Elysia exclaimed, before Hecate shot her a particularly scathing glare, while Javorin and Herne merely facepalmed in embarrassment: **"Kid, thinking of someone's mother a 'big fat white rock' _isn't_ the right assumption for the greatest source of all light and magic within the night-time realm"** Herne sighed in exasperation. **"Lune is the goddess and queen of the moon and night-time: she is one of the most** _ **powerful and important**_ **of the ancient ones, her's is a power shared by many in this realm, the spirit realm** _ **and**_ **the eternal realm alike.** _ **How on earth**_ **could you not know who she is?"** Javorin gazed at the weather goddess weirdly. **"I DIDN'T KNOW OKAY?! I just-, AAUGH!"** Elysia fumed; though she didn't cause a scene, the look of sheer frustration and disbelief on her face quickly caught the human's attention. "Angel? Honey is something wrong?" Carla got up and wandered over to her: snapping out of her anger, Elysia stared down at Carla in alarm. Realizing she'd worried her and the other humans too; looking back up at the other god's, she passed a heavy sigh as she stood up and turned to leave. **"...I'm sorry Hecate, I'll-, just go to my nest now..."** she quietly stated as she walked away with Carla trailing after her. "What was that all about?" Ariana gazed up at Shadow, who regarded her with an apologetic sigh: tapping the side of his temple to indicate they'd been talking to one another in their 'secret unspoken language' (the humans hadn't quite been able to get their heads around the concept of telepathy), holding up his hand he spelt out, : We were talking, and things got a little complicated. Don't worry about it; she just needs some time alone:

At the root cave where Elysia's nest was situated, the avian titan was about to climb down into the nest when Carla ran ahead in front to stop her: "Angel _talk to me_ , what happened back there?" the human demanded worryingly. Unfolding her wing, Elysia flapped it and spelt out the words, : I'm an idiot, I don't anything about this world! : "What do you mean you don't know anything? You know plenty of things" Carla smiled, trying to sound reassuring; Frowning, Elysia was about to reply back, when she suddenly sensed Hecate in her mind again: **"Hey...If you genuinely didn't know? Don't go busting your tail feathers over it: it's not worth it okay? ...And don't worry about 'offending' me, I've encountered a lot worse"** Elysia paused a moment, gazing down at Carla with an unreadable look as Hecate continued, **"...It won't do any good to explain it to her either; the humans have long since forgotten who we really are, and there's no point trying to convince them otherwise. Those days are long gone, and as far as their concerned we're a bunch of seriously 'abnormal' titans"**

Sighing bitterly in defeat, Elysia met Carla's gaze, and leaned down to nuzzle the side of her face: Thinking she was just upset and needed a hug, Carla obliged and hugged the bridge of her nose and the side of her cheek: "There there it's okay, if you don't want to talk about it that's fine: I'm always here if you need me alright?" Carla cooed softly: Elysia nodded, and gazed over at the clearing, where the children stood watching her in concern. **"... Javorin? Will you teach me who all the other gods are sometime?"** she asked sombrely, **"I think that can be arranged, but for now? Don't stress out over it okay?"** he smiled warmly. Managing to give Carla a small smile, Elysia retreated into her nest and chirped invitingly, asking her to come down: as she climbed down into the cave, Elysia grabbed one of the many books she'd stashed away in the feather lining of her nest, holding it between her lips and giving it to Carla. "The mocking bird that sang to the sun?" she read the cover out loud, "Huh, I haven't noticed this one in your nest before: is it one Claude gave to you?" she asked, to which Elysia nodded: using the bend of her wing to pat her breast, indicating it was a love story: "Okay then, scoot over and we'll begin the first chapter: but only _one_ today, I'll read the rest if you come over to my place alright?" she stated, Elysia nodded in agreement; Carla made herself comfy in between the soft feather lining and Elysia's left wing. She then opened the book, and started the first page: "Once, long ago in an age when I was but a boy, and full of proud youthful ambitions, I came to a city whose name escapes me now: but was far from what I expected..."

"Will she be okay?" Ariana asked Shadow as she sat cross-legged in his palm, : She'll be fine, trust me: he spelt out as she smiled at her. **"...A goddess who's never heard of Lune? ...** _ **Geez**_ **, how long was the kid up in the sky for? I mean, I know the Tempus gods always had a reputation for hardly ever taking corporal forms and coming down to the ground, but surely they must have had** _ **some kind**_ **of basic knowledge of the ancient ones, at least?"** Herne shook his head in disbelief, being careful not to let Elysia overhear them: **"The Tempus gods always considered themselves above the average nature god: Well? The** _ **older**_ **generation at least; since it was their duty to 'turn the wheel of the world's weather', and thus influencing many of the planet's ecosystems, they didn't like to associate with those they considered to be of a lesser power. Of course many of the younger gods, while they didn't inherit their predecessor's prejudices, still remained vastly ignorant of the world, hardly understanding the reasons why they did what they did, and for what. Understandably, this led to many conflicts between us 'ground-dwelling' gods and them, since apparently we were 'beneath' them too"** Javorin sighed **.**

" **...That storm that blew through here four years ago..."** Hecate thought aloud **, "You don't suppose it could've been the work of a discontent Tempus god do you?" "...The thought** _ **had**_ **crossed my mind a while ago, but if there had been a Tempus god it would've made no sense for them to attack one of their own? Tempus gods many have been a lofty lot, but they drew the line at maiming their own kin; if for no other reason the magical back-lash from attacking a fellow Tempus would have hurt** _ **them**_ **as much as it would have hurt Elysia. Plus, from what I remember seeing that day, the storm didn't look like it was being manipulated in any way, even from high up in the atmosphere"** Javorin replied as he thought back to that day.

" **That reminds me..."** Hecate frowned in concern, **"While I was flying back here I took a detour over the wall and saw something odd; for as far as I could see every titan within the vicinity was heading towards the wall, some, even as far away as beyond the southern forests were making their way here. There weren't many, but it was as if they were being summoned here: I perched up above the outer gate to get a look at their auras, and sure enough, something in all those chaos magics had been 'tweaked' somehow;** _ **I don't know what**_ **exactly but I got a bad feeling that tells me something's up"**

Thinking about it a moment, Javorin then nodded: **"... Okay, handle it as you see fit: keep an eye on it and let us know if you need help" "Will do,"** she glanced down at Ash, Rowan and Dale, who were now sitting contently on her leg, arguing with the Raven twins over something or other.

* * *

Sometime later:

The afternoon lazily passed into the early evening, and soon it was time to be heading home: after stashing their ODM gear away in one of the root caves, the humans bid the titans goodnight, and made the long trek through the forest back to the road, where Rosemary and Mabel had left their cart and horse: after loading up all the baskets of fruit and berries, they set off with everyone else following close behind. "You know? That ODM gear is real fun once you get the swing of it" Evrard smiled, "-The _swing_ of it! HA!-" he doubled over with laughter as everyone bar Clay let out a groan: "Heh! Good one dad!" he chuckled: "Eh, comedy genius there Evrard" West smiled dryly: "Well if you think that's good, I got a load more, and their real _punny_!" the giant red head beamed, much to everyone's exasperation. As everyone tried to dissuade Evrard from sharing any more of his puns: Tyto listened in amusement as Carla came up alongside him: "Oh hey Carla: was Angel okay in the end?" he asked offhand, "Oh she'll be fine..." she smiled. But as her mind wandered back to earlier, and she thought about Eren, Ariana and the scouts, she turned to Tyto with an unreadable expression and asked frankly: "...Listen, Tyto: are you _really_ okay with Ariana joining the Scouts? I mean-, you just don't seem as concerned as I thought you'd be"

"Oh don't worry Carla, I've been worrying about it plenty!" he chuckled, to which she nearly gawked at him: but managed to stop herself as she listened to him continue: "...Ah don't be fooled, I know I come off as laid back, but believe me it's been driving me crazy with worry"

"...It's just-, "She hesitated, "You and I both know what lies beyond those walls: even with Shadow, Midnight and Boar looking after the Scouts at a distance, there's still a chance she-..." she sighed in defeat, "-I'm really sorry, I don't mean to sound like-" "No no It's okay, really" Tyto assured her, "I thank you for your concern, but it's alright: me and Freya have already talked about this with Ariana, and although it's not easy, it's a choice we're probably going to have to accept" "But how? _How on earth_ can you accept it knowing what's likely to entail?"

Sensing the fear in her voice, Tyto sighed as he confessed, "... To be honest Carla? I _don't_ accept it: the thought of my only daughter heading outside that gate to face the regular titans scares me; I know what awaits her if she becomes a scout and it's been giving me a number of sleepless nights. But? For all the fear and dread it fills me with, it also fills me with pride: to know my child can summon such courage, and to be so good at what she does already, as both a hunter _and_ an ODM gear user. I cannot deny she would make a fine scout. And that ultimately, she would be putting her life on the line for all humanity, to try and help us understand what's out there, and to find a way to figure out what the all titans are and why they're here" Tyto gazed at her, "...There comes a time we all must be ready to let our children go: to let them fly the nest and know what to do to stay alive: of course there's always going to be doubts: what isn't there to worry about? Wondering if you've done enough? If you did all the right things? And if they know you love them no matter what. If Ariana joins the scouts I won't be pleased about it, she knows this and has accepted that is how I feel about the subject. But at the same time, it's _her_ life; she was born free into this world, with all the possibilities open to her to be anything she wants: it would be shameful of me to deny her that for the sake of my own feelings. As it would be shameful for any parent, to hold their children back for the sake of their own personal reasons; our children's lives may be our responsibility but their futures are not ours to claim...At least? That's what _I_ believe" he sighed.

"...I see..." Carla gazed ahead of her, watching Ariana as she and Rowan argued about something: "...I confess: the whole thing makes me worried for Eren"

"You think he might want to join the scouts too?" Tyto asked offhand: knowing what he knew, part of him felt bad for not telling Carla the truth of what he overheard Eren say. "Goodness I hope not," she huffed, "I don't _know what I'd do_ if he came to me asking to go to the conscription office the day after his twelfth birthday: or worse, if he were to run away and sign up without telling me..." she worried; Tyto now felt really bad, but Carla let out a sigh of vexation as she glanced at him and asked: "Tyto, I don't know what to do? Ever since the storm four years ago I've been _terrified_ of the thought of leaving him alone: thinking I'd drowned scared him so badly, and he wouldn't leave my sides for months after that day. Now _I'm_ the one terrified of losing him, and I don't know what I'll do with myself when he _does_ finally have to leave home...How do you find the courage to be able to let go like that?"

"...I don't know?" he sighed honestly, "All I do know is, that one day my children will have their own lives to live, and I'll be happy for all of them regardless of where life takes them; you said it yourself, you don't need to be born special to able to do great things. After all, _are we all_ not born free to this world?" he glanced at her with a wise smile. To which Carla gazed at him in surprise, before sheepishly smiling, "...Yes, we are" she admitted. Placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder, Tyto chuckled and told her: "Don't worry: you'll do _fine_ when the time comes, and I'm sure whatever Eren decides to become, he'll be great-, whatever. But for now, just savour these years of his childhood while you can still keep a leash on him, because when he reaches his teens, it's all gonna go downhill from there" "Oh goodness, that's going to be fun" she facepalmed, unable to stop smiling.

The rest of the journey back to Shiganshina soon flew by, and when they reached their street, the sun was already starting to dip beneath wall Maria, "Would you like a hand getting the baskets in?" Carla offered Rosemary, "Oh would you Carla? That would be such a help: take them around the service entrance and put them by the door, we'll sort them out later" Rosemary replied as she dismounted the cart and went to fetch a basket. As Carla and everyone else took a basket and made their way around the side of the Inn to the kitchen, the door suddenly burst open as Bemadette stormed out: she stopped in her tracks as she saw everyone standing there, gazing at her in mix of confusion and surprise, but it didn't take them long to realize she'd been crying, and was clearly very distraught. "Bemadette? Are you okay sweetie?" Mabel asked worryingly.

But Bemadette said nothing as she scowled bitterly, and stormed off as a fresh wave of tears ran down her cheeks, striding off out into the street and up the road. Suddenly, Derek appeared at the door looking a bit flustered: "Which way did Bemadette go?!" he panicked, "Uh? Up the hill?" Mabel replied offhand, "Derek what's- "Sorry Mabel I'll explain later!" Derek hurried as he ran off in the same direction Bemadette went. "What the hell?" Gale frowned as Bren then appeared at the door looking equally worried, "Bren darling, what's going on?" Mabel asked in concern: Bren drew in breath to speak when Bemadette's three younger brothers appeared at the door, gazing up at everyone in bemusement: "Oh uh, you guys go back inside, I gotta talk with the grown-ups" Bren smiled nervously, "Whatever you gotta say to them, you can say in front of us" Brendis stated boldly. "Now boys, it's rude to listen in on other people's conversations," Lucile stated as she came up behind them, "Why don't you head back upstairs and help pops and Pascal set up your beds, hm?" she suggested. "HOP TO IT BRATS!" Miriam barked down from up the stairs, "-Unless you want to be sleeping on the stone floor of the cellar tonight, I suggest you get back up here and give us a hand!"

The three boys huffed in annoyance as they reluctantly trudged back inside and back up the stairs, "You ain't the boss of us old lady!" Brendis shouted back, "And for _that_ , you can have bread and water tonight!" she called back sternly. "Lucile, what're _they_ doing here?" Gale exclaimed, "and what's up with Bemadette?" Belle demanded. "Uh?- " Lucile hesitated awkwardly; "There's no easy way to put this..." she dithered. Sighing in frustration, Bren explained: "Bemadette's mother skipped town last night"

"WHAT!" the kids exclaimed in surprise: " _She ran away?_ And left the boys here?" Rosemary blinked in surprise: "Not exactly," Bren elaborated: "Me and Lucile went with Bemadette to her mum's place a little after you guys left, to drop off those groceries we promised her? We got there and the door was locked, fortunately the landlord had a spare key: but he didn't know the boys had been locked in there since last night. She'd left food out for them but, well? They weren't able to go to the latrine outside"

"Wha-..." Mabel was stunned, "Are you _sure_ she ran away? She didn't just spend the night at a 'client's' place?" "...No, she's gone" Bren sighed in regret, "The boys couldn't tell us much, she just told them she was stepping out for a while and that they weren't to let anyone know they were there until their big sister came calling: but they said she was carrying a large bag full of her clothes, and she took all the money she had...that, _and_ she left a note for Bemadette..." he handed Mabel a small creased piece of paper. Putting her basket down and taking the note, Mabel read through it with Rosemary, Carla, Tyto and West peering over her shoulders, trying to read it too. When she finally reached the signature at the bottom, her eyes reflected her shock and dismay, and the outrage for the woman's audacity: "...My god, _she actually_ _wrote this_?!" Mabel exclaimed angrily, to which all Bren could do was nod: "Gustav, Pascal and Miriam are putting up some makeshift beds in Bemadette's room: until we can sort out a more permanent living arrangement that doesn't have to resort to us putting them in the cellar" Lucile sighed.

Glaring down at the note, and then placing it atop the basket of plums West was holding, Mabel let out a sharp huff as she let her anger simmer: "I'll be upstairs if anyone needs me!" she grumbled, striding into the kitchen and heading for the stairs; "I don't think Miriam's sorted out the linen yet" Bren commented. Putting their baskets down and going over the note, everyone was both shocked and appealed at what had been written: " _Geez_ , I knew the woman wasn't natural mother material, but that's just _cold_ " West handed the note to Carla, " _Shame on her_ " she frowned, "How the hell could she do that to her own children?! And for what? _a job working as a maid_?!" she fumed as she handed the note back to West "A maid?" Poppy blinked in surprise, "According to this, Bemadette's mum claimed she met a guy from wall Rose who offered her the chance to 'move up in the world': said he's going to have her work for him in his mansion, or some fancy place like that. Said the pay's real good, the only condition was she had to leave her kids behind or no dice" West waved the note in one hand. "... _Geez_..." Ash scowled, "You think you know someone" "Will Bemadette be-... you know? 'Okay'?" Lucy asked in concern, trying not to come off as inconsiderate; Bren and Lucile glanced at one another, unsure how to answer that. As everyone gazed at one another in mix of dismay, confusion and outrage, Fox and Shyla simply glanced at one another with a knowing, understanding look.

"Lucius? Lucy?" a young woman in a red dress and white apron came walking down the alleyway: "Oh, hi Gilda, what's up?" Lucy asked, recognizing her as their family's cook. "I saw you coming up the street and thought I'd come to inform you: your parents received an urgent summons from one of their clients up in Stohess; they left not long after you went out into the forest, and won't be back until sometime next week". Lucy and Lucius gazed at one another, seemingly unfazed as Lucius simply replied, "Okay, thanks for letting us know" "Did they leave any messages for us before they left?" Lucy asked optimistically. Gilda simply sighed in regret: "I'm sorry, but no"; looking a tad dejected, Lucy let her gaze drop as she replied quietly, "Oh...Okay"

"GILDA!-" a much older fatter woman barked as she came strolling down the alleyway, wearing a black dress and a white apron with her grey hair tied up in a neat bun: she looked like the wicked witch out of some fairytale, as her face was something only a mother could love; the sight of the big black hairy mole on her right cheek made West want to cringe as she glared at him unfavorably, like a cat would eye a dog. She didn't have much of a friendly expression for the rest of the group either: "I thought I told you not to dither: now bring the children back to the house and run them a bath: you know I _cannot stand_ them trailing mud and twigs over the rugs" she grumbled in a sour tone: her punctuation was prim and proper, she'd obviously been in service for many a year. "Uh- Yes Mrs Muller," Gilda courteously nodded, "Come on, time to go home children" she glanced at the twins with a sympathetic look, to which they glanced back at everyone and waved: "See you tomorrow guys". The children all voiced their good-nights as they watched the twins disappear with Gilda around the corner.

Mrs Muller then approached Tyto and handed him an envelope: "What's this?" He took the envelope and frowned at it in bemusement: "You're payment for last three deliveries, and an additional 'compensation fee' for your termination of employment" she stated flatly. "Termination of employment?!" Tyto exclaimed, everyone stared at the woman in shock: "The master wishes to relay his gratitude for these past six years of dedicated work from you and your family: however, with the master and his family relocating to Mitras next week, he will no longer be able to continue your terms of employment; ergo, you are being 'let go'" she explained, with not an ounce of sympathy in her voice. "Lucy and Lucius are moving away?! TO THE CAPITOL?!" Belle exclaimed. "And Cooper couldn't tell me this in person _because?_ " Tyto demanded. "With the master's company now recognized among many within wall Sina's elite, he is expected to conduct himself accordingly, and to not be seen mingling with the *ahem* 'less educated' folk" she stated in a stern yet flat tone. "Wait a minute! _What about us?!_ The Black Stallion's been buying Mr Cooper's casks for _years!_ Do we still have business with him?!" Rosemary exclaimed in dismay: "Oh yes, mustn't forget you" the old woman droned as she reached into her pocket and produced another envelope, handing it to Rosemary: "A letter of apology, along with the receipt for the last purchase. With the master now catering for the more refined establishments of wall Sina, he cannot be seen to be doing business with such 'unkempt' establishments such as _this_ ," she gestured to the Inn as she turned to leave: "Oh, and if you wish to take up this matter with the master, I've been instructed to inform you that any further correspondence will _not_ be relayed by myself _or_ Miss Gilda. The master has made it clear your combined services are no longer required, and as such, he will have nothing further to do with either you" she stated coldly as she walked out the alleyway, leaving everyone to pick their jaws up off the ground.

"Wait a sec!" Ariana shouted, "-Do Lucy and Lucius know?! Do they know their moving to the capitol?!"

"They will be informed in due course," Mrs Muller stated, before glaring at everyone sharply, "-And I expect _all of you_ to hold your pertinent tongues and not utter a word of this to either of them! _They are no longer your friends_ : and frankly? Why on this good earth they chose to associate with such _disdainful_ and _unworthy_ gutter-rats such as yourselves is beyond me"

"Now wait just a minute!-" Evrard exclaimed angrily, but Mrs Muller didn't give him the chance as she strode away and disappeared around the corner. "...Yeah, like that's gonna happen" Rowan frowned under his breath. "Come on guys, we got work to do" Ash sighed; the other kids all caught his drift, placing their baskets down by the door and following him and his siblings as they left the alleyway for their home. "Don't you kids go planning anything stupid now!" Evrard called after them. Gazing down at the envelope, Tyto facepalmed: " _What the hell_ am I going to tell Freya?" "Eh you can think about it over a quick brandy" West sighed as he stepped into the kitchen, "Come on, I'll get the glasses" he beckoned them to follow him, deciding some liquid courage might help, the four fathers stepped inside and headed through to the bar. Glancing down at the envelope in her hand, Rosemary sighed bitterly: "Well? I better go and break the news to Miriam..." she glanced over at Carla, "Oh Carla darling, is Grisha home early tonight? Only, I have feeling Mrs Muller will be in need of his services after Miriam's 'had a word' with her... (Again)"

"Um? I think he's working until seven tonight?" Carla thought aloud, "Hm, Oh well I'll break the news after seven then; come along Bren, I don't know about you but I could use a brandy myself. Thanks for the help Carla, I'll see you tomorrow darling" Rosemary waved goodbye as she stepped into the kitchen.

Standing there in the alleyway by herself, Carla decided to wander off home, trying to get her head around the two lots of bad news: "Well? That was a good day that went downhill quickly..."

* * *

Sometime during the night:

Deep in the forest beyond the grove of giant trees, Javorin slowly strolled through the forest by himself: unable to sleep, he was deep in contemplation about various things, and listening to the pulse of the world through the roots of the trees. He stopped as he expanded his power outwards like a bat's sonar: getting a feel for all the various lifeforms connected together through the vast network of roots that ran throughout the ground, and even through the grass roots in the open fields and meadows beyond. It was usually a comfort to hear the world at peace, the hours of night bringing the tranquillity of sleep to all, and to sense all the nocturnal animals flitting and scurrying about. Somewhere in the western half of the central valley, he could feel Midnight's dark aura silently drifting over the land, a vast dark shadow moving like a spectre with her striking glowing purple eyes, searching out and consuming any form of evil that tried to run and hide. While back at the Grove, he could feel Herne and Elysia's soft breathing as they slept soundly in their nests.

As he breathed deep the cool night air and gazed up at the many millions of stars across the deep indigo sky: he felt something he'd never felt before; not the vibrations of footsteps, or the heartbeat of any human or animal, or even the aura of an ethereal being. But rather, the 'echo' of a strange force, emanating from somewhere far beyond the range of his powers. Listening carefully and straining his ethereal senses to hone in on the strange anomaly, he couldn't pin down what it was. All around him a great feeling of unease began to come over the forest: the wind stilled until it was silent, the animals and insects could no longer be heard, and all around it felt cold as the spirits began to grow restless in their haunts: their voices all whispering together as they began to grow fearful...

 _Pain_

 _They will come_

 _Death_

 _They will consume and devour_

 _Destruction_

 _The city will fall_

 _Fire_

 _All will suffer_

 _Fear_

 _All will flee_

 _Blood_

 _None will be spared_

 _They are coming_

Resting his hand against the trunk of one of the giant trees, Javorin could feel the tree's energies resonating with unrest; something bad was coming, but what?

'What on earth?' he thought worryingly.

* * *

The following morning, 9: 05am:

As she stepped outside with her laundry basket tucked under one arm, Carla smiled as the sun hit the side of her face, and the soft wind carried the smell of freshly baked bread from the nearby bakery: gazing up into the blue sky, not a cloud could been seen anywhere, and rising over the rooftops, the sounds of the Shiganshina could be heard echoing off the vast walls that penned the city in. Another day in wall Maria: just like the rest.

As she made her way over to the communal washing lines across the street to retrieve her laundry: a gathering of people outside the house next door to her's grabbed her attention. Scanning the faces of the crowd, Carla saw Lawrence and Drake reading a book together by the doorstep while Claude and Drake's mother were talking to some other folks: nearby, she spotted her neighbor Lisa and her little girl Marigold, who was now sixteen months old and still rather wobbly on her feet as she followed her mother around like a duckling. Suddenly noticing Carla, Lisa wandered over to her: "Hey Carla, long time no see!" she greeted cheerfully, "It certainly feels that way" Carla smiled, "I take it this is Phoebe and Clemmy's welcoming party?" she asked offhand: her neighbor had informed her of her sister's latest additions to the family some time ago: but what with the usual day-to-day chores and what-not: the date of the party had somehow skipped Carla's mind. "Uh kind of?" Lisa replied with a sheepish chuckle, "We seemed to have gotten the starting time of the party mixed up: it was supposed to be this afternoon at four o' clock, but somehow everyone got the wrong message that it was at ten this morning. The pig's still on the spit and the Black Stallion doesn't open until lunchtime, and I'm not sure if we've got enough tea to go around?" she fretted. "Oh? Well hang on a sec and I'll go see if Miriam can open up early; give me a minute I'll just get the laundry in first" Carla stated as she hurried, "Thanks Carla! You're a life saver!" Lisa smiled.

Carla quickly fetched her laundry off the washing lines, hurried back to the house to deposit the basket in the kitchen, and then quickly marched down the street to the Inn: remembering yesterday afternoon's drama, Carla hoped at the back of her mind that Miriam would be in a receptive mood; taking in Bemadette's brothers and having to start looking for a new cask maker couldn't have been easy to deal with all in one night, and she hoped she wasn't going to bite her head off. Heading down the side of the Inn to the service entrance and peering into the kitchen, she saw West, Pascal, Rosemary, Lucile, Gale, Poppy and Fox all preparing the breakfasts for the guests: "Oh Carla, back again already?" Rosemary smiled, "Uh yeah, Listen, is it possible Miriam could open the Inn early today? Only, Phoebe and Clemmy's welcoming party showed up too early ahead of time and Lisa and her sister are running low on tea, so? Would it be possible for the Inn to take them off her hands?" she asked anxiously; Miriam suddenly came trudging down the stairs wearing a particularly sour look on her face: she glanced over at Carla, but said nothing as she walked through to the bar: "Tell them it's okay, but they're paying full price for food and drinks! Understand?" she grumbled, "Thanks Miriam!" Carla smiled, "OI! Before you disappear!-" the Willum matriarch stuck her head around the door: "-If you see Tyto and his lot, tell them if they're in need of extra work, come and see me: I might have some additional stuff they can do for me in the livery and forge" "Will do, see you all later" she waved goodbye as she left to return home.

"Hey Lisa! It's sorted!" she smiled at her neighbor as she strode past the gathering, "Thanks!" she smiled, watching as Carla re-enter her home. "Morning mum" Eren yawned as he made his way down the stairs, followed closely behind by Mikasa:"Morning sweetheart" she smiled as she leaned over the planted a good-morning kiss on the top of their heads. "Where'd you go?" he asked offhand as he sat down at the kitchen table rubbing his eyes. "Laundry and the Inn, is your father still upstairs?" she asked as she went to fetch the bread and jams, and fill the kettle with fresh water: "Doctor Jaeger already left: he said he had some stuff to finish up at the hospital before he leaves this afternoon" Mikasa stated: "Leave?" Carla glanced at her in mild surprise, "He said he got a letter from some fellow doctors somewhere up in the interior, something about an outbreak they need him to help out with? Anyway, he's getting a coach up to Wall Sina this afternoon" Eren added vaguely, still too tried to fully pay attention yet. "Wall Sina?" Carla thought aloud, "That means he's going to be gone for at least a week: I better get a start on putting his things together" she added as she placed the bread and jams on the table and handed the children each a butter knife, before setting the kettle on the stove: fortunately, Grisha had already lit the stove sometime this morning..

As she turned to fetch the cups and plates from the shelf, she noticed the basement door at the bottom of the stairs by the kitchen door, and wondered for a brief second what was so secret he had to keep it locked away; of course, it was a thought that had flitted through her mind countless times before, one she never acted on, and one that she had grown so used to that her curiosity had been dulled over time: that, and she knew it was the one secret Grisha would never confide in her. It was a strange thing: a thought becoming a habit over time.

Suddenly, a tap-tap-tap on glass snapped her back to reality: "Angel's here" Mikasa pointed to the window: where sure enough, the white dove that liked to call by regularly was sitting in the window-box, waiting patiently for her morning crumbs. After placing the cups and plates on the table, Carla went to open the window and the dove flew right in, perching on the back of one of the chairs and waited for the children to finish eating their bread. Not long after she first arrived at the Jaeger's home, Mikasa had gotten into the habit of letting Angel into the kitchen whenever Grisha wasn't around: and since Carla enjoyed her company and Eren wasn't bothered either way, the bird's presence had become a welcoming start to the day. As she put the tea leaves in the teapot, a sound coming from the alleyway outside caught Carla's attention: realizing it was coming from above, she went to the window and glanced up at the roof: she caught a fleeting glimpse of Lucy and Lucius roof-hopping their way towards the Grayson's place.

Remembering last night's drama, Carla couldn't help but feel sorry for the Cooper twins: 'I wonder if they've been told of the move yet?' she thought offhand. 'No doubt they'll try to find some way out of it; goodness only knows their friends won't stand for it'

* * *

Meanwhile:

Up on the roof of the Black Stallion, Ariana and her brothers and cousins, plus Belle, Shyla and a sour-looking Bemadette had convened together: as they watched Lucy and Lucius make their way across the densely packed rooftops towards them, they instantly noticed the looks of annoyance and anxiety on their fair faces. As they hopped onto the Inn's roof and made their way over to the chimney stacks, no one had to state the obvious as they sat down with them.

"I take it Mrs Muller told you the news then?" Hazel asked offhand. "Yes" Lucius stated flatly, "And?" Clay worryingly asked, "We leave for Trost on the barge next Friday, from there we're going by coach to Stohess to join our parents, and then on to Mitras" Lucy replied bitterly. "Good, that gives us some time to put something together" Ash nodded. "Well it's a bit of a no-brainer isn't it?" Jaye suggested, "Just run away and hide out somewhere your folks can't find you" "Yeah, we already figured that's our best option: and it's not like we don't have anywhere particular in mind to hide out" Lucius stated, "The grove" Ariana realized, "You think Shadow and the others will be up for it?" "Like they'll have a choice?" Rowan frowned sarcastically, "These are our _friends_ we're talking about: we're not letting them go somewhere they don't want to go; their lives are _here_ , in Shiganshina with us" he stated vehemently: "I _get_ all that, _we all do_ , that's why we're all here isn't it?" Dale sighed, "But you don't think their folks are going to come back and look for them? Or send someone to find them?" he pointed out, "There's a right way and a wrong way to do this, and we _need_ to have something in place so we don't get tangled up by unforeseen shit"

"Do you guys have any ideas? Only, you and Dale are pretty good when it comes to planning stuff out" Clay offered. Thinking about it a moment, Lucy then suggested: "It's unlikely the titans will let us move into one of their root caves if we ask them upfront: so it would be best for us to try find somewhere else to hide out. Since you guys are experts at living wild in the forest, there must be a number of places you know of that offer a dry bed, fresh water, and somewhere to build a fire without being easily spotted?". The Celt children thought about it a moment before a few ideas came to mind: "Well? There's that dray up in the green fells? That's a good few miles from anywhere?" Hawk thought aloud, "And there a few places down in the Eiche valley that might offer some good cover?" Ariana suggested, "Not to mention there's that cave up by the white mere falls? We've used that to camp out a few times before" Clay threw in. "Okay, so we're got some places in mind: the big question is, how can we sneak you guys outta your house and out of the city into the forest, _without_ Shadow and the others spotting us?" Ash pointed out, to which everyone hesitated: "That's gonna be a _real_ problem, those guys know wherever we are in the forest: even when we're downwind _and_ well out of earshot from them they're still able to find us" Ashlyn sighed. "Then how about we make sure they don't hear or sniff you guys out?" Dale suggested, glancing over at the Cooper twins, "How about? On the day of the escape, some of us will go meet the titans up in the grove as usual and keep them busy, while the rest of us take you to your hideout?"

"...That _could_ work," Lucius thought aloud, "But to be doubly sure they don't pick up any trace of us, the hideout would have to be somewhere well away from the eastern forest, like somewhere up in the western woods?" Lucy added: "That's a not a problem, we know a few places up there that'll do well as a hideout" Hawk replied. "Okay, but, we _are_ gonna let Shadow and the others know about this eventually right? I mean, once the Cooper's stop searching and the heat dies down?" Ariana asked worryingly, "You know? We can always ask Pascal if he knows anyone in the criminal underworld who'll hide you guys" Belle suggested; "No, that'll be too complicated, plus: it's unlikely we'll be able to afford it" Ash sighed, "As for Telling Shadow and the others? We'll cross that bridge when we come to it: for now, let's just concentrate on getting you guys away from Muller. We've got until Friday next week so it's not like we need to rush this"

"We'll start putting some provisions together" Lucy stated, "No, not _your_ stuff: if you're going to disappear entirely, you can't take anything that'll lead them to figure out where you might be heading. You let us take care of the hideout and provisions, we got a ton of stuff we keep for camping but don't use: you two just concentrate on giving Muller and Gilda the slip"

"Okay" the twins nodded in unison, "We better get going; Muller thinks we're getting bread rolls: she's keeping us at the house until we leave; doesn't want us getting the smell of 'gutter-rat' on us. So when can we reconvene?" "-KIDS! Get down here and help your mothers!" Evrard shouted up from behind the Grayson house. "We'll come and tell you, for now just act normal, and if anything happens we'll do the usual thing okay?" Ash replied as he and the others got back up to leave. "Alright, see you when we see you guys" Lucius nodded as she and his sister got back up and high-tailed back over the roofs to their family's town house. After hopping back to their own roof and climbing back inside the attic, the kids made their way downstairs to where Bestla, Skadi and Ran were getting ready to head for the market: "Ah good" Bestla sighed with relief, "You can lift those goods into the cart, we'll get the rest of the stuff" she pointed to ten large wooden crates sitting by the front door, "Got enough stuff here mum?" Clay huffed as he picked up a box and carried it out the front door, "Well it's market day and its traders week, so we want to make a good impression on the visitors coming down on the barges" Skadi smiled, "Only the good stuff we've been hoarding all winter will do the job" Ran commented as she checked her basket to make sure she had everything. "Is mum not joining you?" Ariana asked offhand, noticing her mother wasn't present: "Unfortunately no, what with Cooper letting us go she and your father are over with the Willums sorting out additional work hours until they can find a replacement job" Bestla sighed, glancing over at Ariana with a reassuring smile, "Don't worry though, we'll sort something out"

"...Did you know their moving to the capitol in wall Sina?" Rowan frowned as he picked up a crate: "Yes, sadly" Ran sighed in regret as she put on her favorite bracelet, "Cooper can do whatever he damn-well pleases, good riddance to him _and_ his stuck-up wife: It's Lucy and Lucius I feel sorry for" Skadi huffed as she combed her long brunette hair and put on her golden Torc, "Moving to a whole new city is going be hard enough on them, but the wall cult's going to be even worse" Bestla sighed as she put on her favorite bandana. "The wall cult?" Ariana asked offhand, keeping her shock in check along with the other kids, who all glanced at one another in equal surprise. "Yeah, I overheard Gilda talking with one of her friends from the town house next door to theirs earlier this morning. Apparently, the Coopers are enrolling the twins in the cult's 'academy for higher wisdom' (if you can believe such a thing), they think it'll help them to grow up to be 'good and proper', and to 'seize all the advantages life has to offer in Mitras'; honestly? I don't know what's worst? The cult spoon-feeding all their nonsense to the children of the interior, or the Cooper's for thinking the cult's _actually_ going to do them any favors?" Skadi huffed in annoyance. The kids all felt their stomachs drop, but managed to keep their dread hidden from their mothers as they stepped out the door and over to the cart.

"Alright, everything's ready" Bestla smiled as the children joined them outside, "Now, we're going to be gone for most of the day so free to raid the pantry at lunchtime: behave yourselves and don't go looking for mischief, okay?" Bestla grinned as she kissed her son and daughter on the cheeks: "Your fathers are going to be busy so stay out of trouble, and don't cause _too_ much mischief alright?" Skadi kissed Ashlyn and Hawk goodbye before mounting the cart, "And don't go wandering off into the forest today, if you want to entertain yourselves do it in the city; its traders week so go pick out something you like okay?" Ran kissed Josefa and Jaye on the cheeks before climbing up and sitting next to her sister-in-law: "But _not_ the roast meat stand! We got a ton of jerky than needs eating up!" Bestla pointed her finger as she mounted the cart and took the reins: commanding the horse to walk on. "See you later mum!" Clay waved goodbye, "Bye!" the Raven twins called over to them, "Hey mum! If there's a cake stand can we get something?!" Ashlyn shouted as the cart reached the bottom of the street, "Behave yourselves and I'll think about it!" she laughed as she disappeared around the corner.

Looking both ways up and down the street, the kids then hurried back inside: "-No way are they joining the wall cult!" Rowan fumed, "Agreed, let's go down into the basement and assess what we got, while our parents are out we can start putting the provisions together" Dale replied as he kneeled down next to the sideboard in the hallway, and felt behind the back of the wooden paneling for the kay that was always hidden there; finding it and pulling it out, he went to unlock the basement, and hurried down the stairs into the gloom, followed by the others one after the other.

Ariana was the last to enter the basement, but just as she was about to go down the stairs, a familiar scent alerted her that they were about to be caught out: "-It's Uncle Evrard!" She hissed down the stairs, slamming the door shut just as Evrard entered through the front door: "Ariana? What were you doing in the basement?" he frowned in bemusement. "Oh uh?- I wasn't sure if we had enough crystal for the new arrowheads: turns out we do" She lied convincingly, "Ah, well, just be sure to lock the door before you leave: listen, this whole 'job rearranging' is taking longer than I thought; could you do a few chores for me, help lighten today's load?" "Sure, what'd you need?" she turned to face him: the children remained silent as they listened from down in the basement; "A few deliveries over in the next neighborhood: nothing big, only a few groceries the Schultz's, the Kruger's, the Mayer's, the Jung's and the Steins ordered the other day: oh, and Armin's grandfather ordered some vegetables too, so if you can drop those off and pick up the payments that'd be great" he smiled, "Geez uncle Evrard you make it sound like a breeze" Ariana dryly smiled, "Ah the exercise will do you some good: oh, and be sure to take your bow and quiver with you, if Mayer tries to weasel his way out of paying for the groceries again, threaten to shoot him in the knee this time" "Uncle Evrard! You _can't just shoot_ people in the knee for skipping on their payments!" Ariana exclaimed, "Oh pipe down I'm only kidding!" Evrard waved off, "But seriously, if he see's your bow and quiver, he'll know you mean business: Mayer knows you're a crack shot so don't worry okay? Bye!" he smiled as he disappeared out the door, leaving Ariana standing there in the hallway. "Is he gone?" Jaye hissed from the other side of the basement door, "He's gone," Ariana sighed as she creaked the door open a little: "Sorry guys: fill me in when I get back okay?" "Sure thing" Ash nodded.

Ariana left the door ajar as she headed out the back of the house, where she found the small wooden vegetable crates piled up by the door: each with a receipt attached and the fruit and vegetables piled up in each one; fortunately they didn't look heavy so it wasn't going to be backbreaking per se: but the Schultz's, Mayer's and Jung's lived a good ten or so streets over the other side of the hill, and with the cart already being used by her aunts, Ariana would have to deliver each crate individually: "...Thanks uncle Evrard" Ariana glared at the crates as she picked the first one up, double checked the address, and started making her way out to the street.

* * *

Meanwhile, deep in the Marian forest:

" **Not spying on the brats today?"** Midnight smirked as she silently sauntered around Javorin's side, disturbing him out of his meditative state: **"It's the start of trader's week; they'll be indulging their sweet-tooth's and spending their money on things imported down from the interior: they'll be too busy to notice much else"** he smirked up at her, **"...I take it you sensed the same thing I did last night?"** he changed the subject: closing his eyes and continuing to meditate; **"I did..."** She frowned, **"And frankly I don't like it; what did the spirits have to say?" "Not much, they don't know what it is but it's got them worried. It's long gone now, but I still sense its 'imprint' echoing though the roots of the trees..."**

" **So what do you recommend?"** Herne asked offhand as he came around Javorin's other side: Javorin stood up and passed a deep sigh: **"I don't know what it was, but I managed to get a feel for where it was emanating from; somewhere north, probably half way between here and Trost"**

" **Trost?"** Herne blinked in surprise, **"It sounds odd I know, but that's where I could feel it the strongest"** Javorin frowned as he turned and gazed northwards, **"Well? If we fly high enough we can probably be there and back again by mid afternoon"** Midnight suggested, **"The feathered brat's with Carla all day so we don't need to worry about her; we** _ **should**_ **check it out, just to be sure" "Agreed, come"** Javorin nodded as he transformed into his hawk form, and took off up into the air, followed by Midnight and Boar in their raven and sky lark forms; heading northwards, they left the forest behind and followed the Southern Marian River towards Trost, gaining speed as they caught a gusty tailwind.

As he caught the wind beneath his wings and settled into an easy glide, Javorin couldn't shake this feeling that something wasn't right: like he _shouldn't_ be leaving Shiganshina, or the human's alone; putting his worries down to his over-protectiveness, he pushed it to one side and concentrated on the task at hand.

* * *

Later that day:

The hours had steadily ticked by as the hot July sun arched high over the sky, bringing an unseasonably dry heat to the land: sharpening everyone's thirst and forcing many in Shiganshina to seek shade where they could. It had been too hot to work for some, but now as the sun slowly began approaching the top of wall Maria, the worst of the heat had began cooling off and the nice breeze brought some much needed relief to any who had been unlucky enough to get sunburnt.

"Are you sure you can carry that?" Ariana asked Armin worrying, watching him as he struggled to carry the crate of vegetables and turning red in the face as he struggled to catch his breath, "Oh yeah, I got this: not a problem at all!" he wheezed as he steadily followed her down the street. "Uh, Well? The last house is just around the corner so we ain't got much further to go okay?" she assured him, "Ah, great!" he gasped with a relieved smile.

Ariana couldn't help but smile, she knew he was only trying to be chivalrous: ever since she planted that kiss on his cheek last year, Ariana had noticed how Armin would be willing to do things for her, like help her out with her chores and hang out with her when he wasn't busy doing something with Eren and Mikasa. The grown-ups all thought it was adorable, and her cousins had given her endless playful flack for it: though, her brothers were wise enough not to tease her about it, least they'd incur her wrath. But for Ariana and Armin, it didn't really grow into any kind of relationship that would be considered romantic: the kiss had been a one off, and they were happy to leave it at that. But still, Ariana could see it had had an effect on Armin: he was more prone to getting cold feet when he was around her, and he'd blush uncontrollably whenever she came close to him. His grandfather would playfully tease him about it (which, he surprisingly took in his stride), but regardless, he hadn't lost his nerve so much that he didn't enjoy their time together, like now: after delivering his grandfather's groceries, Armin elected to help Ariana with her deliveries, and so for the whole day they walked practically from one end of Shiganshina and back again. The crates weren't heavy at all for Ariana, but for poor Armin whose whole frame had the constitution of a daffodil, it had been a struggle just to carry _one_ crate (and the lightest one at that): but he persevered through it in an attempt to prove he didn't need any help, and Ariana had to give him credit for his persistence. Finally they reached their destination, the last delivery of the day: after knocking on the door, delivering the goods and taking the payment, the two youngsters could start their relatively short walk home.

"So? I hear the Cooper's are moving to the interior?" Armin gasped as he tried to get his breath back, relieved to be rid of that heavy load; "Yeah" Ariana sighed as she gazed down at the cobbled road, "Lucy and Lucius can't be happy about that?" he asked, "Nope, but fortunately we got a plan to help amend that" she smirked, "Oh yeah? What?" he smiled, "Ah it's a secret for now: I'll tell you when the time's right; but don't breathe a word of this to Eren or Mikasa just yet: the fewer people who know about it the better" she glanced at him, "Fair enough" he nodded, "I guess your parents are out of a job now huh?" he thought aloud, "Oh they'll find some other way to bring home the bacon: between them they can do a whole bunch of different things so it's not like their limited to one type of job" she thought aloud. "...I-, also heard about Bemadette's mum; is she okay?" he asked in concern. letting her gaze wander up to the blue sky above, and wondering if Shadow was drifting around nearly, Ariana let out a deep sigh, "... _I hope_ she'll be. She was pretty upset about it last night, and this morning; I don't think her little brothers know what's going on either? Their probably still thinking she's going to come back for them" "Do _you_ think she'll come back?" Armin asked curiously; remembering what she read in the note, Ariana didn't have the heart to tell him the whole truth: "...Part of me _wants_ to believe she'll come back. But from I picked up last night? I don't think she is..." she sighed regretfully, before totally changing the subject: "By the way? I made up my mind I'm going to join the scout" she smiled, glancing sideways at him.

Armin's breath hitched in his chest as he gasped, stopping in his tracks as he stared at her in surprise: "...Seriously? ..." he breathed, completely forgetting his exhaustion. With contemplative smile, Ariana placed her hands in her pockets as she continued walking down the street: "Well? I'd been giving it a lot of thought for a long while now, _and_ talked it over with my parents (which, wasn't easy to say the least)... And the way I see it? Once I graduate basic training, I could either stare up at a wall all day long with the Garrison, or sit around on my ass with the MP's: and frankly, I'd rather be proactive and doing something that's _actually_ going to make a difference to humanity as a whole, and the Scouts pretty much fit the bill for that" she smiled, watching the smile grow across his face, until finally he couldn't keep his excitement in and he punched the air with a yell of delight: "YES! This is great!"

"Yeah well don't get too ahead of yourself, I still have my _own_ reason joining, remember?" She stated, "But essentially, yeah. Oh, and my idiot brothers think I need protecting from the titans so they'll be signing up too, along with Gale, Poppy, Belle, Fox _and_ Shyla: at this rate I'm amazed half the neighborhood won't be marching to the conscription office when we turn twelve" she joked, "Seriously?! So-, we'll all be in it together!" he beamed. "Yep, one big happy family, ain't _that_ gonna be a riot at the training academy!" Ariana ruffled his hair playfully. "This is great news! I gotta find Eren and tell him!" Armin took off running down the street, "-Oh wait! Armin!" Ariana stopped him, "-I saw Eren and Mikasa leaving the inner gate to go fetch firewood earlier... mind you, that had to be at least an hour ago, he might be waiting for you back at your place?" she suggested, "Okay, see you later, I know Eren will be so pleased to hear the good news!" he beamed as he took off for home. Ariana couldn't help but smile: indeed, the idea of training alongside her best friends seemed like the beginning of a great and grand adventure, taking each other by the hand and blazing the trail to a future known; sure it would be a bloody and hard fought one, but as long as they had each other, and kept one another alive, she _knew_ they'd all be okay. As she turned the corner and entered the top of her street, she saw the party at the house next door to the Jaegers home was still going on: many of the guests had moved inside out of the hazy heat with all the windows open to help the cool breeze circulate throughout the house. Further down the road the Black Stallion was busy as ever, and outside the bakery a large cart had come to deliver several sacks of flour.

Turning down the alleyway that lead behind all the houses on her side of the street: Ariana was passing by under the Jaeger's kitchen window, when suddenly a familiar voice sharply snapped her out of her daydreaming "Get that ridiculous thought out your head this instant young man!" Carla scolded harshly, "No son of mine is going to become titan fodder! _Is that clear?!_ " "Stop yelling at me!" Eren shot back, "DON'T YOU DARE- -It's a nightmare Eren" she heard his father interject: "...You have no idea, just _how dangerous_ the outside world really is" he stated in all seriousness. "...Yeah _I get it_ okay? But its gotta be better than living _this_ life!" Eren stated vehemently: "I'm not stupid: I know it's ugly out there, there's death around every corner, but-, _we can't just give up on it!_ Because otherwise this nightmare is _never_ going to end!" he shouted angrily. There was a long pause before Grisha quietly replied, "...I see..." 'What just happened?' Ariana thought offhand, "Excuse me, but I have to get going or I'll be late for the coach" he said as he got up to leave: Carla was still clearly in a fluster as she tried to stop him, "-Wait! Darling at least scold him! For heaven's sake!" she tried to plead. "Scold him? Dear please, think this through. No mere words can hold back a human's natural curiosity" Grisha simply stated as he picked up his bag and headed out the door; silently moving around the side of the house to the front, Ariana watched from around the corner as the doctor stepped out, followed by his family. "Eren" the doctor addressed his son, "Behave yourself while I'm gone, and when I get back I'll let you in on what I've been working on in the basement, agreed?" he stated, reaching into the inner breast pocket of his waistcoat, and pulling out a small golden key that was attached to a long thread of cord. Eren's eyes lit up in delight: "Yes sir! You got it!" he smiled. "I should be back by the end of next week, look after your mother and listen to what she says" he bid them goodbye: leaning in closer to Carla as he planted a kiss on her cheek, "We'll talk when I get back: you'll see what's in the basement too, I promise" Ariana heard him whisper, to which she saw Carla nearly flinch in surprise. The doctor then turned, patting Mikasa on the head before making his way down the street, "Have a good trip!" Eren called after him as he waved goodbye.

Once he was out of earshot, Carla turned back to her son and frowned sternly down at him: "I meant what I said" she stated in a calmer tone, "What?" Eren gazed up at her, "The whole idea is just irresponsible" she added, "Huh?! IRRESPONSIBLE?!" Eren's hackles rose up: "So what? It's more grown up to settle for living behind a stupid wall for the rest of your pointless life?!" he exclaimed angrily before taking off in the direction of Armin's home: "Eren wait!-" Carla tried to stop him but it was no use, he was already gone. Turning to Mikasa, Carla looked her in the eye and pleaded: "Mikasa, listen to me: Eren needs to be protected from himself! _Promise me_ whatever happens I can count on you to have his back!" Mikasa nodded, and took off in the direction Eren went. Breathing a deep sigh of vexation, Carla turned to head back inside, when she spotted Ariana around the corner of the house; Ariana nearly jumped out of her skin, waiting for the inevitable lecture of how rude it was eavesdrop, but to her surprise, Carla merely sighed again: "...Hi Ariana" she forced a smile, "...I uh..." there was no lying about, she knew there and then Ariana must have overheard everything: resigning to defeat, she beckoned her into the house, "Fancy some tea?" "...Uh? Okay?" Ariana nodded as she entered the house and sat down at the kitchen table. Over in the window box, Angel was trying to hide as best she could among the basil and parsley: having just witnessed the dispute as well; from what she could piece together, there was only one thing that it could have been about: "...Eren told you he's joining the scouts huh?" she sighed.

Carla snapped her head in her direction, staring at her in shock, "Wha!- He didn't get the idea from me _I swear!_ He came up with it first about a year ago! I haven't even told him I'm considering joining the scouts!" Ariana panicked. But Carla merely sighed again, and went to pour the hot water into the teapot, adding the leaves and letting it steep as she reached for a couple of cups off the shelf, "... I had no idea, not even an inkling that's what he wants to do with his life" she huffed, "The one thing _I can't stand the idea of_ and he intends to go through with it?" "Well? It's not like he's stupid Mrs Jaeger, he knows what the scouts are all about" Ariana offered nervously, "It's just-, all he wants to do is see the outside world; is that really so bad?" " _It is_ if you got titans to worry about!" Carla snapped. Ariana stared at her in shock, "...Shadow's a titan too Mrs Jaeger. And so are Midnight, Boar and Angel" she simply replied, to which Carla gasped and immediately regretted her choice of words. Gazing over at Angel, she felt horrible: "...I'm so sorry Angel, I didn't mean that I swear I-..." she ran her hand over her face: Angel hopped into the kitchen and gazed up at her curiously; wondering what she was going on about. A long uncomfortable silence hung in the air, before Carla picked up the teapot and poured out two cups, handing one to Ariana. "Thank you" she accepted the cup, and as she took a sip, she noticed the basement door down the stairs.

"... So, he's finally gonna show you guys what's in the basement huh?" Ariana thought aloud, "It would seem so," Carla sighed as she gazed down at the door. "...What do you think he's been hiding down there all this time?" "I don't know, but whatever it is, I just hope it doesn't lead us into any trouble..." she thought aloud as she drank her tea. Feeling the dove pendant against her chest, Carla took it out from under her blouse and gazed down at it with worry: she hadn't a clue what to do about Eren, and now when Grisha returns she _and_ her son were going to be introduced to the secret hidden in the basement? Something about this felt ominous, and she didn't know what to do.

As they both stared at the basement door in deep thought, a loud knock at the front door made them both jump out of their skins, while Angel took off out the window. "-Whoa sorry! I didn't mean to scare you both!" Tyto chuckled as he walked into the kitchen, "The door was wide open so I let myself in" "Oh right, I forgot to close it" Carla suddenly remembered as she slipped the pendent back under her blouse, "Hey dad, I finished up all the deliveries" Ariana told him as she gulped down her tea: "I know: listen, we're going to be popping along to Phoebe and Clemmy's welcoming party in a bit, so mum wants you back home so you can throw something nice on" He thumbed over to their house, Ariana swigged down the last of her tea and got up to follow her father out the door, "Thanks for the tea Mrs Jaeger" she waved good bye: "You coming Carla? Only, Freya found a bottle of her plum brandy tucked away at the back of the pantry, and everyone at the party's eager to try it" Tyto smirked, "Maybe later, I've got to start preparing the kids dinner" she smiled sheepishly, "Tell Freya to save the last pour for me"

"Will do, bye!" Tyto chuckled as he left the house with his daughter trailing behind: "Are Aunt Ran, Skadi and Bestla back yet?" she asked offhand, "No not yet, and your brothers and cousins are up on the roof waiting for Shadow and the others: they seem to have taken themselves off somewhere" her father replied, glancing up at the sky. "Well that explains why I haven't seen them all day, where do you suppose they've gone?" she thought aloud, "Who knows? When you're able to turn into the wind itself, I suppose anywhere is not beyond your reach?"

Gazing down at Ariana and Tyto from the top of their roof, Elysia gazed up at the sky: 'Where have you guys been all day?' she thought to herself, 'you better not be doing anything fun! Or I swear I'll make it rain on your nests!' she frowned (as much as a dove could frown, and even then it would be difficult to take her seriously on account she looked more adorable than annoyed), before letting go of her frustration, and simply resumed her 'people watching'. But then, a strange feeling began to overcome her: a feeling of unease bordering dread, as she gazed up into the sky she suddenly felt the wind still, until only an unnatural silence hung in the air. Calling on her powers, she reached out to try and find what it was: it was close, and yet she couldn't 'see' or 'hear' where it was coming from; all around her she could feel the auras of all the different people in the vicinity:

Claude and Bryson leaving the book shop and meeting up with Breck on the corner by the Inn: The Willums and their charges plus the Fitzsimmons along with Pascal and West all busy in and around the guesthouse: the party in the house next door to the Grayson's, Carla in her kitchen: Evrard, Falken and Eraman all in their home, their children sat up on the roof while Freya readied herself for the party, just as Tyto and Ariana strode in through the front door; and everyone else in the street who's names escaped her. They were all there, she could even sense Bestla, Skadi and Ran in the marketplace, and Eren, Mikasa and Armin all the way down by the riverside hanging out together; but what was this feeling? And why? Unable to make sense of it but realizing there was something very wrong about it, she flew down to Carla's open window and landed next to her on the sink: "Angel?" Carla blinked in surprise, the dove raised her wing and spelt out,: something isn't right, I think we need to leave right now!: she cooed in a panic.

"What?" Carla gazed down at her in confusion, "What do you mean something isn't ri-

CRRACK-BOOOOM!

All at once the world nearly turned upside down: Carla suddenly felt herself thrown up into the air as the ground beneath her feet shook violently; everything on the shelves was flung off while the whole house creaked and groaned from the sudden shift in its foundations. Tiles fell off the roof, the plaster on the walls cracked and crumbled, the window box fell off the windowsill and smashed on the cobbled alleyway outside, and the table nearly tipped right over as Carla landed on her side. Angel was thrown from the sink and landed on the bottom step next to the basement door: she quickly struggled back up onto her feet, only to be trapped under a large heavy iron cooking pot as it fell off a low-lying shelf next to the basement stairs.

As suddenly as it had erupted, the tremor was over in the same instant: and as Carla steadily picked herself up off the floor, rubbing her sore side, she gazed all around at the devastation inside her home, utterly confused and shocked: "What the-, what just happened?!" she gasped; outside, the sound of panicked yells and confused murmurs began to grow as people up and down the street emerged from their homes, utterly in bewilderment at what just happened. Opening the door and stepping outside, Carla looked all around the street, looking and listening for some kind of explanation.

"Mum?! Dad?! What just happened?!" Ariana panicked as her father pulled her up from the floor of their kitchen and stood her on her feet, "I don't know but-" Tyto didn't have time to finish as Ariana took off up to the attic, "-Ariana wait!"

Bolting up the two flights of stairs and scrambling out onto the roof, Ariana was about to ask everyone if they'd felt that, when she saw Josefa, Jaye, Hazel and Ashlyn struggling to keep a grip on Clay and Hawk and stop them from falling off the roof, while her brothers were holding onto them by the backs of their shirts: "Hang on guys!" she panicked as she rushed over to grab them both by the hand, "We already are!" Clay shouted as he managed to swing his leg up and snag the gutter with his foot, lifting himself up and was quickly followed by Hawk, before both scrambling back up to the chimney stacks with everyone gripping the roof tiles for dear life. "What-, the hell was that?!" Clay exclaimed as he tried to catch his breath, "I don't know, but-" Ariana stopped as she gazed over at the wall; glancing over to where she was looking, the children stared in shock and horror, at what was peering over the top of Wall Maria...

"- _Great Sina!_ What on earth was that?!" Claude exclaimed as Bryson and Breck helped him back up on his feet: "-Whoa guys did you feel that?!" West ran out of the Inn, followed closely behind by Pascal and Miriam, "What _idiot_ just let off a cannon outside my door?!" the old woman fumed as she looked up and down the street, only to be met a growing crowd of very confused townsfolk, who were all staring up at the wall; "What the hell's everybody looking at?" Pascal ran out into the middle of the street to get a better look, but as he laid his eyes on the wall, he too stopped and stared in shock. Wondering what it was: Miriam, West, Bryson, Breck and Claude all ran over to him, only to be met with the same horrifying sight; "...Oh hell..." was all Pascal could say.

"KIDS! What'd you see up there?!" Evrard shouted up to the children on the roof as he, Tyto, Freya, Falken and Eraman all came running out of the house. Hearing Evrard's bellowing voice, Carla gazed up at the Grayson's rooftop and saw all the children staring in the direction off the wall, all with the same shocked expressions on their faces. Running over to the other side of the street to get a look through the narrow gaps between the houses, Carla could see the wall's outer gate: and above it, looming over the top of the wall was a sight that froze her blood, "...A titan!..." she gasped under her breath.

* * *

At the same moment, somewhere above Shiganshina's inner gate:

They had only just returned from their long round-trip, flying over the inner gate when the lightning bolt of golden energy ripped through the sky with a deafening thunderous boom, nearly knocking them right out of the sky.

Javorin, Hecate and Herne gazed down at the wall in sheer astonishment and horror: as they glided on the warm air above the outer gate, the titan gazed out over the city below, but even from hundred meters up in the air the behemoth looked absolutely _gigantic_. It had to have been over sixty meters tall at least; it had no skin or hair anywhere on its entire body, nothing but muscle and ligaments all over with a skinless face that was contorted into a permanent grim snarl, and was emitting red hot steam off its back and shoulders like a geiser. The heat was so intense the gods could feel it practically burning through their feathers, forcing them to fly upwind of the wall, on the city-side of the gate. As they leveled out, they saw behind the giant a whole hoard of titans wandering towards it, as if having followed it, and were now waiting for something to happen.

The gods had been fighting the titans for over five years, and in all that time all the ones they fought and killed were generally all the same, human-like in appearance with certain discrepancies in height, facial features and limb postures. But this? _This_ was something totally different: it had the same chaos magics swarming throughout its physical form and aura, distorted and corrupted, but its raw power was so much more. And the fact all the other titans were swarming around it seemed to indicate that they were drawn to those same energies, like worker bees to their queen bee.

" **What-...What is that thing?!"** Herne gawked.

" **...I don't know"** was all Javorin could reply.

Then, they watched as the behemoth steadily leaned forward, gripping two of the wall's bulkheads with both hands while it's right foot swung back and up: **"IT'S GOING TO KICK OPEN THE GATE!"** Hecate suddenly realized as she saw where it was standing...

* * *

Down on the ground

Having laid eyes on the titan and realizing the danger that was now imminent, Carla's mind flipped into action as she went into protective mother mode; she _had_ to find Eren and Mikasa and reach the inner gate before the monster could get into Shiganshina somehow. Running back inside the house, Carla started looking all around the ruined kitchen: "Angel! Angel where are you?!" she frantically cried: a pathetic twittering cry emanated from down the basement stairs, where Carla saw the upside-down cooking pot and white tail feathers sticking out from beneath. "Oh god! Come on Angel we need to get out of here!" She raced down the stairs and threw the pot off Angel, Carla then picked up the dove in her hands, but as she turned on her heels another loud explosion shook the ground and made every building in the street rumble as a sudden shock-wave whistled over the rooftops: followed by a cacophony of more loud thundering booms, like giant rocks and stone striking the earth. Outside, panic suddenly filled the air as people started running and screaming, and as Carla raced up the basement stairs and towards the front door, the whole world suddenly turned upside down again as a deafening explosion went off behind her, and in that moment, everything went black.

"INCOMING!-" Ash shouted as the kids all frantically jumped to the neighbor's roof, right before a great boulder twice the size of their house landed with a deafening roar right behind them: throwing up a blast of air that nearly knocked them off their feet. Amid the screams and cries off all the people in the street below: more boulders thundered down and tore up everything in their path, throwing up dust, debris, and body parts of those unfortunate enough to not get out of the way in time. The children held onto one another tightly, hoping beyond hope that the next bolder would miss them. One more earth-shattering boom signified a particularly gigantic boulder crashing down somewhere behind them, which shook every building in the street and nearly made them loose their grip on the roof tiles. Then, as suddenly as it began the rain of rock and stone stopped: glancing up from out of Ash's arms, Ariana saw the giant titan steadily retreat behind the wall out of sight, and as the huge dust cloud around the outer gate began to blow away, she saw sunlight streaming in through the gate. Her eyes widened in shock, the whole gate and the wall surrounding it was completely gone. But then, several giant humanoid figures moved through the opening, emerging out into the city. Ariana felt her breath hitch in her chest as panic began to well up inside her: "...The titans... _their inside!_..." she gasped.

"What?!" Ash looked up at her, Ariana pointed to the smashed gate where seemingly all at once, several titans began lumbering into Shiganshina, followed by more and more as they streamed in and began to fan out in all directions. The children couldn't believe what they were seeing, until their father's frantic cries snapped them back to reality: "KIDS! KIDS ANSWER ME?!" Tyto shouted at the top of his voice. Sitting up and gazing around, the children were alarmed to see the whole layout of their street had totally changed: the house between theirs and the Jaeger's had been crushed by several large boulders: it was the house where the party had been taking place, as several half-crushed blood-splattered bodies lay motionless in the street around the wreckage. Several houses on the other side of the street including Lisa's were either half demolished or completely leveled, the bakery was half demolished with a huge white cloud of flour dust billowing out of the ruins: and one giant boulder nearly twice the size of a church tower had landed right across the street, effectively blocking off the whole road while several other large boulders had come down and demolished the houses on either side. The children were about to race back to their home, when they saw the whole back end of the building was demolished by a boulder that loomed several meters over the roof: the attic was totally gone, and with it their only way down blocked off; but right next door, the Black Stallion was in an even worst shape.

"Are you okay?" West asked frantically as he helped Miriam up off the ground: the woman was about to tell him to let her go, when she looked up and saw the state of her home; a giant bolder about a third larger than the whole building had come down and smashed the entire wing where the dining room and guesthouse use to be: the force of the impact had blown out the bar, leaving that whole section of the building half in ruins while the rear end where the kitchen, office and everyone's own personal rooms were located, was still largely intact. For the first time in her long years, Miriam was stunned in silence: there were no words to describe the sheer horror and shock of this; suddenly remembering her family was inside, Miriam was about to charge into the debris and start tossing the rubble aside when Pascal, West, Claude, Breck and Bryson beat her to it. Suddenly, part of the debris blew out of where the alleyway used to be, and there stood Gustav, Bren and Bemadette, each with a sledge hammer in hand, smashing the larger debris aside to clear a path. "HOLY SHIT ARE YOU GUYS OKAY?!" Bren called over to them, trying to raise his voice above the din of the screaming stampeding crowds rushing down the street, all heading towards the inner gate.

"We're okay but what about- "-AUNT MIRIAM!" Gale screamed down from the attic window: "GALE!" Miriam shouted frantically: "ARE YOU ALRIGHT GIRL?!" "We're okay but we're trapped up here, the stairs are gone! And I think Granny's down in the cellar with Aunt Lucile the boys, Shyla and Fox!" she shouted back, "Hold on! We'll try and get you down!" Breck called up. "Please hurry! The floor's creaking!" Poppy called out from somewhere within the attic. As he stepped back to analyze the boulder and the debris, Bryson suddenly felt that familiar chill go up his spine as he caught movement out the corner of his eye from down the far end of the main street; there, three seven meter class titans were lumbering around, grabbing any human unlucky enough to get in their way, and lazily devouring them. As he watched the carnage unfold, it suddenly clicked in his head what that second explosion was: "...That titan...It-, it _kicked in the gate_ ; kicked it, and let all the others in" he muttered under his breath: glancing back up the street and seeing everyone was still scrambling to get out and away, he realized this whole place was about to become a slaughterhouse. In an instant, his old Scout instincts kicked in, and he knew what he had to do. "Do what you can to get everyone out! I'll be as quick as I can!" he shouted as he took off for his home. "Bryson what-" his brother chased after him, but when he saw the titans heading this way, he suddenly realized just how much danger everyone was in, "EVERYBODY MOVE! THE TITANS ARE COMING THIS WAY!" he shouted at the top of his lungs.

Up on the roof, the children heard Breck's voice: glancing over the rooftops down towards the center of town, sure enough, several large titans were wandering around the base of the hill their street was situated on: "HEY!" Tyto called up to the children, "Are you all okay?!" "We're fine dad but the titans are heading this way!" Ash yelled, "Hang on!-" Freya ran out of the house with all the children's bows and quivers in hand, and tossed them up to the roof: "-Use theses! If any titans come this way blind them with a double shot to the eyes! They can't eat what they can't see!" she shouted, "Sure mum!" Ash called back as he handed everyone their bows and quivers. "We're going to help Miriam and the others so keep an eye on us and help out where you can!" Tyto ordered. "You got it!" Rowan called back as he and the others took off across the half demolished roof to the Inn. Glancing up the street, and seeing the Jaeger's house was gone, Ariana gasped in horror: "DAD! What about Mrs Jaeger?!" she shouted, but her father, mother and uncles were already half-way down the street when Evrard suddenly stopped and turned to rush back into the house, "Evrard! What're you doing?!" Tyto shouted as he ran after him, but as he reached the door Evrard emerged with a large hunting spear, the one he used for hunting colossus boars and giant bears that had an exceptionally large broad blade: "Bestla, Skadi and Ran are still down in the marketplace! _I've got to go find them!_ " Evrard gripped the spear in both hands and ran off down the street, "-Evrard don't be stupid!" Tyto tried to chase after him, but when he rounded the boulder that crushed the Inn, he saw he was gone, and the titans had been joined by several more.

As she listened to the city screaming in fear, and the smell of blood growing thicker by the second, Ariana gazed up to the sky as tears streamed down her face, and started sob: "...Shadow? ...Shadow, _where are you guys?!_ "

* * *

As they watched the carnage unfold below them, fear and death was growing with every titan that entered through the breach, and as the survivors crowded the inner gate like rats in a rising flood, the situation was made all the worse as the Garrison and MP's struggled to prep the cannons and other defenses while also trying to evacuate everyone as best they could.

" **We need to push them out and seal that breach somehow!"** Javorin frowned, **"COME ON!"** he folded his wings back and dived for the river like a gannet. Hecate and Herne were on his tail as they realized what he intended to do: though they intended to fight, they still had to turn back into their titan forms without freaking the humans out; transforming in midair would certainly turn more than a few heads. As the three birds shot into the water, they transformed back into their original forms and exploded out of the river in a burst of blue, purple and golden light: jogging out of the water and making a beeline for the breach: **"This whole situation is going to shit! Do we at least have** _ **some idea**_ **what we're going to do?!** " Hecate demanded, **"Seal the breach and make sure no more can get in! Then pick off the remaining titans trapped in the town: as long as the inner gate remains intact the humans have a chance to get out!"** Javorin stated, **"What about the kid?! I didn't see her as we came in, did you?!"** Herne suddenly remembered, **"She can wait, right now get your smite-thee faces on and get to work!"** Hecate grunted as her fingers elongated into four meter long bladed claws, and began slicing up every titan in her path as she ran straight for the breach. Javorin and Herne quickly joined the fray as they ploughed into the titans, and began punching, kicking, pounding and smashing their way through the lumbering giants.

Although their movements appeared to be chaotic and savage, there was a level of coordination to their fighting style: every strike was aimed at the weak spots and every evasive move tied into every offensive move. Having lived a number of lifetimes as a soldier or a warrior in general: Javorin was familiar with a number of different martial arts and fighting styles, and as such, his familiarity with these styles showed in the proficiency of his fighting; he moved with fluid grace, practically gliding between each target, and yet striking hard and fast with punches that created miniature shock-waves with every blow. Herne was much more of an animal in his fighting style, he basically charged every titan and let his tusks rip their legs up as he deliberately grazed his head past their sides, whilst also using his giant fists to deliver bone-crushing punches that decapitated the smaller titans in one throw, and grabbing the three and four meter class titans by the neck and ripping their napes out. Hecate however was far more bloody and brutal in her approach to fighting the titans: like Javorin, she too knew a few martial arts that came in handy, but with her giant powerful claws and cold unyielding attitude, she was a fifteen meter tall slaughterhouse on legs, rushing every titan head on and felling them with a single kick that allowed Javorin or Herne to finish them off, or simply throw swipe after swipe; cutting the titans every which way one could imagine. Blood sprayed around her in gushing arches of crimson and scarlet while steam billowed off her claws as she kept her speed up, not stopping even once as she finally arrived at the breach, and began the real slaughter.

Though they had done this many times before, the fact they weren't invisible made them wary as the panicked cries of the citizens and military personnel alike told them their presence had been detected, and no one was ignoring them. **"Hey, just out of curiosity, when we're gone with these guys and seal the breach, what're we gonna do when the military thinks we're gonna start getting hungry?"** Herne called out as he ripped the napes of two five meter class titans clean out of their necks: **"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it, right now just push them back or at least try to slow them down!"** Javorin ordered as he saw more titans coming through the giant hole in the wall.

Glancing up at the hill where he knew Ariana's home was, Javorin felt his heart skip a beat as he saw his familiar little human standing on the roof with her bow and arrow, obviously watching him. **"...Please, Ariana..."** he wished with all his heart, **"Just hang on a little longer!"** He round-house kicked three ten meter titans towards Hecate, who sliced them up with ease as she growled and hissed with delight.

* * *

Wiping the tears from her eyes, Ariana allowed a little reassurance to lift her as she watched her giant best friend fighting the titans like a whole army in one; the sound of his blows echoing all around the walls. Shadow, Midnight and Boar were there at the breach, trying to stop the titan's advance as they fought with everything they had. She'd seen them describe their fighting techniques once or twice, the ones they used when keeping the titans out of the scouts path; but to actually see it in person didn't even begin to describe the incredibility of it, nor the sheer raw power they were putting out in order to fight several titans all at once. It was amazing, even breathtaking: she was almost so lost in watching the scene that she nearly missed her father calling her "ARIANA!"

Snapping back to reality, Ariana rushed over to the roof of the Inn, where Ashlyn and Hawk were helping Gale, Poppy, Belle, Mabel and Derek out onto the roof through the smashed attic window, while the rest of her cousins and brothers had assumed various positions all over the demolished roof and boulder, shooting their arrows and blinding any titan that came to close for comfort. Meanwhile, down on the ground the rest of her family and everyone else was frantically digging the rubble and debris, trying to get down to the cellar: "What the hell took you?!" Rowan barked, "It's Shadow Midnight and Boar!" Ariana pointed to the breach, "Their trying to stop the titans from coming in!"

"Speaking of which! You might want to give us a hand with this lot!" Clay shouted as he fired two arrows into the eyes a nine meter titan that was less than fifteen meters from rounding the boulder. The giant stumbled over backwards as the arrows pierced its eyeballs, knocking down several other titans that were right behind it: but an eleven meter titan took the opportunity to charge for the humans, stepping over its fallen kin as it made a beeline for the Inn. The kids were about to scream in panic when a fast-moving blur whizzed over the back of the titan's neck and hit it hard, the sound of flesh being sliced was heard as blood gushed out of the wound while the nape landed on the ground nearby, and the monster fell over dead. The blur landed on the roof of the building opposite the Inn: it was Bryson, kitted out in his old uniform, complete with his wings of freedom, his ODM gear and leg-brace, and sporting a full set of pairing blades. ('Where did he get those?') Clay thought offhand, but didn't ask as he fired another double shot at another titan coming down the road from the opposite end. "Excellent work children! Keep it up!" Bryson smiled as he took off and flew at the titan with a tight turn, slicing the nape and shooting his lines out to head back towards the corner where the downed titans were starting to get back up on their feet; since they were all down on their hands and knees, killing them was a breeze for the seasoned scout.

" _Geez!_ Look at him go!" Jaye smiled, " _No wonder_ this guy was a legend back in the day!" "You can sing my brother's praises later! Right now keep those titans blinded!" Breck called up to the kids as he shifted a piece of timber out the way: "Rosemary?!" Miriam shouted down into the hole they made, "Miriam?!" Rosemary's panic voice cried out as she reached her arm out through the hole and grabbed her sister's hand tightly: "Oh God Miriam! What happened?! The whole building sounded like it collapsed on top of us!" "Hang on we'll get you out first! Just stand back!" Gustav called down as he took his sledge hammer and started pounding the stone with Bemadette and Bren following suit while everyone cleared the rubble out the way between each strike.

"Okay come on! Our roof's still mostly in one piece!" Hawk told Mabel and Derek as he led them across the roof with Ariana and Ashlyn helping them to make the jump with Gale, Poppy and Belle bringing up the rear. "How the hell do we get down without the attic?" Ashlyn panicked: glancing around, Ariana noticed how the boulders that crushed their neighbor's house were all leaning towards them, with only a few meter's gap between the rocks and them: "We can jump across to the boulders and climb down the other side: the street's blocked off so we don't have to worry about the titans coming at us from that end" Ariana pointed to the boulders blocking the road, "Okay, come on!" Hawk led the way as he jumped the gap, and started climbing down, followed the others. As she jumped onto the boulders, Ariana saw down the narrow gap between the rocks and her house a strange red mass with the thick scent of blood wafting up: she suddenly realized it was a pile of corpses mashed up together: so disfigured by the impact and torn apart that hardly anything was recognizable of the people they once were.

"MUUUUM!" Ariana heard Eren's distant cry, craning her head up to look over the boulders and over at the Jaeger house, Ariana gasped when she saw the whole house had been flattened by house-sized bolder, but even more incredibly, Carla lying where the front door used to be, trapped beneath what used to be the eaves, and obviously unconscious. "MRS JAEGER!" "What?!" Hawk called up to her, "Its Mrs Jaeger! I can see her! She trapped beneath the rubble!" Ariana called down to Hawk who by now was halfway down the side of one of the boulders: "Okay! Get down here and we'll go get her!" he shouted up to her, "You guys go help the others, we'll take care of Mrs Jaeger" he told Derek and Mabel, "No way! You're gonna need a hand getting over those rocks!" Derek pointed to the obstruction up ahead, "Okay, but stay close!" Hawk told them as Ariana jumped down and together they all scrambled up over the boulders. But as they reached the top of the pile, their way was blocked by the larger of the rocks forming a near vertical four meter side that was too smooth to climb up. Glancing over at the demolished house on the left hand side, Ariana tried to find a way around it: but as she stepped on the debris it gave way and collapsed, causing a huge hole full of broken wood, glass and stone to open up between her and the Jaeger house; it was too far to jump, and as part of the building continued to collapse, Ariana jumped out the way and missed it in time, only to find that the debris had fallen in such a way that only a gap less than a quarter of a meter wide was the only way she could still see Carla. "It's no use we can't get over it!" Poppy frantically tried to climb up the boulders, but to no avail, and everyone else couldn't find away over them either.

"MUUUM!" they all heard Eren's voice screaming in terror as he ran hell for leather up the street. Rushing to the gap in the debris and trying to squeeze through as best she could, Ariana pushed her small frame through the narrow passage of stone and splintered wood with everything she had, even expelling most of the air in her lungs to try and compress her rib cage down more. "EREN!" She shouted as best she could. "MUM!" Eren screamed: he hadn't heard her. "What's going on?!" Derek demanded: "It's Eren!" Ariana wheezed, "-Quick! Get up and over! _Cover them!_ " she ordered as she watched Eren run around the other side of the house with Mikasa at his side, and as Ariana tried to get through, she watched helplessly as the scene unfolded before her.

* * *

The first thing Carla heard was Eren's hysterical voice screaming for her as she came round, the first thing she saw was Angel's broken body lying on the ground some several meters away, bleeding bright glowing ice blue blood that stained her feathers as she lay motionless on the ground with her wings spread out and her head tilted to one side; "...Angel..." she gasped in horror. Glancing up, she saw Ariana trying to squeeze through a tight gap in the debris of her neighbor's house, obviously trying to reach them as her eyes remained locked on her, filled with panic and desperation: but she was a good twenty meters or so away with a large amount of debris in the way. She was about to call out to her before the sound of her son's cries snapped her attention to him and Mikasa as they came running around the other side of the house.

"MUUUM! MUM!-" Eren cried as he came around in front of her and bent down to grab the eaves lying on top of her back: "-Hold on mum you'll be okay! Quickly Mikasa! Grab that beam and lift it with everything you got!" he ordered as he started to lift, straining every muscle in his legs, back and arms to try and lift the heavy debris while Mikasa did the same: "Eren, Mikasa, you-

Carla's eyes suddenly grew wide with fear as the sound of thundering footfalls could be heard steadily approaching, Eren froze as he looked up, and was horrified to see a nine meter class titan with a broad creepy-looking smile slowly approaching them from the other end of the street at the bottom of the hill. Seeing the titan as well, Ariana began to struggle with everything she had, her head and shoulders finally popped through the other side of the gap, but she was still struggling to get her hips and legs free: "ASHLYN! HAWK! TITAN APPROACHING!" she screamed up the side of the boulder. "Quick! Give me a boost!" Hawk ordered as he ran at the side of the tallest boulder and scrambled up the steep side with all the strength he could muster, Derek, Mabel, Poppy and Ashlyn immediately grabbed his feet and placed them on their shoulders, allowing him to stand up against the side of the rock while Gale and Belle held onto his bow and quiver, waiting as he tried to get a firm hold on the surface and climb up. "EREN! MIKASA! RUN!" Ariana screamed, but again they were so focused on their mother that they didn't hear her. And as the titan slowly closed in, the situation was beginning to grow dire by the second...

"-HURRY UP DAMMIT!" Eren barked as he tried to lift harder: "It's them" Carla realized, "You've got to get out of here!" she ordered, "EREN! Just take Mikasa and run! NOW!" "I WANT TO MORE THAN ANYTHING! BUT FIRST I NEED YOU ON YOUR FEET!" He howled in anguish, his fingers bleeding from all the splinters that were embedding in his hand. For a moment, time slowed as Carla realized they weren't going to be able to get her out in time, at this rate the titan was going to eat all of them; realizing it was now or never, Carla bit back her fear as she uttered: "Sweetie listen to me, _my legs have been crushed_ , even if you could get me out I can't run... There's no time!-" "WHATEVER! I'LL CARRY YOU!-" he shouted at her, his eyes filling with tears. But Carla left no room to argue back as she screamed at him: "-WILL YOU JUST SHUT UP AND LISTEN TO ME FOR ONCE IN YOUR LIFE! One thing I'm asking you, _one thing!_ Mikasa please! Make him!-" Mikasa was crying as much as Eren, but still they continued to try and lift the debris, "You want _all three of us_ to die?!" Carla pleaded. Suddenly, the sound of ODM cables and gas pistons made Carla look up as Hannes swung down and landed in front of them. "Hannes!" she cried out to him, "-Take the children and get them out of here!"

"Come on Carla, that's not the only choice we have here" he smiled, "I'm a trained soldier remember? My specialty's killing titans and saving lives!" Hannes declared as he drew his pairing blades and took off down the street towards the oncoming titan, "Hannes wait! Don't do it please!" Carla frantically cried out: Hannes charged down the street fully sure he could handle this, but as soon as he saw the behemoth standing there staring down at him, he froze in his tracks, and realized in terror that there was no way he could take on that thing. As the man and titan both stared at each other, Hannes quickly turned back and ran the other way, without another word he grabbed Eren and Mikasa by the waists; Eren fought him hard to try and wrestle free, but Hannes kept a firm grip on him as he jumped over some debris and cut down smaller road across the street in an attempt to evade the giant. Knowing her children were now safe, Carla's emotions as finally got the best of her as tears started running down her cheeks: "...Thank you Hannes..." she gazed up at Eren as he continued to scream, cry and yell out for her, _desperately_ hoping beyond all hope that they'd turn around and go back for her: "I LOVE YOU! YOU HEAR ME! SURVIVE NO MATTER WHAT!" She screamed out to him before hitching over in a fit of sobs: hearing the titan as it was now looming over the house. "...Please...I don't want to be alone!" she cried as she kept her eyes on Eren; if this was how she was to die, she would go out with her sons face burned into her memory.

"YOU'RE NOT ALONE!" Ariana screamed, "-WE'RE HERE FOR YOU!" she kept struggling to get to her as the titan bent down and started pulling apart the rubble, finally it pried Carla out and held her by the waist in one hand, bringing her closer to its gaping smiling maw; death was but an inch away now, but still Carla kept her eyes on Eren as Hannes neared the bottom of the road, joining the crowds of panicked people as they continued to flee towards the inner gate.

But as the titan placed her head in its mouth, Carla's mind froze with terror as she saw another titan round the corner of the road, and reached down to grab Eren and Mikasa right out of Hannes arms...

"NNOOOOOOO!"

BOOOOOOM!"

The bakery exploded in a giant fireball that practically swallowed up half the street: flaming debris flew out at high speed in all directions: striking the titan right in the face and arm, forcing it to let go of Carla as it fell flat on its back from the force of the impact. Carla fell at an awkward angle and was impaled on a large piece of wood right through the left shoulder as she hit the side of her house: the rubble she fell onto shifted violently, and she disappeared from sight as she was buried by stone, wood, glass and broken roof tiles. Everyone at the Black Stallion was either knocked over flat on their backs, or nearly got hit by some of the larger pieces of burning wood and stone bricks. The vibration around the boulder pile caused the debris to shift and dislodge, and Ariana managed to wriggle free before another lot came down on her: but as she struggled to climb back the way she came, Ashlyn's screaming immediately told her something bad had just happened. Climbing out and over to where Ashlyn was crying her eyes out, Ariana took one look at the semi-conscious Hawk, and was horrified to see practically the whole right side of his face was a bloody burnt indistinguishable mess, with blood oozing down his neck and chest as he gasped for breath like a dying fish. "GO GET BRECK RIGHT NOW!" Ashlyn screamed as she sobbed uncontrollably into Mabel's shoulder while Gale and her sisters, also now crying, worked to try and stop the bleeding as best they could, while Derek took off down the road towards the Inn.

"Is everyone okay? Is anyone hurt?!" Breck checked everyone over as they helped each other up, and then helped Bren, Brendis and Brenden out of the hole in the cellar, before helping Rosemary and Lucile out. "I just heard Ashlyn screaming!" Falken panicked, " _Where're my children?!_ " "-BRECK!" Derek called hysterically as he ran up to the group "Derek?! What's wrong?!""-It's Hawk! He's had half his face blown off! _You've got to do something now!_ " he pointed back the way he came. "HAWK?" Falken panicked as he took off after the doctor, as Derek led the way up the street to where he left Mabel with the girls. "-HAWK! Oh my god! What happened?!" Falken dropped to his knees beside him, cradling him in his arms while Belle and Gale kept their bloodied hands over the bleeding. Breck took one look at him, he'd seen these kinds of injuries before, and knew the clock was ticking against him. "...I can't treat this wound conventionally, he'll be dead in six minutes" he blurted out, "-There's only one thing that can save him-" and without another word he took off down the street: forcing his legs to run as fast as they could carry him back to his house. He burst in through the door and headed straight for the basement, grabbing as many of the test-tubes of healing elixir as he could carry, before sprinting all the way back to Hawk, and immediately got to work uncorking one of the tubes, and gently dripping the elixir into the wound. Everyone watched in stunned silence as the exposed bloody tissues glowed blue while they steadily began to heal: "its working!" Falken smiled with relief, "Thank god it's really working!"

Another loud explosion forced everyone to cover their heads as part of a burning house came crashing down on the other side of the boulders: they'd been so focused on Hawk that they failed to realize the whole side of the street where the baker was situated was now ablaze, and the wind was pushing the inferno in the direction of the Inn; suddenly, Tyto, Eraman and Gustav came running up the street towards them. "This fire's gonna be on us any minute! We need to get out of here!" Gustav barked. "Hawk's still in danger! If I don't complete this he might die!" Breck shouted back, not breaking from his concentration as he continued to apply the elixir. "We can't outrun the flames and the titans are advancing on the hill!" Bryson shouted down from a nearby rooftop, "Listen! You need to either get to the river, or down beneath the fire, neither the flame's nor the smoke will get you if you stay below it!" he instructed, "How're you for gas and blades?!"Gustav called up, "Halfway through the tanks and down to my last two pairs!" Bryson called back, "There're more titans coming this way! I'll come find you when I can!" he added before flying away. Suddenly, the rest of the children came jumping off one of the boulders near their rooftop, and rushed over to where Hawk was laying between Breck, his father and his sister: "-HOLY SHIT! What happened to Hawk?!" Rowan gasped in shock: "The explosion got him" Belle gazed up at him, "What're you kids doing down here?!" Falken gasped, "The roof's starting to catch fire! We'll be burned alive if we stay up there! We need to get out of here right now!" "WE CAN'T LEAVE! The titan's will spot us if we do and there're too many of us to keep safe all at once!" Pascal stated as he ran up them.

Glancing back over at his home, Tyto frowned, "Then we make for the basement of our house" he stated, "Falken, help Breck get Hawk down there, the rest of you head on down and help the doctor, I'll go back and fetch the others, then we'll-" Tyto stopped when he saw Ariana climbing back up the boulders onto the rooftop. Burning embers wafted past her on the wind as she stood on the roof, scanning the cityscape for Shadow and his kin.

Most of the people had managed to get out through the inner gate by now, and only the Garrison troops remained as they started to fire their cannons at any titans that wandered too close. Near the breach at the opposite end of the city, there was an enormous cloud of steam rising up from the many disintegrating titan carcasses that Shadow, Midnight and Boar had compiled. Amid the dozens of titan heads and shoulders standing out over the rooftops, Ariana soon spotted the only one with black markings on it, as he and Midnight ran towards the military depot in the center of town.

* * *

As they cleared the carcass piles and got upwind so as to fight without getting hot steam in their faces: Javorin, Hecate and Herne stood near the deserted military depot. Gazing back down the road at the steam cloud, they watched helplessly as more titans tried to get in through the breach, only to trip up on their fallen kin's bodies and bones.

" **THIS IS SHIT! No matter how much we fight them they still keep coming!"** the black and white goddess hissed angrily: **"At this rate the whole city will be overrun in less than an hour!" "Then let's prioritize"** Javorin suggested, **"We go find our little family and get them out. All the other humans are beyond the inner wall by now, the gate should be coming down any second"**

" **Agreed, we should try-**

BOOOM!

The sound of the cannon fire caught Herne's attention, as he spotted the cannonball flying straight at Javorin's chest **"-JAVORIN!"** he leapt up and pushed his brother out of the way, but he wasn't able to move quick enough to save himself as the cannonball struck him dead on in the abdomen: sending him flying backwards several meters and crashing into the cobbled dirt road. **"-HERNE!"** Javorin and Hecate raced to his side, expecting the worst. But instead, Herne didn't have a scratch anywhere on him, except for a scorch-mark on part of his abdominal armor plating where the cannonball had struck him. A loud THUNK! Made them jump as something heavy struck the ground beside him; it was the cannonball, half-flattened on one side, and still red hot. **"You're-** _ **cannon-proof?!**_ **"** Javorin exclaimed in amazement: **"Huh, that's good to know!"** Herne grinned as he got back up on his feet and fists, **"You're not hurt?"** Hecate blinked in amazement, **"No? I mean** _ **I felt it**_ **, but it didn't hurt!"** Herne suddenly realized.

Javorin was about to say something else, when one titan coming through the breach caught his attention: scanning it up and down, he felt his insides drop as he realized this one was _not_ like the other titans. It was fifteen meters tall, and instead of smooth leathery skin, its whole body was covered in armour plating, much like Herne's but thicker and more angular, its hinged jaw creaked open to let out a jet of stream as it cleared the breach and started walking towards them. Hecate and Herne glanced over at the titan, and right away, all three gods knew trouble was about to kick up again. **"...This one looks like he means business"** Herne frowned. **"Agreed, let's take care of this one together: I have a feeling he's not going to be very obliging"** Javorin thought aloud as he stood in the middle of the road to assume a fighting stance.

But to their surprise, the 'armoured' titan stopped and assumed a startingstart position, as if it were about to sprint: the gods wondered what was going on, when suddenly the titan took off running at an unbelievably fast speed: its feet pounding the ground like cannon-fire, causing violent tremors that shook every building to their foundations. The gods stared at it in shock: this wasn't possible, not for something of _that_ size and with _that_ much armour on its body. But unbelievably, it wasn't slowing down as it came straight for them. **"I'll stop him!"** Herne grunted as he charged the titan head on, **"HERNE WAIT!-"** Javorin tried to stop him, but as Herne leapt up and tried to head-butt the titan in the chest: his entire upper body blew apart in an explosion of bone, flesh, and glowing golden blood: his remains tumbling under the titans feet and getting crushed as the titan continued to run, having not lost its momentum at all. **"...He-, he just-"** Hecate gasped in shock, unable to process what she just saw, while Javorin was at a complete loss for words as the titan continued to run towards them. Suddenly, filled with white hot rage, Hecate screeched like a banshee as she charged the titan with her claws fully extended: **"YOU'RE GOING TO PAY FOR TH-**

But to her complete surprise, the titan swung his arm out hard and punched her square in the chest, obliterating everything from the waist up and sending her head flying off her neck as it was turned to pulp: he then grabbed her by the spine and threw her down hard in front of him, crushing her body as he ran over what was left of her.

In that moment, Javorin realized this wasn't just any titan: it was intelligent, sure of itself, it had reacted to Herne and Hecate's attacks with intent and precision. This wasn't just another mindless titan; this was something much more dangerous: and it _had_ to be stopped no matter what.

With a bellowing roar, Shadow charged the titan with everything he had, calling upon the total sum of his physical power as he and the armoured titan collided head on, creating a shock-wave that blasted every building away within a thirty meter radius, and thundered throughout the whole city at a deafening pitch, forcing the remaining humans in the city to cover their ears as the blast front knocked them over backwards and shook every building in the city to its foundations yet again. More thunderous booms came thick and fast as Javorin and the armoured titan traded blows in a fierce close-quarter fight: the initial impact had cracked the titan's chest armour a little, now Javorin was furiously trying to weaken that crack to create a vulnerable soft spot. But the armour was denser than it looked as his knuckles began to bleed and the bones in his hand began to break, while the armoured titan's punches practically hit him with the force of a hurricane: fracturing bones on impact and causing severe internal bleeding.

'This is bad, if I can't break that armour of his, I'm going to-" Javorin's train of thought was suddenly halted as he felt his knuckles become stiff and ridged: continuing his assault, he glanced at his fists between each blow, and saw his knuckles were covered in a strange blue crystal-like substance, that seemed to be cracking the armoured titans armour quiet efficiently; 'What?-...What is this?' he thought in alarm. But as the armoured titan delivered another blow to his side, Javorin's mind got back to the fight and forgot about the strange anomaly.

As the fight became more brutal and bloody, Javorin pushed himself to keep fighting, he _had_ to bring this titan down, there was _no way_ he leaving this fight in one piece. The fight continued to last for a few more brutal minutes as the Garrison troops watched in stunted horror: while up on her roof, Ariana, her father and Bryson watched with baited breath; scared, shocked, and horrified at the state Shadow was in as he continued to fight.

The armoured titan punched Javorin hard in the head, so hard in fact that his jaw obliterated on impact, leaving his tongue hanging out of his neck: the god staggered backwards, and the armoured titan took the opportunity to move in for the kill; pounding Javorin all over in rapid succession, blow after blow he felt his strength failing him as glowing blue blood poured out from every wound on his body. He tried to hit back but with blood in his eyes he was blinded, and his hands were now practically bloody stumps from all the pounding against the armour, the strange blue crystal on his knuckles gone. Finally, the armoured titan delivered the killing blow, as he swung his arm right back and delivered a blow that pounded Javorin into the ground, creating a small crater from the force of the impact. With what strength he had left, Javorin turned his head and gazed up at the titan, looking up into his eyes as the titan brought his foot down on his head: rendering the world dark and silent.

The titan then walked away, got back into a startingstart position, and sprinted off again: this time, heading straight for the inner gate. The Garrison troops panicked as they fired their cannons at the monster, but the cannon balls only bounced off the dense armour as the titan continued to build up its momentum. Until finally, it crashed straight through the wall with a thundering boom, decimating everything in its path as more rocks and boulders flew out of the other side: and more screams could be heard echoing through the hole in the wall.

* * *

Ariana, Tyto and Bryson stared at the second breach in silent horror as the regular titans began advancing towards it; gazing down at his gas tanks, Bryson knew he didn't have enough gas left to go and fight them, and he only had one pair of blades left. As tears streamed down her face, Ariana began to sob uncontrollably as she watched the area where she saw Shadow had fallen: "...Shadow...is he-...he can't be-..."

A loud crash forced Tyto and Bryson to turn round, just in time to see the fire well and truly blazing out of control, as the embers drifted towards them and began to spark more fires on the side of their house: "WHAT THE HELL'S TAKING YOU GUYS?! GET DOWN HERE RIGHT NOW!" Freya screamed desperately as she retreated back inside the house. Quickly, Tyto scooped his daughter up in his arms, and together both he and Bryson scaled the roof and boulders like mountain goats, running hell for leather to the front door and diving inside for the basement where everyone else was hunkered down and waiting. Tyto slammed the door shut, and headed down into the darkness.

* * *

Sometime later:

As dusk shrouded the land in a deep shade of Azure, the last light of day lit up the western horizon in a fading yellow glow while the evening star shone clear and bright, waiting for its brothers and sisters to appear and shine with the coming of night. A deathly silence hung over Shiganshina as the wind blew gently northwards, while across the north-western corner of the city the fire continued to burn: in the street, the inferno had died right down as there was practically nothing left for the flames to consume.

Down in Tyto and Freya's basement, everyone sat in silence: waiting patiently as Breck checked Hawk's pulse, and sighed with cautionary relief: "...I think he's over the worst of it, and the elixir's done all it can..." he told his father and sister as he inspected Hawk's healed wounds, "Although, I'm afraid there's nothin I can do about the scars, or his eye," he told them in a regretful tone. Falken held his sleeping son in his arms while Ashlyn stroked his hair, tears pouring down their faces as they glanced up at Breck with thankful looks in their eyes: "I don't care, so long as he's going to be okay" Falken sobbed as Eraman patted him on the back. Everyone was strung out and exhausted: physically _and_ emotionally; after retreating from the fire and waiting nervously, they listened to the house above them burn (which, surprising, hadn't been as long as everyone thought it would be). After about an hour or so, the sound of the raging flames upstairs grew quieter, and the support beams holding the floor up began to grow cooler as the heat let off. But although the fire had blown over, the regular titans were still out there: and so, everyone decided to take Bryson's advice and wait until nightfall to try and escape the city, when the monsters would be inactive. That was at least five hours ago, and the silence was deafening as everyone quietly tried to get their heads around the hell they just survived. The families tried to comfort one another as best they could, holding their children close while the siblings all held onto one another: Bryson was the only one in the whole room not showing any outward emotion, as he gazed down at the tattered remains of his cloak; the wings of freedom crest ripped apart by the teeth of a stray abnormal that nearly got him.

He was well acquainted with this: this kind of grief and loss; he had mourned so many of his brothers-and-sisters-in-arms back in the day, when he still had his wings and he was 'that young gifted soldier' everyone looked up to; 'why couldn't you save them?' 'You're supposed to be the best, why did they die?'. Those old grievances still hurt, as if losing his friends and comrades wasn't bad enough: being the best meant you were expected to succeed every single time. But all the training and sharpened instincts in the world will never guarantee that you'll come out on top every single time: shit happens, plain and simple; that was the one thing no one could ever seem to get their heads around back then. As his brother sat back down next to him, he wiped Hawk's blood off his hands and patted Bryson on the shoulder. "You okay there bro?"He asked tiredly; "...I'll be fine..." he assured him in a monotone, patting his hand as he sat down next to him on the crowded floor, being careful not to bump into his ODM's scabbard boxes: "... How many do you think you got?" he asked offhand, "...Oh..." Bryson sighed, forcing a smile, "I lost count somewhere after twenty seven, I think? I know I still have a little gas left"

"What difference did it make? There's probably a whole new bunch of titans waiting for us out there" Rowan frowned bitterly: "None in the long run, but at least he bought us enough time to save our own and get out of danger" Miriam frowned at the boy, "You'd do well to remember that, boy". Rosemary laid a hand on her sister's shoulder, trying to offer what comfort she can: but as ever, Miriam remained stoic and firm: "Is this _really_ the time for that attitude of yours, _old woman_?" he bit back, "-ROWAN!" his mother sternly barked, making everyone jump, including Rowan as Freya tried to keep her frayed nerves in check: "Now, is _not_ the time to be losing our heads and taking our feelings out on one another: we just survived hell itself, _we're all in the same dire situation here_ , so don't go losing your temper just because you mistook Miriam's stoic attitude for apathy-" "-Freya" Miriam stopped her, "It's nothing, just leave it be"

Carefully walking up the stairs and placing her hand on the thick reinforced door, Ariana glanced back over her shoulder at everyone: "The wood's finally cooled down; I think it might be safe to go outside?" "Outside?" Mabel worried as she and her husband Bren held each other tightly, "But-, is it safe to go out yet?" Bren asked in equal concern, "...I'll go" Bryson stood up and walked up the stairs, "If anyone is to die by the jaws of a titan, it'll be me" he stated, "Ariana, go back to your father" he told her, and the ten year old scooted back down the stairs and hid behind her parents robust frames. Feeling the door up and down, Bryson felt the wood was tepid, but the metal latches and hinges were still quite hot and had melted from the intense heat: and although the door was intact on the basement side, the outside was probably chard all over. Sure enough, as he kicked the door down it fell all to pieces. As the former Scout stepped outside: everyone waited in tense silence as they heard his footsteps walk across the floorboards to the front door with his ODM gear clunking lightly against his thighs; there he stopped, and for a couple of minutes he made no sound, until he slowly stepped outside.

Everyone wondered what the hell he was doing, until suddenly the sound of his gear's gas pistons firing made them jump, followed by the sounds of his pairing blades being drawn: the sound of the blades striking flesh echoed into the house, followed by a loud booming thud that shook the foundations. He soon walked back into the house and reappeared at the door breathing a sigh of relief. "Sorry about that: a five meter class had decided to go to sleep just by the side of the house, but it's taken care of" he assured everyone. "You're sure?!" Claude swallowed hard as he quickly got up on his feet, "I mean, there aren't any 'stragglers' or 'night owl' titans are there?" "Hang on, let me go and check" Bryson walked off as he headed outside again."... Okay, so saying it is safe to venture outside: what're we going to do, and how're we going to do it?" Bren asked worryingly. "We take the provisions from out of here, and we go looking for survivors: if anyone is alive out there we _can't_ leave them to die" Tyto stated vehemently, "I agree, if anyone else managed to escape and their trapped, then they need help; if the titans really are asleep then that gives us an advantage" Eraman agreed, "And what if any of them get woken up?" Pascal raised an eyebrow, "Don't get me wrong: what we survived back there? I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy; but if we spend the whole night combing the city for survivors. Then come dawn we're hardly going to have any time to escape before they all wake up... I say, as regrettable as it is, we take what we can and get out; get up into the forest, find the kids ODM gear, and find somewhere safe to hunker down until we can figure out our next move. That's what you guys are good at, right?" he glanced over at Tyto, who looked at him dubiously. "As much as I don't want to, I have to agree with Pascal on this one" Derek stated in a regretful tone, "Shiganshina is _huge_ and as large as our group is, we _won't_ be able to cover the entire city in one night: plus, we've _got_ to get a head start on the titans before they start wandering through the breach. At least in the forest the giant trees can offer adequate protection if we use the ODM gear to scale the trunks"

Everyone glanced at one another in silence, as they mentally tussled with the moral dilemma at hand: for many, their conscience told them to go out there and look for survivors; it was the right thing to do. But at the same time, Pascal and Derek did have a point: the night wouldn't last forever, and they _needed_ the best possible chance for survival. "Well? How about this?" West suggested, "Why don't we just check _our_ street for survivors? It won't take more than an hour, and we can be out the inner gate and up into the forest while it's still dark"

"But what about mum and dad?!" Clay worried as Hazel held his hand, "And aunt Skadi and Ran? Their still out there somewhere!"

"Hey-" Bryson grabbed everyone's attention at the top of the stairs, "All the titans are asleep, there's no movement anywhere in the city" "For real?" Bemadette asked offhand as her brothers sat with her, "It's getting dark out so we better hurry with that search. It'd be best if we split off into two teams: one of you come with me and we'll go and search the market place for Evrard and the women, the rest of you stay here and begin looking for survivors" "Sounds like a plan" Gustav nodded, "Okay, so who goes with you?" "Well?" Bryson thought about it, "We're going to need to be stealthy and quick; Tyto, will you come with me?" "Sure, let me just get my-

Tyto suddenly realized: "...Where's Ariana?!" Rushing out the door and heading outside, Bryson saw Ariana's small footprints in the soot and ashes, heading down the street. "...Oh no..." he breathed with dread, quickly figuring out where she was most likely to be heading...

* * *

Darkness

That's all Javorin could see as his eyes slowly healed, his ears had just about completed regenerating, and he could hear the deafening silence all around, even the wind was nowhere to be heard as the smell of death filled his nose, and filled his heart with ache. His glowing blue blood had pooled around him in a big wide puddle that seeped into the gaps between the cobblestones: and from it, a thick lush green carpet of grass, flowers and small trees had bloomed.

Being a god was not as simple as one might imagine, especially when immortally makes you notoriously difficult to kill, and death was not as straight forward as it was for the mortal humans. But this time, his healing powers were much slower than usual: he couldn't be sure just how much of his body was healed as he couldn't feel anything for the bitter cold that was prevalent throughout his entire body. Physically he was recovering, but his mind was a very different story. Wanting to see just what his failure had wrought on the people of Shiganshina: Javorin summoned his power, and let his astral form drift up out of his body; hovering above the city, he gazed down at the empty streets and felt his heart ache even more as glowing blue tears streamed down his face. All across the city, practically half the buildings lay in ruins while a huge fire burnt the north-western corner of town, and many dead bodies littered the streets. A number of them were under large boulders and stones; crushed to death when the giant sixty meter titan kicked in the gate, while a goodly number were half eaten. The titans that had swarmed the city were all either lying down or sitting upright, leaning against the still-standing buildings that remained, as they now lacked the sun's energy to remain active. Many of their teeth and maws were still stained with human blood.

He knew death: he knew how to endure it over the long eons he had existed upon this world, and how to say goodbye to all those he knew throughout every lifetime. This _shouldn't_ have been any different: what happened to Shiganshina was terrible, but no more than all the other natural disasters and human atrocities he'd witness long before this time. So why was his heart breaking so badly like this? Why couldn't he let go of this life? He could smell and hear there was nothing left, the humans were all dead, and those that had fled had to run the gauntlet of staying ahead of the titans before they reached the safety of Wall Rose; no doubt, there would be many more fatalities.

What happened back there? Why didn't he think to use his full powers to defeat the armoured titan? Why did he hold back? ...

Oh, of course...

" **...You just couldn't help yourself could you?"** he heard Hecate's bitter voice echo through his tired and weary mind, as her dark astral form drifted up behind him **"...But then, who am** _ **I**_ **to talk?"** she sighed, knowing his failure wasn't his alone.

" **...I held back..."** Javorin flatly admitted, **"...I knew I should've used my full powers to defeat him, but if I did-..."**

" **...Same old lil' bro,"** he heard Herne smile with exhaustion in his voice: his astral form coming up and around to his side in an attempt to offer him some comfort: **"Always thinking of his precious little humans; I know you don't like the idea of collateral damage: most humans wouldn't blame you for thinking like that"**

" **...Why are you both still here? Have death keepers not come for you yet?"** Javorin asked, gazing at them both. **"TCH! Don't be stupid!-"** Midnight reprimanded him, flicking her dark claws over his head: **"** _ **I'm a death goddess myself**_ **remember?! It's going take a lot my than my extended family to convince** _ **me**_ **to finally pass over and join the ancient ones: you two as well, seeing as we've been getting along so nicely these past five years...Besides"** she sighed, **"I just got done talking with 'dear ol' dad'"**

Javorin and Herne both blinked in surprise: **"...You-...spoke to your** _ **father?**_ **"** Javorin asked in surprise.

" **But of course: living things and beings pass over all the time, it's not like I only feel his presence every once in a blue moon: and** _ **believe me**_ **, he and the 'rest of the family' are pretty busy at the moment, as you can imagine..."** she gestured down to the city below, **"...He dropped by briefly to make sure we were healing okay. There's** _ **a reason**_ **he won't allow us to reincarnate this time:** _ **don't ask me what**_ **he wouldn't say anyway; but I think it's safe bet our job here is far from done"** she smirked slyly.

Realizing what she was implying by that: Javorin felt a smile come to his face as he allowed his heart to feel a little tug of hope: **"...Thank you Hecate"**

" **Ah save it for when we're out of this mess: besides, it** _ **might**_ **be an idea to return to our bodies and speed up our healing"** She suggested. Javorin gazed at her in confusion: she pointed down to where his physical body lay motionless in the crater by the depot; suddenly, he saw Ariana's aura glowing through the darkness, running straight for him. **"-Ariana!"** he panicked, immediately shooting back down and re-entering his body, quickly followed by the others.

Ariana stared up at Shadow's lifeless body in amazement; of all the things she was expecting to find, she hadn't expected this. Shadow's marking were glowing their usual vivid blue, and his wounds were healing (albeit slowly). Part of his head and eyes were just about done regenerating, and his ribs healed with a series of loud cracks as they popped back into place, his right leg was nearly done reforming as his toes took shape, and all the cuts, gashes and lacerations were steadily meshing back together to form new skin, complete with the markings in place.

Looking down at the ground as she wiped her eyes, she was taken aback by all the plants that were growing and blooming from out of his blood: she knew his blood was special, from what she remembered of Claude and Breck's scientific research and experiments on the strange substance, but _this_ was incredible. As she slowly approached him, the sound of his breathing grew stronger, and as he let out a few sharp coughs, she jumped back in surprise. Slowly, the giant titan stirred as he tilted his head to one side: his vivid warm welcoming blue eyes laying on her as they fluttered open and he smiled that friendly smile of his, despite having no lips or cheeks. He softly hummed something to the effect of: Hey there...

Knowing what she witnessed earlier, and knowing he was probably dead: Ariana was overcome by emotion as she started crying again, and hitched over forward in a fit of sobs as she ran to her giant friend and snuggled herself into his face, hugging as much of him as she could as she wailed in a mix of heartache, fear, and relief. Shadow brought his hand up to the side of his face, and 'hugged' her back, humming softly, trying to sooth her as she let it all out. **"...Shhhh, it's okay, I'm here now: I'm not going anywhere"** Javorin told her softly, even though she couldn't hear him. "I-, I thought I lost you!" Ariana sobbed as she gazed up into his eyes, "I saw you fighting that titan, and-and when he punched you down, I-I thought he-" she sobbed as a fresh wave of tears came forth, and buried herself back into his face.

"Ariana!" Bryson shouted as he came running round the corner of a half demolished building, followed by Tyto. As they watched the tender scene unfolding, they saw Shadow's wound's healing, and Bryson felt a wave of relief rush through him: "Oh thank god, he regenerated!-" he beamed, before pausing a moment, "... _Shit_ : never thought I'd say _that_ about a titan!" he couldn't help but laugh as he ran up to the titan. "Shadow, you okay?" The titan dipped his head, and held Ariana softly as he rolled over onto his side and slowly sat up. "Whoa, what's this?" Tyto noticed all the plants blooming out of the giant puddle of glowing blue blood. "It's Shadow's blood dad, I guess it does more than just heal cuts huh?" she glanced up at Shadow as she wiped away her tears; "Can you stand up alright?" Tyto asked worryingly. Placing Ariana down by his side, Shadow shakily stood back up and quickly regained his balance "Are you _sure_ you're okay? That was one hell of a fight you put up" Bryson asked seriously. Shadow was about to reply, when he felt a hand on his back: turning around, his heart soared at the sight of Midnight and Boar, who both smiled at him.

Overcome with emotion, Javorin hugged them both: Herne patted him on the back while Hecate grinned and bared it; she wasn't a hugger, but she was family, and _knew_ this was part and part of what came with her 'extended' family.

"I guess that answers your question" Tyto smiled in relief: "Listen up guys, we're okay but we need to find Evrard, he went looking for Bestla, Skadi and Ran back when the titans first came through the breach: think you can help us?" Bryson told them upfront. The titans all looked at one another, and smiled and nodded as they picked them up and carried them in one hand. Gazing across the rooftops back to where her street was, Ariana suddenly spotted the (former) Jaeger house, and suddenly remembered Carla, "Oh my god I nearly forgot!-" she panicked, "-Shadow put me back down!" she patted his hand. He swiftly obliged, setting her down and watching her as she ran off back home: "Ariana! What's wrong?!" her father called after her, but she didn't reply as she ran, making a beeline for the other end of her street.

* * *

It was quiet

It was still

And it was growing dark

As she gazed up through the opening in the rubble, Carla kept her eyes on the evening star: the only light that shone through the darkness; she felt cold, numb, almost formless as she lay motionless, her whole body covered in blood, ashes, dust and soot, making her resemble a statue. The pain from the wood shard impaled though her shoulder had died off, how long ago she didn't remember; time seemed to have melted away and lost all meaning and significance. She didn't feel like her old self, she felt strangely peaceful, as if she'd left all that she knew behind, and was becoming part of something beyond her understanding, beyond what the senses could perceive. If this was death, then it wasn't so bad: certainly not as dark and ominous as it had been made out to be. As she continued to gaze up at the star with her failing sight, something else came into view...

A large pristine white butterfly fluttered down through the opening in the rubble, and landed on her forehead: its wings almost seemed to be glistening with starlight as it flexed them open and closed; then, the darkness of the hole seemed to fall away, and the evening star seemed to shine bigger and brighter, bathing her in silver light. All at once Carla felt life-giving warmth steadily flow through her veins, like pouring hot water into a cold bath, it was a kind of relief she'd never felt before: as if someone or something was pouring the life back into her; but she still felt as if she were suspended in a formless existence, and her body was calling her back. Then, she felt a strange calming presence, as if she wasn't alone...

 _You will see your son again, but first, you have work to do_

Carla gasped in shock as she woke up and blinked up at the sky: the pain in her shoulder returned with a vengeance, and as she looked around at her surroundings, she was suddenly filled with a horrible sense of dread, wondering if anyone knew she was alive and trapped down here.

* * *

As they cautiously emerged from the house and wandered out into the street, the band of survivors stood there gazing at the scene all around, and taking in the deviation. The fire had burnt just about every building in the street: the Celtic family's roof was completely gone, burnt and collapsed into the first floor. By the side of the house, the titan Bryson had slain was disintegrating away, its flesh and soft tissues already gone while its skeleton continued to steam as it turned into pale ash and embers.

Further down the road, the Black Stallion was completely destroyed, rendered into a pile of blackened carbonized rubble and pale grey ashes, with a giant soot-covered boulder sitting in the middle of it. The only thing that hadn't burnt was the black iron horse head that had sat atop the Inn's hanging sign. As the Willum family and Fitzsimmons gazed up at the ruins, they couldn't help but begin to cry; this hadn't just been an Inn and guesthouse, this had been a home, _their home_. This was a place that had been filled with so many good things: the opportunity to live, the chance to escape and build a better life, a place where if you needed help you'd been taken in; happy memories, good friends, laughter, but above all, a family...

And now it was all gone

For the first time in so many years, Miriam choked as tears ran down her face; Rosemary, Lucile and Gustav hugged her tight as tears ran down their faces too, their grand nieces/granddaughters hugged them along with Bemadette and her three brothers, Fox and Shyla. Mabel and Bren hugged each other as Derek held onto his brother by the shoulder, tears running down their faces as they silently gazed upon the remains of their home.

Standing nearby in a complete loss for words, Pascal gazed upon the ruins with a feeling he never thought he'd ever feel; loss. Being what he was and the life he'd led, he wasn't sentimental by nature: he couldn't afford to be. Nothing lasts forever, and there wasn't much point in holding onto material things when they could be lost, broken or stolen. But this? This was different somehow, and for the first time in his life he truly felt sad for losing the only real 'home' he and West had ever known. Of course he never intended to end up in a place like this when he first left the capitol, much less be pressed into working for someone like Miriam and her eclectic family. But if he had to be honest with himself? It wasn't the worst thing that could've happen to them; here, as odd as their circumstances were they somehow grew to fit in with the place: they had found a good reason _not_ to go back the criminal underworld, and they had friends in this place too; people who, to his great surprise, found he could actually come to trust and rely on: and _be_ relied upon in return. Gazing over at West, Pascal saw the look of sadness reflecting in his gaze: he placed his hand on his shoulder and looked him in the eye. Though Pascal didn't let it show on his face, West could tell from the look in his eyes that he was as upset by this as much as he was. And together, both the former thieves stood there, gazing over the ruins, and listening to the family's sobs and cries of lament.

Coming up alongside them, Claude and Breck couldn't think of anything to say, there were no words to describe the grief they were all feeling; glancing across the street, Claude saw the bookshop was still standing: there was some fire damage to the shop floor and wall, but the attic was intact; his laboratory and everything inside had survived, including all the journals he'd worked so hard on over the past three years. But as he stared over at the former Black Stallion, he felt little comfort, knowing his home and all he loved and cared about was still standing, while the Willums and Fitzsimmons had nothing left. Breaking away from her grandmother's side and going over to the rubble, Gale picked up the horse head and dusted the ashes off: it wasn't that large, only about a foot long and was flat so as to be lightweight when mounted atop the hanging sign. She gave it Miriam, who hugged it as if it were the only thing that mattered to her.

As they gazed over at their neighbors, the Celts couldn't help but be overcome with grief for the loss of their neighborhood: and deeply worried for their missing loved ones.

Out the corner of his eye, Hawk saw a large shard of broken glass resting on a stone brick propped up against the wall of a burnt out house: wondering what his face looked like now, he went over to the shard, bent down and saw his reflection: what greeted him made him gasp in horror. The whole right side of his face was badly scarred while a large scar ran right over his left eye, down his cheek and up his forehead: the skin around the right corner of his mouth had been pulled back by the scarification, revealing his teeth and making it look like he was snarling. His right eye was now half pale blue, half brown: an obvious side effect of the healing elixir. As the scent of death wafted up his nose, he quickly looked away and stood back up, ruffling his long brunette hair so that his bangs covered the right side of his face. He was about to rejoin the others, when he heard a piece of debris inside the ruins fall over, followed by a low gravelly groan.

Everyone snapped their heads in the direction of the sound, and gasped in horror as a three meter class titan slowly lumbered out of the rubble. Terrified, Hawk backpedaled as the creature laid its dark beady eyes on him and opened its wide mouth: the creature lunged for him, but Hawk was too fast as he jumped out of the way and the creature landed face first into the rubble of another burnt out building; the family screamed as they took off down the road. But just as the titan slowly got back up on its feet, a loud bellowing roar echoed out of the ruins of another building as Evrard lunged for the titan, impaling it's nape with his hunting spear and wrestling it to the ground. Everyone stopped and watched as the giant Celt furiously grabbed his knife and began trying to slice the nape, but as he kept one hand on the spear, the titan suddenly dislodged itself from the spear and spun around, clamping its jaws down on his left forearm. Evrard howled in agony, and as the family screamed in horror Bryson suddenly shot down from out of the air and sliced the titan's nape: "DAD!" Clay panicked as he and Hazel rushed over to his side, followed by the rest of the family. Having just watched the whole scene from the down the road, the Willums and co rushed over to Evrard as he slumped to his knees, clutching his arm in agony and biting back the pain as best he could.

"Oh God! Evrard don't move!" Breck was at his side in an instant with another test tube of healing elixir at the ready: Clay and Hazel were horrified by their father's appearance; he was covered head to toe in blood, with deep lacerations running from his left cheek, up over the bridge of his nose and up to the right side of his forehead, he had another nasty wound over his left eye, but the eye itself was intact. His arms were covered in more bad cuts and lacerations, and his clothes were badly ripped in places, revealing tooth rakes and large finger-shaped bruises where a titan had obviously grabbed him hard. The bite wound on his arm looked bad as the titans teeth had cut right through the skin: "...It doesn't look like the bone's broken, but we need to stop this bleeding" Breck frowned as he dripped the elixir onto the bloody wound drop by drop, watching it as the fluid worked its magic while at the same time trying to compress his elbow to slow the bleeding.

Gazing down at Evrard, everyone was both relieved to see his was alive, and worried as they realized Bestla, Skadi and Ran weren't with him. The distant look in his eyes told them something was very wrong. Hearing giant soft footfalls behind them, everyone turned to see Shadow, Midnight and Boar coming up the road with Tyto standing on Shadow's palm: after placing the Celt patriarch back down on the ground, the titans all kneeled down, : Sorry we took so long: Shadow spelt out, : Our injuries took far longer to heal than expected:. "You managed to regenerate?" Claude blinked in surprise, "From what Ariana described, we thought you were gone for sure"

Stepping over to Evrard and kneeling down in front of him, Tyto placed both hands on his shoulders and tried to snap him out of his daze: "Evrard? Evrard _talk to me_ , where've you been this whole time?" "Dad, please-" Hazel pleaded desperately, "Where's mum? Why isn't she here?!" "Yeah come on, is our mom okay too?!" Jaye demanded, "Where's our mum uncle Evrard?!" Ashlyn begged. Evrard said nothing as he slowly reached into his pocket, and pulled out his wife's bandana, Skadi's Torc, and Ran's bracelet: all covered in specks of blood. The children and their fathers stared at the objects in silence, unsure what he was getting at, until Evrard's face scrunched up in a look of agony as tears started falling down his cheeks and mixing with his blood, "They-..." he gasped for breath, "...They didn't suffer..." was all he could say.

"NO!" Clay grabbed his father by the shoulders, nearly shoving Tyto out of the way: "-DAD IT'S GOT TO BE A MISTAKE! You can't be-" he suddenly stopped as Shadow gently laid his fingers on his back: the three titans gazed down at him with a deep look of regret in their eyes, as Shadow spelt out: :We found them in the market place, shortly before finding you all up here. I am truly sorry, but Bestla, Skadi and Ran are gone:

Falken, Eraman and their children all felt like they'd been kicked in the stomach as the realization began to sink in: Ashlyn and Hawk began to cry, their father holding them tightly as he too gave into the pain and cried with them, Josefa and Jaye hugged their father tightly, neither of them saying anything as they let the tears flow, and Clay and Hazel held onto one another as their father held them close. Unable to hold back the pain, Tyto allowed his tears to flow, but he did not sob or wail or howl, he simply hugged his wife and sons as they cried too. Everyone else stood and watched in silence as a fresh wave of grief and tears came forth.

* * *

As she opened her eyes, Elysia stared up at the sky and blinked in confusion, 'Night time?' she thought offhand. She didn't remember what had happened at first, but then, suddenly, it all came flooding back to her. The giant titan looming over the wall, the sound of rock and stone exploding and then-

What happened?

She couldn't remember anything after that: getting back up on her legs, the dove looked all around, and squawked with horror at the sight around her: all the houses had been demolished and burnt, the smell of blood, smoke and death was hanging in the air like a suffocating fog as the distant sound of an inferno raged out of control, and down the other end of the street, several large regular titans sat motionless amid the ruins of the neighborhood. But what horrified her the most was the silence: wandering down the cobbled road, she stared in horror at the corpses lying scattered about: either smashed up, half-eaten, or burnt beyond recognition. Everything lovely and beautiful was gone, the people all dead, and nothing good remained.

This wasn't Shiganshina anymore, this was hell, and as she realized this was all real, pale glowing blue tears began to run down her face as she transformed back into her avian titan form.

Suddenly, the sound of rubble shifting made her turn around: she gasped in horror at the sight of the Jaeger house, flattened by a giant bolder and just about burnt to cinders; near the base of the bolder in a particularly large pile of rubble, the sound of rubble being tossed aside made her step around to the other side, where she saw Ariana scraping the blackened debris away, her arms turning black and grey from all the soot and ash as she dug her arms in. Glancing behind her, Ariana gasped in shock: "Angel? Where've you been this whole time?" she exclaimed as the avian titan stepped over to her, "Help me out will you? I found Mrs Jaeger: she's trapped beneath the rubble!" Ariana pointed to the deep hole in the debris: bending over for a closer look, Elysia gasped in horror as she saw Carla lying on her back with a large piece of wood sticking out of her shoulder, also with a large cut over her left eye and lying in a pool of her own blood a few meters down. She gazed up at the titan, and smiled weakly: "...Angel...You survived? ..."

Elysia frantically started clawing at the debris with her digigrade feet, forcing Ariana to move around the other side of the hole as Elysia dug her way down towards her best friend: tears streaming down her face as she began to cry, 'Hold on Carla I'm coming! _Please_ just hang on!' she thought desperately as she dug like crazy. "Hold on Mrs Jaeger! We'll have you out soon enough!" Ariana called down to her as she too continued to dig, until finally they cleared away enough of the rubble that they could reach her. Elysia starred down at Carla's broken body: aghast as her mind began racing with everything from fear to terror, and from anger to heartache; never in all her immortal years had she felt such a pain within her heart, a hard overwhelming ache that ran deep, to see the one person she had come to care for in this state, awaiting death. Overcome with the pain, Elysia's tears ran down her face as she continued to weep, sobbing uncontrollably in a fit of pitiful avian squawks and cries. But before Ariana got up to try and find Breck, she watched as the titan's glowing pale blue tears fell onto Carla's body and face, and right away her wounds began to heal.

"Whoa..." Ariana gasped in surprise, Elysia looked down, and was equally taken aback to see her tears healing the injury in her shoulder: suddenly, Carla began to move as she tried to struggle to get free. "I-, I don't feel the pain anymore!" she gasped in alarm, "Quickly, help me up" Carla held her one free arm up, and as gently as possible Ariana held her and began to pull her up off the shard of wood while Elysia continued to let her tears fall onto the injury: stopping the bleeding, allowing the bones to reset and meshing the flesh back together. With one last pull, Carla's shoulder slipped off the wood and the injury healed over completely, she gasped sharply as she felt a jolt of pain shoot down her arm, followed by a feeling of sensation as the numbness began to leave and she could feel the limb responding to her again. "Mrs Jaeger?" Ariana looked at her in concern as she sat upright: "Are you okay?"

Carla was about to reply when she suddenly noticed her eyes were red and score from crying: gazing up and seeing the state of her former neighborhood, she suddenly remembered what happened right before she passed out...

"-EREN!" she screamed in a panic as she shot up onto her feet and scrambled like crazy out of the rubble, making Ariana and Elysia jump: she paid them no attention as her mind became totally focused on her son; she spotted the road she saw Hannes and the children run down, and took off running down it with Ariana and Elysia chasing after her, "MRS JAEGER _STOP!_ THERE'RE TITANS ALL OVER THE PLACE!" she tried to warn her but with no success. Carla reached the bottom of the hill and ran out into a main street; the road was covered in blood, and full of dead bodies that had obviously been bitten in half, or in pieces: Carla nearly screamed at the sight of the carnage, while Ariana and Elysia both stopped in their tracks, not wanting to go any further. Quickly backpedaling, Carla tripped over one body and fell over backwards onto the cobbled road: but as she tried to get back up again, something in the street made her stop and stare in gut-wrenching horror.

There, sitting in a large pool of blood was a reddish-brown jacket, a pink cardigan, and a Garrison troop's half torn uniform jacket.

Carla's mind went into denial, that _wasn't_ Eren's jacket, that _wasn't_ Mikasa's cardigan, and that _wasn't_ part of Hannes uniform; between the light of the distant inferno and the pale silver light of the full moon she couldn't be sure if it was their clothing or not. Crawling over to the garments on her hands and knees, completely oblivious to the blood and corpses, she picked up the jacket and Cardigan, and holding them up to her nose, breathed in their scent...

Eren

Mikasa

All at once Carla felt her whole world violently shift as she stared into space, her heart began to break right down the middle; her mind filled with the last moments of her son's life, the last moment she saw him alive, hysterically crying out for her, right before that titan-

Tears welled up in her eyes as her breath hitched in her chest: she began to sob uncontrollably as her mind caved into the anguish; she inhaled the deepest breath her lungs could muster and threw her head back as she let out a long shrill feral scream. It barely sounded human as all the heartache gushed out and hit her over and over again as she continued to scream hysterically; her voice rising above the ruins and echoing around the empty city as she lost herself to the pain.

* * *

Everyone's blood froze in their veins as they heard the screaming: "Carla?!" Freya blinked in stunned surprise, recognizing the voice through the feral cries, "She's in the next street down the hill!" Mabel suddenly realized, "Quickly Shadow!" Bryson ordered as he took off on his ODM gear onto the titan's shoulder: Shadow got up, and with a sombre look in his eyes, quickly made his way the short distance to where the screaming was coming from: "I better go too! She sounds like she's in pain!" Breck took off after the titan, "Uh- You might need a hand ol' boy! Wait up!" Claude took after the doctor. "Hold up!" Freya shouted as she ran after them both.

As the survivors continued to console the Celts as best they could, Boar snapped his head up as a different scent wafted past his nose; wandering over to the remains of the house between the Jaegers and Grayson's, Boar sniffed intensely around the base of the boulder, like a hunting hound that's just smelt a deer. "Boar?" Mabel took Bren by the hand and wandered over to him, "What's wrong?" Bren asked offhand as he wiped his tears away. Without a word, Boar began digging at the base of the boulder, his huge fists and sharp claws easily making short work of the remains of the roads and part of the rubble; going to see what Boar was up to, Derek was about to ask what he'd found, when Boar raised his fist and punched a hole in the ground. Gazing down into the black hole, the three of them suddenly realized what it was: "It's the basement!" Mabel blinked in surprise. Bren was about to ask the titan what was up, when suddenly, the pitiful cries of two babies echoed out of the hole. Grabbing a piece of unburnt wood, Boar's markings around his right hand glowed golden yellow as he lit the wood on fire and handed it to Derek as he jumped down into the hole: "Do you see anything?" Bren asked worryingly.

Looking around the basement, Derek soon spotted the source of the cries: Lawrence and Drake were huddled in the corner, each of them holding a baby in their arms, while little Marigold sat between them, hugging Lawrence's side in an attempt to try and stay warm. The basement had somehow remained intact, despite the weight of the boulder above: but as he gazed up at the ceiling, Derek stared in horror at the sight of the blood that was leaking down from between the cracked stone and crushed floorboards above, and dripping down to the floor, where the entire basement floor was covered in puddle of it; the children were drenched in it, _sitting in it_. It didn't take a genius to work out what had happened. Glancing over to the children, Derek didn't have to guess what they knew; he could see it in his eyes. "It's okay" he softly spoke as he approached them, "We're here to get you out". Cautiously, the boys got up with the babies in their arms, with Marigold still clinging to Lawrence's side: Derek led them to the hole, where Mabel and Bren gazed down at them in shock, "Lawrence? Drake?" Mabel gasped, noticing the babies, "Are they-, Marigold? Phoebe? And Clemmy?"

"Hey guys! We found some more survivors!" Bren called over to the group: "Okay, Lawrence, are you going to let me have Phoebe? So I can lift her up to Mabel?" Derek asked softly, Lawrence nodded and handed him the baby. Gustav, Miriam, Rosemary and Lucile came running over, and immediately got to work helping Derek to get the children out of the hole.

Tyto was about to rush over to help, when he suddenly spotted Boar sniffing around the remains of the Cooper's town house, in the next street across from the Inn. As he ran towards the house, he gasped at the sight of the enormous boulder that had demolished the entire right side of the house, but the rest of the building remained largely intact, and hadn't been touched by the fire. Boar pointed to the front door, and with one hand, spelt out, : They're both alive, they're in the basement: "What?!" Tyto gasped as Boar pointed to the side of the house where the servant's door was located. Cautiously entering the building, Tyto felt a cold sweat go down his back as he heard the structure loudly creek and crack, he realized it could come down at any moment. Carefully making his way into the kitchen, he saw the basement door and proceeded to open it, but it was locked. Without the key to hand he stepped back and kicked the door down, proceeding down the stairs where he saw a candlelight illuminating the gloomy stone room, "Lucy? Lucius?" he called out: "...Mr Grayson?" he heard Lucius's hoarse voice croak out.

Glancing over to the corner, Tyto gasped as he saw the twins sitting on the cold stone floor, chained by their wrists to the wall by a set of iron handcuffs: "What the-..." he stared at them, completely taken aback before kneeling down to meet their eye level: " _What happened to you two?_ Why're you chained up like this?!" he looked at the handcuffs, noticing their wrists were red and sore from the tightness of the metal. "Muller didn't want us leaving the house after we got back, so she did this" Lucius sobbed as tears welled up in his eyes: "She must've put something in our food, because when we woke up we found ourselves down here, with _these_ things stopping us from leaving" Lucy told him as she too began to cry; "...We heard everything going on outside" Lucius stated in a monotone, "When the titans first started swarming the city, Muller locked the basement door and took off with Gilda..." Lucy added as she pressed her face into her brother's shoulder as she sobbed, "...Everyone's dead, aren't they..." Lucius looked Tyto in the eye, already knowing it was true.

Tyto stood up and sighed, "...Let's just get you two out of here, okay?" he gazed up at the ceiling, "Hey Boar? If you can hear me now would be a good time to use those fancy 'tunneling' tricks of yours!" he called out; as if on cue, the basement wall next to him collapsed in and part of the ceiling gave way as Boar dug his way in. Spotting the chain and its attachment to the wall, the tusked titan gently grabbed the chain between his finger and thumb, and with one hard tug ripped it clean out. He then tapped the handcuffs with the tip of his claws, golden sparks flying off the handcuffs as they popped open by themselves. After climbing up out of the hole, the twins both stood and stared in shock at the devastation around them. Gently, Boar picked them up and placed them on his back as he followed Tyto back to where the rest of the survivors were still situated.

As they approached, they saw Carla crying into Freya's lap while Claude looked like he'd just thrown up as he leaned against Bryson in an attempt to try and regain his composure: nearby, Ariana was sobbing into Rowan's shoulder as he hugged her tightly, with Ash and Dale keepin a protective hand on her shoulders. Standing off to one side, Tyto recognized Lawrence and Drake, along with Phoebe, Marigold and Clemmy as Mabel and Bren held the babies in their arms while Derek held Marigold on her hip, while Lawrence and Drake tried to hide behind the Fitzsimmons so as to not be noticed by the imposing gigantic forms of Shadow and Midnight, along with an emotionally wrought Angel who was still crying uncontrollably as she nuzzled her face into Shadow's side, his arms around her as he tried to comfort her. "...Carla?" Tyto stepped closer in alarm, "You're alive? What happened to-

He stopped as he noticed the bloody jacket and cardigan clutched in her hands.

"Dad..." Ariana sobbed as she looked up at him, "...Eren's-...he's-..." another fit of sobs overtook her as she buried her face back into her brother's chest.

Looking around the faces of the survivors, Tyto couldn't help by sigh: it was clear to see everyone was well and truly spent, he didn't know how much more heartache they could bear; hell _he_ didn't know if he could bare anymore of this. Glancing over at his house, he looked back at the survivors, and asked: "Does anyone know what the time is?" Pulling himself together as best he could, Claude got out his pocket watch and opened the lid, "Uh, eleven forty five". Tyto then turned towards the house, and entered through the front door, "... I'm going to get the provisions: anybody wants anything in particular, go pack up now; we leave in five minutes"

No one spoke and no one objected as they tried to salvage what they could: mostly it was the bare essentials, nothing heavy or awkward to carry; Breck stocked up on all the healing elixir he had while Claude rushed to fetch his journals, he knew they wouldn't be coming back here. Bryson helped the children try to regain their composure, at least enough to enable them to temporarily focus on helping their elders out. Carla however, was dead to the world as she continued to sob into Eren's jacket and Mikasa's cardigan, too lost in her grief and heartache to pay attention to what was going on around her. After they packed up their meager possessions, Breck and Claude lifted Carla into Shadow's cupped hands, the doctor would keep an eye, and Evrard would be joining them, as he was still recovering from his injuries; Clay and Hazel refused to leave his side so they went along for the ride. The Willum elders all hitched a ride on Boar's back, being older and slower, they couldn't trust their legs to last them the journey ahead; the only thing they took with them was the Black Stallion's horse head, the one thing remaining of their former home. Lucy and Lucius choose to ride with Angel, keeping her company as she waited for everyone, and stayed close to Carla. Ariana and the rest of her family all tried to salvage what they could from the ruins of their home, fortunately, their bows and quivers were still fine, along with one or two other things that might prove useful. Ariana found Armin's book about the outside world amid the rubble, one of the few things that hadn't burnt: but knowing he was already dead; she couldn't help but cry as she hugged it close to her, knowing she would never see him or Eren again.

As the Celts finished up packing and proceeded to leave: Tyto was the last one out of the basement, when he suddenly noticed the leather hide with the Semitam on it, rolled up and sitting on the small desk in the corner. He paused and stared at the hide in thought; if there was one thing that wasn't going to be left behind, it was that map, after all the work he and his brothers put into deciphering it, he wasn't going to let all be in vain. He headed back down the stairs, grabbed it off the desk and placed it in his pack: making a mental note to keep it close at all times.

* * *

The short walk to the inner wall was a harrowing one as everyone was forced to pass by more dead bodies, nervously tip-toe past sleeping titans, and all the while try not to trip up on anything in the darkness. As they walked through the breach in the inner gate, the full moon came out from behind a cloud and illuminated the wall and its ruins. Everyone stared up at the gaping hole in silent amazement as they passed through it, but no one stopped to admire the view as they continued out into the country side, passing by more scenes of devastation. The river banks where the barges usually moored up were littered with hundreds and hundreds of bags, all filled with practical and personal possessions alike: obviously dumped overboard for the sake of lightening the load. The ruins of the Garrison's defenses were littered about here and there, as multiple cannons and cannonballs littered the ground, and the smell of death continued to linger.

As they crossed the bridge and headed up the road towards the forest, the titans kept a watchful eye as they kept pace with everyone who was traveling on foot. As she held her mother and father's hands, Ariana gazed up at the night sky, and glanced over her shoulder as she watched Shiganshina disappear behind them.

"Dad?" she sniffled, "What do we do now?"

"...We do as we have always done darling..." he sighed quietly, "Disappear"

* * *

 **Well I hope you all got your own tissues and ice cream, because I'm not paying that bill. Suffice to say this chapter drained a lot out of me, not least for all my feels that got torn up along the way: I decided not to go overboard with the death scenes, seeing as Shiganshina's going all to hell anyway, it didn't seem right to rub more salt in the wounds, plus it would've been at least another 20 pages worth of work, and I didn't want the chapter to have 'too much fat and not enough meat' so to speak, plus, I felt it best to leave Bestla, Skadi and Ran's death's to be left to the imagination: their kids and husband's (except for Evrard since he's the one who found them) really don't need to know how it want down, their grieving is enough as it is. The scene where Carla thinks Eren and Mikasa are dead was the one I wanted most (and there's a good reason for that, which will become apparent later on in the story). And needless to say, this chapter marks the beginning of our hero's epic adventure; so I hope you can join next time, and don't forget to R &R before clicking off. :)**


	13. Chpt 12: Aftermath

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Chapter 12: Aftermath

The following morning, deep in the Marian forest:

The scent of earth and wild flowers was the first smell that greeted her nose as her mind stirred from a dreamless sleep, followed by the songs of birds and the rustling of leaves in the trees. She felt heavy, as if her whole body was twice its normal weight: and her muscles made her acutely aware of just how fatigued she still was, as if she'd been running all day and all night. Rolling from her front onto her back, Ariana sat up and rubbed her sore puffy eyes: she felt so tired, almost drained of every ounce of strength. As her vision began to come into focus, she looked around in confusion: she was in Angel's nest, along with Ashlyn, Hawk, Josefa, Jaye, Hazel and Clay and Carla, all of who were still fast asleep, snuggled amid the thick lining of feathers. She noticed Carla was clutching a bloodied reddish-brown jacket and pink cardigan, the one's Eren and Mikasa usually wore.

At first, Ariana didn't know what she was doing here or what was going on: until, she suddenly remembered...

The journey from Shiganshina to the titan's secret grove flew by in a timeless daze: the trees and undergrowth all smelt familiar, but she didn't remember anything after that, except for waking up here. Her mind couldn't help but go back to yesterday, and how everything changed forever in the span of one afternoon: although the shock and adrenaline were long past, the emotional reverberations still echoed throughout her being; and a feeling of emptiness came over her as she remembered aunt Bestla, Skadi and Ran were gone, along with her best friends Eren, Armin and Mikasa. She felt a hole in her heart, and it hurt: as if something had carved it out with a blunt knife.

As she sat there lamenting, the sounds of voices drifted down into the cave, grabbing her attention: climbing up out of the nest to see who it was, Ariana saw Gale, Poppy, Belle, Shyla, Fox, Lawrence, Drake, Lucy, Lucius and Bemadette and her three little brothers sleeping curled up around one another at the base of the nest; covered by furs and blankets for warmth. After carefully stepping her way around them and proceeding up and out of the root cave, Ariana looked around and spotted the grown-up's all gathered around a fire with their provisions sitting nearby; Rosemary and Lucile were holding babies Phoebe and Clemmy while Mabel was holding Marigold on her lap. Her father was off to one side with her mother, talking to Falken, Eraman and Evrard in privet by the looks of it, while everyone else was gathered around the fire, preparing some kind of a stew in the old iron cooking pot Angel kept in her 'collection'. They all looked to be knee-deep in a conversation about something serious, with Evernight and the ravens watching them from a nearby overhanging branch: stepping out of the cave, Ariana wandered over the group, still rubbing her tired eyes.

"Ariana?" Breck blinked in surprise: at the mention of her name, Tyto and Freya immediately broke away from their conversation and rushed over to her with concern laced all over their faces: "Ariana" Freya kneeled down beside her and gave her a big hug, ", Oh god sweetheart: are you okay?" Ariana shook her head, "I'm fine mum" she spoke in a tired drone voice, "What time is it?" "Around mid-morning? We thought we'd let you and the others sleep in: you were so tired by the time we reached here you were practically sleeping while walking at the same time" Tyto told her, "Huh..." she nodded, still somewhat half asleep, "Where's-"

Suddenly, the sound of soft heavy footsteps made her turn around in time to see Shadow kneeling down behind her, holding a large wooden cask in one hand: he placed it down beside the group and West gazed at the contents inside: "Ah great, the water's heated" he smiled as he dipped a finger in to test it. "The water?" Ariana gazed up at Shadow, "To wash up with" Freya clarified, "Shadow, Midnight and Boar kept watch over us all night, and they've been fetching us stuff all morning so we don't have to leave the grove"

"The Grove? ..." Ariana repeated in confusion: her mind wasn't fully awake yet, until she suddenly realized: "-THE TITANS!" she gasped as she began to panic, "Their inside wall Maria! We can't stay-

"-Darling darling it's alright!" Tyto grabbed her gently by the shoulders and tried to calm her down, "Shadow's keeping us hidden: look, let me show you..." he took her by the hand and led her out of the grove, over to where the largest roots of the giant trees dug their way into the ground. He reached his hand out, and suddenly a flat blue aura appeared and glowed at the touch of his hand, as if he were stroking a pane of glass. "He calls it a 'concealment spell': it's keeping us hidden from the titans so they don't see or hear us" Tyto smiled. Blinking up at the weird phenomenon, Ariana reached out and touched it too: it felt strange, tingly almost, but nothing like pins and needles; it was hard to describe exactly, all she knew was that it was nothing she'd ever felt before. As Shadow came up behind them, he smiled down at her as if to say: pretty good huh? Ariana couldn't help but smile back: "Should've known you'd have things covered" she wandered over to him and hanged his waiting hand, "Thanks big guy" she sighed with relief. "Are you feeling up to eating something?" her dad asked, "Kinda" she shrugged as she began to realize just how hungry she actually was.

After a much needed wash with the warm water and a bowl of the stew from the pot (which turned out to be a brace of pheasants Tyto shot earlier at dawn, along with some wild herbs, mushrooms and other edible things), Ariana felt more alert and awake; sitting up on Shadow's knee as he sat cross-legged in front of everyone, Ariana scanned her eyes over the grown-up's: and saw just how yesterday had taken its toll. Everyone looked tired and exhausted, as if they'd been up all night or at least had a restless sleep; the extent of Evrard's injuries could be more properly seen, as he now had two large scars across his face and all over his arms, including the bite mark where that titan nearly took his arm off. Bren also sported a couple of healed scars on his left arm and chest, where and when he sustained those injuries she couldn't remember (but it was clear Breck's healing elixir had done its job on both of them): yesterday was so chaotic it was hard to tell what was going on all at once, never mind trying to evade the titans and the fire.

Glancing over at her uncle's: Ariana saw how their losses had affected them; though they were carrying on as normal, they were quiet and subdued, and their eyes looked to be full of sorrow and longing. She knew when her cousins woke up it was going to be hard for all of them, having to come to terms with it all. But it wasn't just their loved ones: their home had been burnt and destroyed too, to have lost a place full of memories and leave all their worldly possessions behind? That hurt just as much too. Glancing over at the Willums, Ariana saw the look the bitter hurt look in Miriam's eyes as she gazed down at the black metal horse head that was propped up against the rock she was sitting on: she knew Miriam was a hardy resilient woman and it took a lot to shake her up, but yesterday did far more than just shake her up; as she sat alone with her thoughts, Ariana couldn't help but wonder if she'd be okay. She was the rock of her family and the one who always knew what to do: but after this? Would she still be strong enough to lead her family through this crisis? For the first time ever, Ariana was truly worried for her. Sitting on the fringes of the gathering, Pascal sat alone with his thoughts too: he wasn't the type to be easily shaken up or put off, but clearly he was in the same boat as Miriam; thrown for a loop and at a loss what to do.

It was clear this was a bad situation: with the regular titans now loose in Maria and the rest of Shiganshina's survivors having long-since fled, they were alone out here in the wilderness, with nothing but four magically-powered titans keeping them safe ('How ironic' Ariana couldn't help but think with a wince). As she tried to get her brain to think of any possibilities, she couldn't help but think aloud: "So um? What're we going to do now?"

"We were just discussing that" Tyto replied, "Actually, we've been discussing it all morning" West offered as Bryson approached her, "We've decided we're going to travel to wall Rose, and try to join the other refugees flooding into Trost"

"What?" Ariana blinked in surprise, "But-, Trost is over a day and three quarter's journey by coach or horse, and even longer on foot. The titans will have outpaced us long before then!" "Which is why we're going to go after sunset" Bryson explained, "Listen Ariana, There're _a lot_ of people in wall Maria and it's unlikely they'll have shut the gates just yet. As long as the titans take their time getting here, there's still a chance we can reach the gate by dawn tomorrow _if_ we're able to make it in time. Shadow and the others will be keeping us safe of course, as well as helping us to pick up the pace, and if the gate is shut we'll have to scale the wall"

"Scale the wall? How?" she frowned in confusion, "Eh, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it, right now we just need to work out the quickest route from here to Trost" Gustav interjected as he studied a large folded out map, "Which suffice to say, is a lot easier said than done: considering it needs to be a route that's going to offer some cover in case the titans are quick on their feet and manage to catch up" Claude frowned down at the map, "-But not to worry, we'll have things well in hand!" he forced a smile, trying to put out a positive vibe. "I doubt that" Rowan huffed as he approached the group with Ash and Dale in tow, each carrying their bows and quivers. "Hey, you're awake" Ash smiled up at Ariana, "Where've you guys been?" she asked offhand, "Not far, just needed some air" Dale shrugged as he rubbed the side of his head, "And to try and get my head straight"

"So we're gonna try to get to Trost huh?" Rowan glanced over at Bryson skeptically: "That's gonna be one hell of a challenge" "For sure, which is why we're going to spend today planning our route, _and_ a contingency plan for if the gate is shut" Bryson explained. Rowan was quiet for a moment with an unreadable expression on his face, before he reached down to grab a bowl, filled it up with stew, and wandered over to Angel's cave, "...Fine, whatever. Just let me know when we're setting off" he replied flatly. Freya and Tyto gazed at him in worry: that really wasn't like Rowan to not kick up a fuss like that; Ariana could see he wasn't himself either. Finishing up her bowl of stew in a few quick gulps, Ariana took after him as he climbed up the side of the tree and sat himself on a large root over the mouth of the cave: climbing up to join him, she sat down by his side. He pretended not to notice she was there for a moment as he got stuck into his breakfast, before realizing she wasn't going to go away. "...What?" he sighed in annoyance.

"I know this is a dumb question, but are you okay" she stated, "Not _'okay'_ okay: but-, okay enough that you're not gonna shout at me or anyone else" Rowan gazed at her impassively, seemingly unsurprised by the question. Letting out a heavy sigh, he let his gaze wander to the forest floor as he admitted: "...To be honest? I don't think I have the strength to be angry over anything right now? Of all the shitty worst case scenarios that could happen to us, having our home overrun by titans certainly wasn't one of them, and I just-, _don't know_ _what_ to think?"

"...I don't know either..."Ariana admitted bluntly: "All I know is, we can't go home, and-...I don't think anything's going to be the same ever again..." she sighed, trying to stop the tears from welling up in her eyes as she tried to keep her composure. Both siblings sat in quiet contemplation for several long moments, as they tried to make sense of yesterday, and where they stood now. Thinking back to yesterday's events, Ariana contemplated what happened: "...That one huge titan, the one that kicked in the gate; where do you suppose it could have come from? In the hundred years humanity has been fighting the titans no one has reported seeing anything _even remotely_ similar" "That's true," Dale interjected as he and Ash climbed up and sat on the root next to her, "But then, when you consider titans like Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel exist, _anything's_ possible" Dale explained, "The thing I don't get is: what was that golden lightning that struck right behind the gate where it was standing; there's _no way_ it could've crept up on the wall, something _that big_ you'd hear its footsteps coming from miles away. Hell, we'd have probably all felt them _long before_ we actually heard them...It's as if, the titan itself appeared out of thin air" Dale frowned as the cogs in his mind turned over. "Wait a minute, you don't mean-" Rowan stared at him anxiously, "-That titan was like Shadow and the others? With powers of its own?" "Like I said, anything's possible: but from what _I_ saw the titan didn't look like it had any markings on its body or face, so it's possible it could've been something totally different" Dale suggested.

"And then there was that 'armoured' titan," Ariana thought aloud, the memories of yesterday still feeling raw in the back of her mind, "... I watched Shadow fighting it from up on the roof: that titan was moving just like _he_ was, it knew how to block his punches and where to hit him in order to do the most damage; _that titan was intelligent_ , and it _knew_ what to do in order to beat him, as well as Midnight and Boar" she gazed over at her brothers, "But like the giant titan, it too didn't have any markings on its body, so it was different from Shadow and the others as well...Guys, you don't suppose there's another race of titans somewhere out there do you? Ones like Shadow and the others, intelligent and with powers of their own, but _not_ benevolent towards us humans: or else why would they have destroyed Shiganshina's gates and let all the other titans in? If not to deliberately attack us"

An uneasy silence hung in the air for moment, before Dale sighed: "That is a very worrying thought" he admitted reluctantly, "But-, if that's the case, why did they do that? What was the provocation? You don't just go kicking someone's door down unless you're looking for a fight or to stir up trouble"

"I don't know, and it's unlikely we'll _ever_ know now" Ash sighed, "Those titans disappeared as quickly as they came, and if the armoured titan was able to beat Shadow, Midnight and Boar into submission: that doesn't bode well for the three of them if it shows up again" "... Or maybe not?" Dale suddenly realized, "Okay, so they weren't prepared for him: but now that they've faced him and Shadow's seen firsthand how he fights, that _could_ be a major tactical advantage if they run into him again. And from what you described of the fight yesterday when we were in the basement, I think he deliberately meant to kill all three of them. He took Midnight and Boar out relying solely on his armour and momentum, and then he pummeled Shadow into submission before stomping on his head, turning him over and driving his foot down onto his nape. He wouldn't have done that _unless he knew_ the titan's weak spot was the nape. He'd been planning to crash through the inner gate from the start, and he knew that they were the one's he'd have to beat in order to pull it off"

"But how would he have known that if he'd been on the other side of the wall the whole time? There's _no way_ he could've gotten a clear view of anything inside with all the titans crowding in" Rowan pointed out, "Oh my god..." Ariana's eyes grew wide with realization: "Guys, the titan stomped on Shadow's nape, crushing it: but-, Shadow regenerated" "Yeah, so?" Rowan knitted his brows together in bemusement: "So," Ariana gazed at him seriously, " _It didn't kill him_ : Shadow's weak spot _isn't_ his nape, and Midnight and Boar's upper halves were practically _obliterated_ when the armoured titan crashed into them, but they regenerated too, they-... _Can't be killed_ like regular titans" she breathed in astonishment. The three brothers stared at her as the realization began to sink in.

Across the opposite side of the grove, keeping an eye out for any titans, Herne and Hecate listened in on the children's conversation discreetly: as did Javorin as he listened in what everyone was talking about; **"...Well that makes sense: being cursed doesn't rid us of our immortality just like that"** Herne frowned in deep thought, **"We've known that for some time, but would** _ **you**_ **have been willing to test the theory by getting the back of your neck cut open? I know its shit but come on,** _ **we were all**_ **thinking it; we just didn't want to take the chance it could be true"** Hecate frowned as she folded her arms. **"Now that we know it's not, that's one major concern we don't have to worry about"** Javorin thought aloud: **"...But what Ariana said: about there being another race of titans out there. You don't supposed it could be-, you know-"** Herne dithered, **"-One of us?"** Hecate assumed correctly, **"Not a chance: those were titans through and through, their aura's confirmed as much"** she stated. **"Maybe not gods, but they** _ **weren't**_ **like the regular titans"** Javorin frowned as he recalled the battle with the armoured titan: **"When I was fighting that 'armoured' titan there was a moment when-, just for split second I punched him hard enough to 'feel' my way through to the core of his being: and it wasn't an individual entity but rather; something akin to a puppet on strings. It was a vessel being controlled by a human mind: though from where I couldn't tell, the chaos magics surrounding it made it impossible to pinpoint. But it was** _ **undoubtedly**_ **human, and there was a great sense of determination and conviction to the will of their actions"**

The gods all frowned in disappointment: **"...So whoever rained hell on Shiganshina yesterday, not only** _ **knew**_ **what they were doing, but fully understood what would follow when they breached the inner gate"** Hecate assumed darkly, **"...It would seem so..."** Javorin sighed regretfully, **"Good, then killing them won't burden my conscience the next time we meet"** she growled, **"Wait a sec guys,"** Herne suddenly realized, **"-If whoever's controlling those two titans used them to breach wall Maria, what's there to say they won't try to breach wall Rose?"** he worried, **"Because the military will undoubtedly be on high alert Shorty"** Midnight shot him a look, **"Between the Scout's titan-slaying expertise and the Garrison's cannons: they won't have the element of surprise; even with huge height and armour between them there's no way they'll be able to storm the gate without having to fight their way through first. It would make sense to go away and lay low, wait until the heat's died off and then try again when they least expect it"** Hecate rationalized: **"And how long would** _ **that**_ **take? Nothing like** _ **this**_ **has ever happened to the humans of this age before; this will be remembered for** _ **years**_ **to come. They'll** _ **learn**_ **from it"** Herne pointed out. **"Undoubtedly: and then there's that 'unknown' presence we felt, the one coming from the north near Trost"** Javorin pointed out, **"You think that might have been part of the attack?"** Herne gazed over at him in concern, **"Why not? Like Dale said, anything's possible, and my gut's telling me** _ **it was part of it**_ **: directly or indirectly, it's just too coincidental that that 'presence' should show up the same day those two titans did"** he stated, **"You could be right, but then that begs the question: was it a distraction set up to lure us away so as to leave Shiganshina vulnerable, or was it an unintentional consequence of what happened, or rather, what was** _ **about**_ **to happen?"** Hecate threw in. **"-Like it even matters anymore!"** Elysia snapped angrily: **"We could go around in circles all day analyzing every little detail of what happened and why; but** _ **it won't change what happened!**_ **"**

Glancing upwards into the canopy of the giant trees, the three elder gods spotted their youngest member sitting on one of the highest branches, sulking as she stared off into the greenery with a sour hurt look on her face, trying not to be easily noticed. Excusing himself from the human's gathering, Javorin walked off, turned himself into his elemental form, and gently gusted up the side of the tree to sit on the branch next to her: **"...No, it's not going to change what happened: and** _ **you**_ **have to reconcile the fact that there was nothing you could've done to stop it"** he gently replied, **"-BULLSHIT!"** Elysia snapped at him: unaware that her loud shrill angry cry had alerted the humans to where she was among the trees. **"** _ **I'm a goddess**_ **for all-father's sake! I should've stopped it before it even happened!"** she sobbed as a fresh wave of tears welled up in her eyes, **"I felt the wind change, I felt something was wrong:** _ **I knew something was wrong**_ **and still I did nothing!"** She yelled, her telepathic voice ringing through their heads with her pain and heartache: **"...Eren, Mikasa, Armin: Bestla, Skadi and Ran; their all dead because** _ **I**_ **failed to act. Carla will never want to look at me again! Neither will the children, not after this!"** she sobbed as she flapped her wings and took off, heading up above the canopy and flying high above the forest. Passing a regretful sigh, Javorin flew back down to the ground, where he rematerialized into his corporeal form.

"What was that all about?" Tyto called up to the titan as he rejoined the group; holding up one hand with his markings alight, he spelt out, : It's Angel, she blames herself for Bestla, Skadi and Ran's deaths, including Eren, Mikasa and Armin's: "Oh, the poor dear" Freya glanced up towards the canopy, "That's why she's been avoiding us?" she glanced up at Shadow, : She thinks she failed you. And she thinks she's failed Carla: he replied. "Actually, _what did_ happen to Angel yesterday? Why wasn't she fighting the titans with you guys" West suddenly realized; passing a heavy sigh, Freya sat back down as she explained: "...Carla was in such a state last night that I didn't quite get it all: but from what she was able to explain I think it went something like this; she came round, found herself pinned under the rubble of her house and saw Angel in her dove form lying dead in the road"

"Which, turned out _not_ to be the case apparently..." Pascal sighed as he stood up and folded his arms: out the corner of his eye, he saw Claude was staring into nothingness with an intense look in his eyes; the kind of look that told him his mind was on to something yet again: "...Oh boy, what's on your mind _this time_ genius?" he sighed sarcastically. "Angel was able to regenerate even in her dove form, and despite suffering an otherwise fatal blow to the nape: Shadow, Midnight and Boar were _all_ able to regenerate from their injuries" he thought aloud, "You realized that too huh?" Bryson frowned, "It does sort of drive home the fact Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel are _not_ like other titans, if striking their supposed weak-points isn't fatal for them".

"Or? ..." Claude began to smile, "Their blood is far more _potent_ than we originally thought: so much so that it's able to sustain their lives, even when suffering otherwise fatal injuries" the scientist gazed up at Shadow, "Am I right ol' chap?" he asked, to which Shadow nodded, : Pretty much :. Everyone stared up at him in amazement: "Wow, that's-, something" West blinked in surprise; "But- hang on a sec," Pascal gazed up at the titan, "Regular titans are able to regenerate any body part within minutes right?, even their heads grow back after being blasted off by a cannonball: so what took _you_ guys nigh on five hours to regenerate yesterday?"

Thinking about it a moment, Shadow then kneeled down and spelt out,: it's rather tricky to describe. But I can remember while I was regenerating, feeling very sad that I failed to save Shiganshina; and feeling bad that I failed all of you: "You were slow to heal because you were sad? How does _that_ work?" Pascal raised an eyebrow.

"Actually, it's not as farfetched as it may sound" Breck interjected, explaining further: "Although the majority of the medical community tends to dismiss it as a crack-pot theory: there are certain doctors (like myself) who have observed how the mind, body and spirit are inextricably linked, and how one _can_ affect the other. Case in point: when I was studying medicine at the Royal Mitras University Hospital, I had a patient who I diagnosed with a minor lung infection: she was an old woman but had a surprisingly good level of health; she had no prior complications and wasn't suffering any other illnesses, by all accounts she should've made a full recovery within a few weeks. But instead, she remained in the hospital for over three months: the infection's hold on her waned far longer than it should have done; over that same period I observed how she had become quiet and withdrawn, and she all but completely lost her appetite. When I inquired about it, the senior doctors simply dismissed it as a fluke: but my gut told me it was something more than that; so I asked _her_ about it, and she told me that she hated hospitals and how they scared her. Both her parents and brother passed away in that same hospital, so for her, being in that place was a terrible reminder of her loss and grief. As such, I believe the mental stress had affected her body's ability to fight the infection: so, after calling in a favor I had the patient sent home to stay with her daughter and I'd perform house calls every day for the remainder of her recovery. And sure enough, less than a week later she was back on her feet and eating well again. It was remarkable to say the least, and it's something that's always stayed with me"

"...Huh, it kinda makes sense when you think about" Gustav thought aloud as he folded his arms, "When you're happy and in a good frame of mind, you feel like you can do anything... But when you've suffered, and sadness is the only thing wrapped around your mind, it feels like the whole world is just grey and there's no colour to be seen anywhere" "...Yeah..." Evrard sighed quietly, "That kinda sums it up" he nodded ruefully. Everyone was quiet for a moment, before Claude glanced up at Shadow with a reassuring smile "... Well? Don't go beating yourself up ol' boy: the circumstances were beyond _anyone's_ control, and you did the very best you could, we all know that" "Yeah, I mean, you may be a titan but you're not a god: shit happens to the best of us buddy; don't put yourself down okay?" West offered.

Although he was careful not to let it show on his face, Javorin stilled in weirded out confusion; it felt so strange (if not slightly disturbing) hearing that...

 _You may be a titan but you're not a god_

Were he not the god that he was: Javorin might have been hurt or even offended by that; back in the day the world wasn't short of gods and goddesses that would readily make an example out of anyone who dared to utter such a pertinent remark. But here, the humans of this era had long forgotten Javorin and his kin: and the world in which they lived no longer had room for such beliefs. It was a much harsher place, and the humans had learned long ago that preying on bended knee and giving up offerings was no longer going to save them (not that that was Javorin's way, but still, there were some egotistical gods who demanded praise from their followers). They had to adapt in order to survive, and they only had each other, and no one else. As surreal as it was Javorin couldn't help but feel somewhat dejected, as if he were an odd puzzle piece that no longer fitted into the big picture anymore: and yet, these humans, his adopted family, the people he'd come to care about so much; believed him to be the kin of their natural enemy. How strange and tragically ironic that their good friend, a 'titan', would do battle and sacrifice himself to fight regular titans. Such a notion was unthinkable to the humans of this age, now more so than ever after what had happened in Shiganshina.

But then, he wasn't blameless for letting them believe that, he _choose_ not to tell them the truth about his godhood and he knew it: which only made him feel all the more bad. Considering how close they had become over these past five years, he knew he had no right to deny them the truth: but would they actually believe him? None of these humans believed in the concept of a god: to them, he, Hecate, Herne and Elysia were titans; big, powerful and superior to them in every way. Even if he begged and pleaded that he wasn't a titan, would they really believe him? As he pondered the dilemma of it, Javorin suddenly realized something he'd overlooked, and began to get a thought forming: the more he thought over it, the more he began to come to the conclusion: **"...What if it's not about us? ..."** he thought, unaware that he was thinking telepathically.

" **Huh?"** Herne raised an eyebrow, **"What's not about us?" "The curse,"** Javorin turned to him, **"What if the curse was** _ **not**_ **intended to harm** _ **us**_ **per se, but to serve a** _ **completely different**_ **purpose altogether?" "Wait-, you completely lost me,** _ **what**_ **are you talking about?"** Hecate frowned at him. Javorin quickly spelt out, : Would you excuse me? Midnight wants a word in privet:, he then got up and led Midnight and Boar around the back of a giant tree, where he clarified and elaborated: **"This curse that keeps us from assuming human forms,** _ **of all the forms**_ **that we could be trapped in why this? Why** _ **these**_ **gigantic body's in particular, and why no voices? And more importantly, why are our powers still intact? If you wanted to have your enemy at a disadvantage why let him keep the means of being able to reverse what's been done to him? You'd want to be sure he can't do anything about it, right? Even communicate to try and get help. So why go to all the trouble of laying such a curse on anyone, unless the intention wasn't to do** _ **us**_ **any real harm in the first place? What if it was merely to give** _ **the appearance**_ **of a curse?"**

Herne and Hecate both glanced at one another in confusion, **"What're you getting at bro?"** Herne asked dubiously, wondering where Javorin was going with this; his brother obliged as he continued with his revelation: **"From the moment we awoke from those tombs, our lives have been intertwined with the lives of these human family's: both I and Elysia's meeting with Ariana and Carla** _ **wasn't**_ **an accident that night. And ever since then we have grown closer together,** _ **shared our lives together**_ **: and yesterday, when humanity faced its darkest hour we fought the titans with everything we had to try and reclaim the city,** _ **for them**_ **; but to the Garrison and anyone else who witnessed it, it was three titans fighting their own kind.** _ **Titan's attacking titans**_ **, never in their history has any human heard of such a thing, and for those lucky enough to have survived and made it to wall Rose, they will tell of what they saw and they will maybe,** _ **just maybe**_ **, have** _ **hope**_ **that perhaps humanity finally has a way out of this nightmare"**

As she pondered his words, Hecate suddenly realized: **"... You think this is the purpose of the curse? To help the humans overcome their despair and restore their hope?"**

" **In a way"** Javorin dithered, **"This curse is not a deliberate burden on us, if it was we'd probably be in a much worse state: I think, it's meant to serve as a means to an end (whatever that 'end' might be). Whether this whole thing was in response to a prophetic vision, or a misguided sense of righteousness: our being here in this day and age** _ **wasn't**_ **coincidence, and the Semitam further proves that... The titans have been subduing humanity long enough and we've been gone** _ **far too**_ **long: whoever left us the Semitam recognized that, and** _ **knew**_ **that something had to be done sooner or later. If the power of the titans is the only power humanity recognizes now, then maybe that's what we're meant to be to them. A deviant faction, a separate species, a gang of rouges: call us whatever they will, what if we're meant to be their way out of all this? To be the ones to break the status quo of their fear, and** _ **show them**_ **that they don't have to be afraid of their natural enemy anymore"**

" **...So, wait a minute"** Hecate tried to wrap her head around all that he just said: **"You're saying essentially, that's we've** _ **outgrown**_ **our tenure as gods on this world?"**

" **Not outgrown,"** Javorin clarified, **"Merely, transitioned from one definition of a powerful being to another; and after all, isn't that initially what the name 'god' was used for back in the early days? To describe a being of great power whose abilities transcended human understanding and comprehension? I don't think our roles on this world have changed: I think we're still meant to serve as humanity's overseers (albeit the parameters have drastically changed). Why else would our powers still be intact? But just as importantly: wherever that Semitam is meant to lead us, the location its hiding** _ **must**_ **play a crucial part in our new roles"**

" _ **Geez**_ **, you really know how to think outside the box Javorin,"** Herne couldn't help but smile: **"Okay, that's one hell of a theory, and I have to confess you** _ **might just**_ **be onto something: if the fleeing citizens and Garrison troops really did see us fighting and some of them live to tell about it? Then we probably a have a chance of getting in with humanity's good graces again"** he thought aloud.

" **As much as that theory could be possible Javorin, there's one thing you've overlooked that still bothers me..."** Hecate sighed as she folded her arms: **"The gaps in our memory, how we got inside those tombs, and why we don't remember** _ **anything**_ **before then: we remember everything else about our lives except** _ **this**_ **? And one other thing;** _ **if**_ **the Semitam was left for us why wasn't the key included as well? If we were meant to find that map and use it, then it makes sense to leave the key** _ **somewhere**_ **we could find it, but after a whole year of experimenting with different charms and spells we're** _ **still**_ **nowhere even close to unlocking its power... Was** _ **that**_ **deliberate? Did whoever put us in those tombs do that for some particular reason? Or was this whole thing not for the reason you believe it to be?"**

An uneasy silence hung in the air for a moment, before Herne sighed dryly: **"Wow Hecate. You** _ **certainly know**_ **how to bring the mood down"**

" _ **I'm not saying I don't want to believe it!...**_ **"** she snapped in annoyance, **"I'm just-, merely pointing out; at the end of the day when all is said and done, we, ultimately may** _ **never**_ **figure out the real reason** _ **why**_ **we were cursed like this. And for all the good we might do in these new forms, there's** _ **always**_ **the possibility that this curse might be the result of something else, something-, we might not** _ **even want**_ **to accept as 'the truth' if that's the case..."** She sighed bitterly,speaking her mind even further **: "... I guess what I'm trying to say is:** _ **I don't like**_ **the idea of basing my actions on unfounded, questionable theories; no matter how optimistic or morally right they may sound. Your father always said that in order to know where you're going, you have to first understand how far you've come... Well? We have** _ **no idea**_ **what's happened to this world any more than the humans do: helping them to gain a tactical advantage over the regular titans is one thing, but both that giant and armoured titan** _ **completely**_ **redefined what** _ **they thought**_ **they knew, and even** _ **we**_ **are at a loss what to make of it...** _ **We don't know**_ **the origins of the titans or if they really were responsible for the decimation of humanity...** _ **There's still so much we don't know**_ **, and if the humans demand answers we don't have, I don't know what will happen... If what you believe is true: and the definition of 'god' really has changed for us? Then we need to seriously consider what it is we're willing to put on the line in order to help restore humanity to the world. We didn't defeat the armoured titan, because we were cocky** _ **and**_ **held back:** _ **that's on all of us**_ **, and the humans of Shiganshina and everyone else in Maria are now paying for our mistakes... Back in the day we** _ **knew**_ **no real change could ever come unless something was scarified: we saw it** _ **all the time**_ **; mothers sacrificing their lives to save their children, soldiers and warriors willing to die for their ideals, despots and dictators sacrificing their own subjects for their own misguided reasons; even simple everyday humans who were willing to give up their freedom, comforts and security to ensure those who were denied such rights may have a measure of that same freedom...So tell me,** _ **what happened**_ **to make us so afraid to take the risks that need to be taken?** _ **When did we start to believe we couldn't do this anymore?**_ **"**

Javorin gazed at her for a moment, brows knitted together in contemplative thought as he pondered her reasoning: on the one hand he believed his revelation to be highly plausible; after all, why curse a god and leave their powers intact? It made no sense unless it was for a particular reason. But on the other hand, he _knew_ she had a point...

As she and her brothers watched the three titans 'conversing' amongst each other, Ariana's attention was suddenly drawn back to the root cave as Ashlyn and Hawk emerged, rubbing their red puffy eyes and trying to stay awake. Climbing back down to the cave mouth, Ariana approached them both, noticing down in the cave that most of the others were starting to awaken too. Glancing at Ashlyn, Ariana noticed she had two healed scars on the right side of her jaw, both running up to the corner of her mouth; she figured she must have sustained those in the blast, and received some of Breck's healing elixir some time last night. "Hey you're both awake" she forced a smile, "...Where are we?" Ashlyn groaned as she rubbed her hands over her face, trying to stop herself from dozing off: "We're in the grove, Shadow and the others led us up here last night" Ariana answered, "They did?" Hawk glanced at her weirdly. "Yeah, I don't remember much of last night either: I just remember waking up in Angel's nest" she sighed. "... What's that smell?" Ashlyn sniffed the air, "its game stew, me and dad shot some pheasants earlier this morning" Ash replied as he and his brother's climbed down from the roots above the cave. "Ashlyn? Hawk?" Falken approached with worry laced all over his face, "Are you-, both alright?" he asked apprehensively: "I'm fine" Ashlyn smiled, "Where's mu-

She stopped as she suddenly remembered, and tears began to well up in her eyes as she clasped her hand over her mouth to stop herself from crying out: seeing her in such a state, Falken tried to swallow the lump in his throat as he rushed over to her, kneeled down and pulled her into a hug: "-It's alright my darling, I'm here, I'm not going anywhere okay?" he tried to reassure her, trying to keep his own grief from overwhelming him again: for a long moment Ashlyn cried into his shoulder before managing to collect herself, and wipe the tears from her eyes; "...I'm sorry I forgot dad," she breathed heavily as she tried to calm down, her brother rubbing her back in an attempt to try and sooth her (as well as himself), "No no sweetheart, it's okay" he smiled nervously as he kissed her on the forehead and stood back up, "Why don't you wash up and have something to eat? Come on" he led her over to the fire, and sat her down with Freya and Lucile. Running his hand over the scars on his face, Hawk shied away as Ariana and Ash approached: "...Hawk," Ash gently laid a hand on his shoulder, "It's okay you don't have to be afraid: we don't care what you look like, we're just glad you're alive" he assured him; Hawk hesitated a moment, before pulling his favorite neckerchief up over his nose and mouth: "...Thanks" he quietly replied, and tentatively wandered over to the fire to sit next to his sister, being careful to keep his face hidden from everyone else. Ariana couldn't help but worry for Hawk, clearly he was aware of how he looked, and it must be playing on his mind something terrible.

Eraman and Evrard both approached the cave as they saw their children emerge: unlike Ashlyn, they remembered yesterday's events all too well, and simply hugged their fathers, trying to get what comfort they could to alleviate the hurt in their hearts; they then joined their elders around the fire: their aunt Freya handing them out bowls of stew. As Drake climbed out and sat on one of the roots, Lawrence was next to climb out of the nest and gazed up at the four siblings with dead eyes: Ariana didn't need to ask him if he was okay, the emptiness in his gaze said it all. Scanning over the group, he made a bee-line for Phoebe, Clemmy and Marigold, who were sitting in the elder Willum sister's laps; the three sisters greeted him a good morning, but to their surprise he said nothing as he took Clemmy out of Rosemary's lap and sat down on the grass with her between his legs: the baby smiled up at him and giggled, clearly pleased to see him, and although he wasn't being receptive to the adults he was at least engaging with the three babies.

"... He was scared for them," Drake sighed as he watched Mabel and Bren go over to Lawrence, and kneel down beside him: trying to talk to him; "All the time we were trapped in that basement he worried for their safety more than his own..." he thought aloud as he gazed down at the dried bloodstains on his clothing, "...That-, _thing_ , the one that dug us out of the basement" he pointed to Boar: "What is it? And why did it save us?" Ash and Ariana both glanced at one another uncomfortably, wondering how to explain that Boar was a titan without freaking Drake out: "His name's Boar" Gale stepped in as she climbed out of the cave, "And he's a titan: _not_ like the ones we saw yesterday: he's totally different, and he won't hurt you or anyone okay?" she glanced down at him; Drake didn't say anything as he stared up at her, before turning his attention back to the titans"... And? What about the other two?" he pointed to the two fifteen meter class titans standing next to Boar: "That's Shadow and Midnight" Ariana smiled, "Shadow's been my best friend ever since I was about your age: we've known each other a long time: and he, Midnight and Boar tried to save Shiganshina yesterday by fighting the regular titans" she explained. "Fighting the 'regular' titans?" Drake echoed in confusion, "That's what we call them, because Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel aren't like the other titans from beyond the wall; their _completely_ different in many ways" Belle added as she, Poppy, Fox, Shyla, Lucy and Lucius came up alongside Gale. "Different how?"Drake pressed her, "Well for one thing, they _hate_ the taste of human flesh, _and_ they can do things regular titans can't: like turning invisible, making trees and plants grow, and even talk to animals"

"Bullshit," Brendis frowned up at Gale, "No one can do those things" Brenden chimed in, "They look dumb" Bren threw in. "You wanna go over there and say that to their faces?" Bemadette glared down at them: "Those titans are the reason we're all alive, so you three better be damn grateful and show them some respect" "Like shit I will!" Brendis spat back, trying (unsuccessfully) to get up in her face, "Their buddies ate everyone in the city yesterday, _and_ they let that 'armoured' titan crash through the inner gate! Why the hell should we show them any respect when they're the reason we're out here with a bunch of weirdo's camping in the woods, with no home and no family to go back to!-" But before the bratty five year old could continue, Bemadette slapped him hard across the face, making everyone around the root cave jump in surprise: " _I AM SO NOT IN THE MOOD_ TO BE DEALING WITH THIS YOU LITTLE SHIT!" she shouted down at a very shocked Brendis as he held his hand to his sore cheek, gazing up at her defiantly as she continued: "-I don't expect you to understand why Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel are different from the regular titans, _just know that they are!_ And they've been part of our family far longer than the three of you! We've been together a long time and I'll take their word over yours any day of the week! _They nearly died_ fighting the titans so that everyone in the city could try to get to safety: and you can be _damn sure_ they fought that armoured titan with everything they had! The fact that titan beat them wasn't their fault! They just- ..." She let out a frustrated sigh: "... _Got beaten_ , okay? And as shitty as it was, that's what happened; it wasn't because they were weak, dumb or not determined enough, it was-... _It just happened_..." heaving another deep sigh, she glanced down at Brendis with an apologetic look, and in a calmer yet still-emotionally raw tone, continued: "...Look, sometimes in life you don't always win: try as hard as you might with every ounce of skill, determination and conviction, in the end it all boils down to luck. You can be _the best of the best_ but it _won't guarantee_ you'll be successful every time; Shadow, Midnight and Boar? Their damn good at what they do, but yesterday-, just-... _wasn't_ their lucky day. And you can't blame someone for running out of luck. _It's shit!_ And it's the most _fucked up thin_ g to fail like that, but I _don't_ blame them for what happened: after _everything_ we've been through together _I know_ _they didn't quit_ , not even once; even when the armoured titan defeated them they didn't stop. They regenerated and came back for us: so don't go spouting that shit okay? Because you don't know _anything_ about them" she glared down at the three of them.

Brendis simply gazed up at her impassively, before frowning in anger: " _I don't care_..." he growled darkly, "Everyone in Shiganshina is dead because of them; _including mum_ , we'll _never see her again_ because of them!" he spat. An uncomfortable silence hung in the air between the siblings as Bemadette's gaze turned dark: "...Mum's alive: she wasn't in Shiganshina yesterday..." she stated in an unreadable tone. The three brothers blinked in surprise as she reached into her pocket, and pulled out a piece of paper. Everyone nearly gasped: it was the letter her mother had left her; and as she unfolded it, the other kids listened silently as Bemadette read the letter to her brothers...

"Bemadette...I've left Shiganshina for good, and I won't be coming back for you or your brothers. I found a new job working for a nobleman and his family in the interior of wall Rose, in a place where I'll be surrounded by wealth, comfort, and the opportunity to move up in the world. I finally have a chance to make something of myself, and I won't be squandering it by having you or the boy's burden me any more than you already have. When I decided to keep you I thought motherhood would alleviate some of the misery in my life: all the other mothers seem to get some pleasure out of it, so I thought if it worked for them surly it would work for me too? But the thing is, no one told me how hard it was going to be, how much time and energy would be spent simply making sure you didn't die. My own mother didn't think much of me before, she certainly didn't think better of me after I told her I was pregnant with you; those years were rough between us, and for that I blame you. You were not a pleasure of any kind; you were a stone around my neck: and when my mother had you sent away to be raised by her friend I was quite relieved to not have you anymore. But as I thought about it and I realized what I'd done, I tried to make things right between us: for years I tried, and I don't know why but I just couldn't seem to do anything right. Nothing was ever good enough for you or anyone else; I tried to get things right again with your brothers, but apparently that 'wasn't the point' according to your guardian. So, after all this time I thought why am I wasting my life like this? Motherhood isn't a blessing it's a curse, and anyone who tells you otherwise is a bare-faced liar. I will no longer have anything to do with it. From now on, you and your brothers are dead to me: I don't want any of you, I don't want to know any of you, and if by some chance we meet again I will deny you are my children and dismiss you all as desperate money-hungry beggars. You're on your own...signed, Mother..." she read aloud, before addressing the boys in an unreadable tone, "...She was gone long before the titans attacked: and if she's heard the news about Shiganshina, I _highly doubt_ she's going to be shedding any tears for us..."

Brendis was quiet for a moment, before suddenly exploding in a fit of rage: snatching the letter from Bemadette's hand, tearing it up and then proceeding to try and punch her in the gut over and over again; she blocked each blow of course, but she didn't say or do anything as he screamed in anger: "YOU'RE LYING! _YOU'RE A FUCKING LIAR!_ IT'S NOT TRUE! _NONE OF IT!_ You always hated mum but _I know_ she didn't hate us! _She didn't hate me!_ She's in Trost right now going outta her mind wondering if we got out alive! _I HATE YOU!_ I WISH YOU'D NEVER BEEN BORN!-

"-Brendis..." Carla spoke as she grabbed his fist suddenly, "That's quite enough now. It's not Bemadette's fault your mother is gone"

Everyone stared at her in surprise as she let go of the boy: Carla seemed to be aware of what was going on around her, though one could've been fooled as the unemotional thousand-mile look in her eyes told an entirely different story. She looked dead, as if she were a shell of her former self, and didn't seem to be truly alive. Loosing Bestla, Skadi and Ran had been hard for Ariana's cousins, but loosing Eren and Mikasa had obviously taken a much harder toll on her, and it worried Ariana greatly.

"-Stay outta this lady!" Brendis snapped up at Carla, who didn't visibly react in any way: "This ain't got nothing to do with you!-" "-HEY!" Rowan snapped down at the boy as he approached him, and loomed over his smaller frame in a show of dominance: " _Show some courtesy you rude little shit!_ Mrs Jaeger here lost her son and daughter yesterday; she doesn't need this from you!" "Oh really? And just what the fuck are _you_ gonna do, huh?" Brendis folded his arms in brazen defiance, Rowan promptly grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and jerked him forward with his fist raised: "For starters I'll smack that mouth of yours clean off your face!-" "-Rowan! ..." Ash laid a hand on his shoulder, "Enough, _both of you!_ Fighting like this isn't gonna do anyone any good; Brendis shut up and go cool off, you too Rowan. The rest of you go wash up and get something to eat" he told the other kids, who promptly went to join their elders around the campfire: "You too Bemadette, take your brothers and go calm down" Bemadette regarded him with a discreet nod, as she tried to take Brenden and Bren by the hands: but they simply recoiled from her and stood by their eldest brother: "-HEY!" Brendis snapped up at Ash, "-Who the fuck put you in charge? You ain't the boss of me!" "No, I'm not, but giving me and everyone else a hard time _ain't_ going to change anything! I don't know if you noticed? But we're deep in the Marian forest, far from any kind of help and with titans swarming the valleys. We're on our own out here and we can't afford to go losing our tempers with each other. It's a shitty situation I know, but we don't have any other choice. So I suggest you go cool down, and then _try_ to make some effort to get along with everyone. Understand?" Ash told him sternly. The three brother's merely disregarded him, "Whatever! Just leave us alone!" they turned to leave, before Brendis stopped and pointed his finger up at Bemadette: "-And _you!_ You stay the hell outta our way! You ain't our sister anymore! Got it?" they then took off, running to the edge of the grove and climbing into the tangle of tree roots at the entrance to one of the other root caves. Bemadette didn't say anything, and simply went to join the others around the fire.

"Think one of us should go keep an eye on them? In case they try to run?" Dale thought aloud, "Nah its fine, Shadow's probably already got an ear on them: he'll know if they've left the grove or not" "...Sorry about that" Rowan reluctantly apologized as he folded his arms: "Ah don't fret over it bro, just don't do that in front of the grown-up's okay? He's only five after all" Dale patted him on the back, "Do you think it was wise of Bemadette to read them that letter?" Ariana thought aloud in a discreet hushed tone as she gazed over at Bemadette, who was talking with Gustav and Miriam: presumably filling them in on what just happened. Ash passed a heavy sigh as he thought about it, gazing down at the pieces of the torn up letter: "...If she held onto that letter that could only mean she intended to tell them the truth sooner or later" Dale reasoned: "Better now than never I guess?" Ash shrugged, "It'll save them combing through Trost looking for their mum when we get there" "Like _that's_ gonna stop them," Ariana huffed. Rowan stepped forward and let out a heavy sigh, "Listen, Mrs Jaeger I'm sorry for-"But as he glanced over at where Carla had been standing, he saw the woman was gone; turning his head and scanning his eyes over the group, he didn't see her among the adults; "-Hey, did you see where she went?" he frowned in concern.

Carla walked away from the grove, unknowingly stepping over the threshold of the concealment spell and out into the forest, walking in a daze: her mind was a storm of emotions trying to process themselves into something that made sense, while also being acutely aware of the fact both Eren and Mikasa were dead. The hole in her heart was as wide and gaping as it was raw and painful: she couldn't think straight at all as her mind kept replaying her son's final moments over and over again; thinking strenuously how she could have done things differently, how she could have tried to wriggle free of the rubble and lead her children to safety. She made a decision she thought was the right one to save them, but it wasn't, they died anyway, and it was all her fault. Again and again she punished herself with that harrowing memory, burning it into the forefront of her mind, until she couldn't think of anything else.

Gazing down at Eren's Jacket and Mikasa's cardigan, she held the jacket to her nose and breathed in his scent: all at once the memories of her son came flooding back, from his birth to his death she saw his whole life flash through her mind's eye; and like a kick in the gut, the realization that he died a horrible death made her drop to her knees as she succumbed to her grief, and began sobbing uncontrollably with fresh tears streaming down her face. She hitched over as she cradled the jacket, holding it like a newborn: the only thing left of Eren that was truly him; Mikasa too. When the girl first came to live with them: having learnt of her parent's tragic fate, Carla did all she could to make sure she felt safe, comfortable and loved; goodness only knew the poor child needed it. And in the year she lived with them she became like a daughter to her, and a sister to Eren: it was brief, but it had been a good time. To go through what she endured at the hands of those human traffickers, only to die a year later in the jaws of a titan? How much crueler can this world get? How it wasn't fair, that her children should die and she should live. No parent should _ever_ have to see their child die: it wasn't natural, it wasn't right: it's not what supposed to happen.

So lost in her grief was she: that Carla failed to hear the footsteps of the approaching ten meter class titan closing in from over thirty meters away. It wasn't until she felt the vibrations of its footfalls that she snapped her head up, and gazed up at the lumbering potbellied behemoth in shock. The giant stared down at her with a wide smile and beady dead eyes, as it stopped and just stood there some several meters or so away. As she gazed up at the creature: flash-backs of yesterday's events flitting through her train of thoughts, Carla's mind was set ablaze as a deep and terrifying anger began to well up from within her. Her ire forced her to her feet as she stared the giant down: "Well? Are you satisfied? Are you happy to have brought us down like this?!" she ranted, before letting her anger get the better of her, and screaming in a blind fit of rage: "YOU MONSTERS! YOU ATE MY SON! _I SWEAR I'LL_ _SLAUGHTER_ EVERY ONE LAST OF YOU IF I GET HALF THE CHANCE! I'LL DRIVE YOU ALL OUT! MAKE EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU PAY! THIS I PROMISE, _ON MY SON'S LIFE!_ "

The titan simply continued to stare down at her, before bending down and lazily trying to reach for her. Suddenly, as if a switch had been flipped, Carla realized she was about to get grabbed and eaten: with no weapons and no way of escaping, she was dead for sure. Gasping in horror, she began backpedaling fast, only for the titan to suddenly put on a burst of speed and grab her in one quick move. Angry and panic-stricken, she started pounding her fists against the titan's hand while screaming every curse and obscenity she could think of: knowing she was about to die, but refusing to go down without a fight.

Just as the monster was bringing her up to its mouth, a loud crashing sound up in the canopy forced her to look up, just in time to see Angel plummeting down onto the titan: screaming and squawking in a fit of rage as she grasped the creature by the back of its neck and left shoulder with her feet, like an eagle attacking a small deer. Flapping her wings hard, she twisted sharply to force it down onto its knees: the titan dropped Carla, and as she scrambled back up onto her feet she watched in shock as the bird titan violently and savagely bit into the titans nape: holding on tightly as the behemoth thrashed about trying to get away, but Angel refused to let go as she continued her assault; her teeth pierced the skin but her jaws were not strong enough to rip the tough leathery hide off. But then, just when it seemed like the titan was about to throw her off, Angel screamed as she thrusted her mouth down into its flesh and with one hard rage-fueled bite she finally ripped the nape out, and the creature keeled over dead. As the titan began to disintegrate and turn to steam and embers, Angel spat out the nape and panted hard as she got off the corpse, slumping against the side of a giant tree with her wings drooping down by her sides as she tried to catch her breath.

Carla stood there in shock for a moment as she gazed up Angel: _her Angel_ , the meek yet delightfully sweet bird titan who couldn't even say boo to a goose, just savagely killed a titan with her bare teeth in a fit of rage. "...Angel? ..." Carla cautiously approached her: hearing her name Angel gasped in horror, staring down at Carla as if she'd just seen something she wasn't supposed to see. But before the bird titan could react, the sound of fast pounding footsteps made them turn around in time to see a couple of seven meter titans running right at them. Carla gasped as she instinctively ran for cover behind the nearest tree, while Angel stood back up and beat her wings, ready to take off for the next round. Both of them were so focused on the titans that they didn't hear Shadow and Midnight charging straight at them, nor did they hear Bryson's ODM gear above their heads, as the former Scout circled into position to try and draw the behemoth's attention away from them. As the titans came within striking range Shadow attacked the titan on his right with a flying roundhouse kick, kicking the monster's head clean off, and as he fell he spun round to punch down hard on the nape, killing it instantly: while in the same instant Midnight used her elongated blade-like claws to slice into the remaining titan's neck right between the collar bones and out through the spine on the other side, severing the nape from the inside out. The whole attack was over in less than a second, and happened so fast that Carla and Angel were both left standing there in a confused daze.

Landing next to Carla and grabbing her by the shoulder's, Bryson shook her out of her daze and forced her to snap back to reality as he angrily shouted: "-Damn it Carla what the hell were you thinking?! Leaving the safety of the grove like that?! _You could've been killed_ if Shadow and Midnight hadn't spotted you when they did!-" "-I-,"Carla's mind ran a thousand thoughts a second, trying to catch up to reality as she began to comprehend what just happened: "...Oh God I-, I'm sorry Bryson I didn't-, I mean I-..." Bryson wasn't sure what she was trying to say at first, until he noticed she was still clutching Eren's jacket and Mikasa's cardigan: in the short but terrifying moment she almost lost her life (again), she hadn't let go of either of the garments; the fact she was holding them so tightly that her knuckles had turned white, plus the fact she'd been crying, gave him a good idea of why she was out here. Breathing a mixed sigh of relief and worry, he let her go and looked her in the eye with an apologetic gaze: "...Listen, _I'm sorry_ okay? You just-, when we realized you were gone we panicked and, when Shadow realized you'd left the protection of the concealment spell we-..." he sighed again as he mentally tried to get his thoughts back in line, "Look, _Please_ just-, we've lost enough good people already, don't go looking for death just because Eren is gone: he wouldn't want you to die, not like that; he'd want you to live"

Suddenly: time slowed all around her as Carla remembered Eren's decision to join the Scouts, and the reason why he wanted to sign up in the first place...

 _I know it's ugly out there, there's death around every corner, but-, we can't just give up on it! Because otherwise this nightmare is never going to end!_

For the first time, she truly understood what he meant by those words: being brutally reminded that they lived in fear of the titans; that there was a reason why humanity retreated behind the walls so long ago. Eren had seen the ugly truth of that reality, and he wasn't afraid to face it head on with everything he had; determined to fight it to the bitter end. As reckless and hot-headed as he might have been, for the first time ever Carla truly appreciated the courage her son had had: his determination and conviction wasn't out of some reckless need to prove a point; he _genuinely wanted to do it_ for the sake of everyone within the walls, not just himself. And what hit her the hardest, was the knowing that if _she_ died, all her memories of him would die with her: to think that Eren would pass into obscurity sent a horrible feeling throughout her whole being; she would _never_ let that happen, _never again_. Reaching her hand up to her chest, and feeling Shadow's pendant beneath her blouse, she felt new tears welling up in her eyes as she thought: 'I'm so sorry Eren...I _promise_ I'll carry on: _I'll live for you_ ; because if I die, my memories of you will die with me...and I _won't_ let that happen!' she wiped the tears from her face, and heaved a deep sigh as she tried to compose herself. "...I'm sorry Bryson: I was so lost in my grief I wasn't paying attention"

Allowing a small smile of relief to cross his lips, Bryson patted her on the shoulder as he reassured her, "It's okay: if you need to be alone next time, just let us know okay?" "Okay..." Carla nodded. She glanced up to apologize to Shadow for worrying him and Midnight, but her train of thought stopped as she suddenly caught sight of the strange blue substance covering Shadow's fist and knuckles: seeing the same thing, Bryson flew up and perched on the titan's arm, carefully scooting along to his hand, and gently ran a hand over the strange substance: "...Crystal? ..." he knitted his brows together in confusion.

The substance in question was a semi-opaque vivid blue crystal, as dazzling and varying in many blue hues as Shadow's own eyes, and emitting a soft vivid electric glow: although its internal structure resembled the tiny fractures of regular crystal's, the surface of the substance was smoother than glass, so smooth and sleek in fact that Bryson's hand felt like it was slipping over 'solid silk' (if such a thing were real). Gazing up at Shadow, who was also inspecting the substance with great curiosity and concern, Bryson was about to ask him what it was, when suddenly the crystal began to recede into his hand: like ice melting in hot water, Shadow's markings around his hand and wrist glowed as the crystal disappeared into his hand, until his appendage was back to normal and the glowing gently stopped. "... What was _that?_ " Bryson stared up at the titan in mild alarm. : I don't know? : Shadow spelt out with his 'smoke light, : It happened yesterday during my fight with the armoured titan, it seems to be as tough as his armour, because I found I could actually hit him without breaking the bones in my hand:. "How come you've never shared this with us before?" Bryson pressed him, : Bryson, I didn't know I could do this up until yesterday, and even now I'm still not sure what triggered it?: Shadow replied almost frantically.

"...Huh: another mystery Claude will have to look into some other time" Bryson blinked in surprise. Suddenly noticing the disintegrating carcass of the first titan nearby, and seeing the evaporating bloodstains on Angel's feather's, Bryson stared at the avian titan in both amazement and shock: "...Angel, _did you do that?_ " he pointed to the carcass; Angel reluctantly nodded. "It's true!" Carla called up to Bryson and the titans, "Angel attacked that titan and managed to bite through its nape" Midnight and Shadow both glanced down at the younger titan in astonishment.

" **You-...Actually** _ **killed**_ **a titan?** _ **All on your own?**_ **"** Hecate stared at the younger goddess in flabbergasted amazement: of all the things she figured Elysia was capable of, she _never_ in a million years ever thought she'd be able to do something like _this._ **"...Y-Yeah..."** Elysia nodded anxiously: still surprised if not a little alarmed by her own actions: **"...When I saw Carla down below and I saw that titan grab her I-...I don't know what happened? I just felt this** _ **anger**_ **boil up inside me as I remembered how** _ **useless**_ **I was yesterday, and how I wasn't able to do anything to stop them...I just-,** _ **I don't want**_ **it to happen again;** _ **I don't want to be so weak and useless to anyone!**_ **And if that means I have fight then I'll** _ **fight**_ **no matter what!** _ **I don't want the titans to win**_ **; I don't want them within these walls! Not after what they've done! I'll never forgive them for destroying the human's lives!** _ **I won't forgive them for taking Eren and Mikasa away from Carla!**_ **-..."** she ranted, before calming down and gazing up at Javorin with confusion and pain laced in her eyes; glowing pale blue tears welling up in her eyes: **"...Is this-...Is this 'wanting' revenge? Is this what it means to want to seek vengeance? To hurt so much that you want to hurt back, to make it feel better? Because if it is** _ **I don't want it!**_ **I don't know how to make it go away!"** she sobbed. Hecate kneeled down and gently placed her hands on her feathered shoulders: **"Just** _ **don't**_ **"** she stated in a serious tone, making Elysia frown at her in further confusion: **"Don't? Don't what?"** **"Don't let yourself become consumed by it: because not only will your anger hurt those you care about, you'll end up regretting your choices for the rest of your life, and then you'll be no good to anyone; and all that will be left is for you to die..."** Hecate explained as she looked her in the eye, with a gaze that told her to listen: **"We may be gods, but even** _ **we**_ **cannot predict the final outcome: the uncertainly of the destiny of the world is the will of the ancient ones; I know it's** _ **fucked up**_ **, especially when you cannot predict what's going to happen next in a situation like** _ **this**_ **, but** _ **that**_ **is the price we pay for choosing to exist upon this world: and if you cannot accept that, then that's** _ **your**_ **choice. But** _ **don't lose yourself**_ **to one moment of all-consuming grief and rage: for while it might bring you satisfaction in the present, the effects of that choice will be felt for a long time to come..."** Elysia stared at her in a mix of confusion and realization; she wasn't sure if she understood all of it, but she knew Hecate had a point in there somewhere: **"...But-...How do I stop it hurting?"** she desperately pleaded: **"You can't"** Hecate flatly stated as she stood back up with an unreadable gaze: **"What you have endured, and are enduring even now will remain with you for the rest of your life: how you** _ **choose**_ **to deal with it is down to you. You can let it fester, let it** _ **define you**_ **and all the things you chose to do, until you become consumed by the darkness that will have entwined around your heart; until you are driven by nothing but rage, hatred and pain...Or, you can put it aside: lock it up and bury it deep down, and save it for when you need it; and in the meantime,** _ **be there**_ **for your friends and family. They're in pain, angered, and frustrated at their circumstances,** _ **the same as you**_ **: so don't think you are the only one who knows what this feels like..."**

Elysia stared up at the elder goddess, unsure what to say or think: as she let her gaze drop down to the forest floor, she suddenly noticed Carla staring up at her with a look of worry in her eyes: **"... Look at her, look at her aura..."** Hecate impassively added; **"She's lost her home** _ **and**_ **her children, and yet her heart has not become so eclipsed by her sorrow that she's stopped caring about** _ **you**_ **and everyone around her. And right now, she see's you crying and is worrying if you're okay or not? ...** _ **You really think she hates you?**_ **Do you believe you let her down by saving her life just now?"**

Scrunching her face up into a look of regret as a fresh wave of tears poured from her eyes, Elysia leaned right down and let Carla hug her face: the woman began to cry too as she cooed soft sweet words of assurance to her, and gazing up into her pale ice blue eyes, she smiled: "...I forgot to thank you for saving my life yesterday: if your tears hadn't healed my injury, I'd probably be dead". Elysia stilled in realization, as she remembered how indeed: her tears had healed the wound in her shoulder and the cut over her left eye. A small shaky smile crossed her pale lilac lips as she nuzzled her face into Carla's arms: and all of a sudden, the pain in her heart that she felt only moments ago didn't seem to be so much at the forefront of her mind anymore.

Watching the happy little scene from his perch on Shadow's wrist, Bryson allowed himself to feel a wave of relief go through him: gazing up at Shadow, he discreetly commented: "I don't know what it is you say when you 'talk' to one another like that: but whatever it is, I can only assume you must have some truly profound wisdom"

With his warm smile and understanding gaze, Shadow spelt out, : Wisdom can only be learned from experience. And suffice to say, this is not the first tragedy we have had to endure: Bryson gazed up at Shadow impassively, before a curious frown knitted his brows together: "...Not the first?" he couldn't help but ask. Shadow glanced away in thought for a moment, before meeting Bryson's gaze and spelling out,: No. What happened in Shiganshina yesterday was terrible, but for us, it is not the first time we have had to endure such sorrow: The former Scout was about to ask something else, when a loud shout echoed through the trees: "GUUUYS! GET BACK HERE RIGHT NOW!" Tyto yelled at the top of his lungs.

Without hesitation, Midnight scooped up Carla and ran off with her back to the grove with Shadow, Angel and Bryson in hot pursuit. As they approached, they saw Boar, Tyto, Evrard and Falken at the edge of the concealment spell, all looking frantic with worry: "-Guys! Its Brendis, Brenden and Bren! We can't find them anywhere, and Bemadette left the threshold to go look for them!" Evrard shouted up to the titans: **"Don't worry I got their scent, they're about five hundred yards over the other side of the northern rise!"** Herne told them, pointing to the north side of the grove: **"Okay stay put and keep the concealment spell up; we just had a narrow escape!"** Javorin stated as he took Carla out of Midnight's hands and placed her down next to Tyto, **"You stay here too Elysia, help Herne keep an eye on the others!"** he quickly added before taking off with Midnight and Bryson around the edge of the grove towards the north. "Should we go after them dad?" Rowan asked as he readied his bow and quiver: "No! If Shadow says we stay in the grove, _we stay in the grove!_ " his father told him firmly. "But, dad" Ariana began to panic, "-I can smell more of them approaching!"

Locating Bemadette and her brother's wasn't hard at all, the two fifteen meter titan-gods only had to hone in on the shouting, yelling and string of insults coming from over the other side of the rise: as they crested the incline, they spotted the four siblings down in a shallow hollow; so engrossed in their argument that they didn't hear the thundering footsteps of the three eight meter class titans fast approaching, until said titans crested the opposite side of the hollow and made a beeline for them.

The children screamed in terror as the titans dumbly jumped head-first at them with their mouths agape, like swallows trying to catch flies. Right at the same instance, both Javorin and Hecate put on a burst of speed and dived for them: while Bryson swung up into the trees above them waiting for an opening to present itself. Midnight slammed her fist into the first titan, pounding it into the ground face-first while Javorin scooped the children up out of the way, but not before the second and third titan tried to grab them by clambering over him to his outstretched arms. Lying on the ground in such a vulnerable position, Javorin quickly curled up into the fetal position, keeping the children in the center of his curved torso: providing a bulky wall of flesh between them and the monsters. Hecate was quick to dispatch the first titan with a swift slash to the nape with her claws, but as she tried to kill the remaining two, the third titan lunged at her neck and tried to bite down into her flesh while she held the second titan by the throat. The black and white titan-goddess roared in surprise, utterly angered by the creature's audacity: with a hard shove of her one free hand she pushed it back off of her, and lunged forward to bite down into its neck: her sharp upper canines easily sliced into the hot flesh and left a couple of good-sized puncture wounds. As she ripped the second titan's head off with one strong pull, she got the third titan far enough away that she was able to bring her foot up and round-house kick it off her: sending it flying out of the hollow. Turning her attention back to the second titan, the flesh in and around its neck was already regenerating, and so with another slash of her claws, she destroyed the nape entirely.

" **All clear?"** Javorin asked offhand, keeping his body curled up around the children, as they sat panicking in his cupped hands: **"Nearly, just got one left"** Hecate replied as she got back on her feet, just in time to see Bryson fly down out of the canopy and disappear beyond the northern side of the rise: right where the titan landed. Worried for the unarmed Scout, Hecate took off with her claws elongated and at the ready, but as she crested the top of the hollow, the scene before her made her stop...

A large bolder the size of a small house and shaped crudely like an anvil protruded out of the forest floor at the base of a giant tree: there, the titan had landed on the giant rock at an odd angle, for its head and arms were crumpled up on the ground while the rest of its body lay across the top of the bolder, like a dead fish about to be gutted. Bryson was standing within several meters of the monster, well out of the reach of its disproportionately small skinny arms, but the titan itself hardly looked like it was going to put up much of a fight. The creature's right leg had sustained a couple of bad compound fractures with both its Tibia and Fibula protruding out of the flesh, it's left arm was bend up and over the back of its head in such way that it was clearly dislocated from the shoulder joint, and it had suffered a good sizable laceration to the chest: with blood on the end of the rock confirming where it had landed. From what he remembered of his time fighting titans with the Scouts, Bryson knew that these types of injuries were hardly a hindrance to a titan, despite being crippled the creature should be sitting upright and trying to swipe at him by now; but instead, something was very different, and very wrong with this scene.

The titan's flesh had turned from a mix of healthy peaches, tan, cream, pinks and other human-like skin tones, to a sickly dull, pasty pale grey, with blood vessels beneath the surface of its skin turning dark until they almost looked black: dark patches appeared under its eye's as they seemed to glaze over and stare up into nothingness, and its breathing was becoming more labored and shallow, as if it were struggling to draw breath. But more noticeably the injuries were not healing, no vast quantity of steam was being released from the exposed tissues and the blood was slowly oozing out of the wounds and hardly evaporating at all. Realizing the titan no longer posed a threat: Hecate turned her claws back into fingers and approached the languishing beast, Bryson merely stared at the creature in bemusement, as he scanned his eyes over the drastic changes in its physiology: "I don't understand? What's happening to it?" he thought aloud: "... Midnight, what did you do?" he glanced up at her.

For a moment Hecate wasn't quite sure herself: did she do this? And if so, what did she do exactly? Looking the titan over again, Bryson saw how the flesh around the puncture holes was turning black with necrosis: its body rotting from the inside out: and yet, there was no nauseating stench of decay that was usually present with this kind of necrosis, it just smelt like regular disintegrating titan flesh always did, like burnt meat and blood. Cautiously approaching for a closer look, he noticed there was residue of a vivid green liquid in and around the puncture holes: picking a twig up off the ground, poking it into the wounds and wiping some of the residue onto it, he brought it closer to his face for a sniff. The smell was not at all what he expected, a strange mix of cucumbers and sweet vinegar; fresh yet biting the inside of his nose as he breathed it in. Glancing up at Midnight, Bryson noticed the tip of her fangs poking out slightly from behind her lilac lips, and as he glanced back at the puncture marks, an idea suddenly began to take shape: "...Did your _bite_ did this?" he cocked an eyebrow: Midnight merely shrugged as she spelt out, : I guess? But I don't know how? :

A loud guttural groan from the titan suddenly pulled their attention back to its predicament: sensing the danger was over Shadow had gotten back up and had crested the edge of the hollow with Bemadette and her brother's still in hand: "HEY! What's taking so long?!" Bemadette called down to Bryson: "Something's happened!" Bryson shouted back, "Listen, when you get back to the grove tell Claude there's something he needs to see, right now!" **"What's going on?"** Javorin asked offhand as he studied the titan in confusion, **"A development I think?"** Hecate replied dubiously, **"He's right, go fetch Claude; I think we're going to need his expertise on this"**

Without hesitation Javorin left for the grove, and half a minute later returned with Claude in his cupped hands: "Shadow say's you found something interesting!" Claude glanced down at Bryson, noticing the titan in a mix of surprise and alarm as Javorin bent down so he could disembark: " _Holy Sina!_ What on earth happened to that titan?" he exclaimed; "Midnight, apparently?" Bryson replied: turning to Claude as he tentatively approached. "Claude, you're our top scientist and biologist, what do you make of this?" Bryson gestured to the monster: "Midnight bit the titan in self-defense and now the wound looks like its becoming infected: the titan isn't able to regenerate from its injuries either; can you shed any light on this?" he added. Glancing over at the titan, Claude blinked in surprise at the creature's deteriorating condition: "Well I have to say, for my first ever regular titan he's certainly not the fittest specimen..." he thought aloud, daring to take a few steps closer, "And it's no surprise, that black colouration looks distinctly like some form of necrosis..." he noticed the puncture marks, and the strange green substance in the wound. "... How strange, there appears to be some kind of liquid residue embedded in the tissues" he thought aloud.

"Already got a sample" Bryson handed Claude the stick with said residue on it: looking down at the strange green droplets he sniffed it out of curiosity; "Hmm ...-Remarkable!" he exclaimed with a smile. Bryson blinked in surprise: "You _know_ what it is?" he gasped, half expecting him to be stumped. "Indeed-, well? Sort of: but just to confirm my suspicion," the scientist smiled up at Hecate, "Oh Midnight? Would you be a dear and come on down so I can take a closer look at those pretty pearly's of yours, please?" he beckoned her. Hecate laid herself down on her front, rested her chin on her folded arms and opened her mouth wide. Then, unexpectedly, Claude climbed up onto her hands, and standing with his back to her leaned in over backwards into her maw, inspecting the area right behind her upper teeth; much to her and Shadow's bemusement.

" **Any clue as to where he's going with this?"** Javorin asked offhand, **"No idea"** Hecate mentally shrugged. Seeing a human in the mouth of a titan never failed to send a cold shiver of dread up Bryson's spine, as flashbacks of his time in the Scouts flittered through the front of his mind: memories of witnessing his comrades being eaten alive haunted him like restless ghosts; and seeing so many of Shiganshina's citizens meeting the same fate only confounded the trauma of it all. Taking a deep breath, he reminded himself Midnight is _nothing_ like the titans that overran Shiganshina: after all this time, he _knew_ she, Shadow, Boar and Angel were nothing like them: "Oh good grief! _How on earth_ could I have missed _this_?!" Claude exclaimed in excitement, much to everyone's surprise: "What is it?" Bryson demanded, "Take a look at this! It's utterly remarkable!" Claude beckoned him inside Midnight's mouth: "Uh-, I'm good, _really_ : just describe to me what you see" the former Scout hesitated, shaking his head in mental exasperation; some habits just refuse to go away. "Midnight has a set of venom glands!" Claude exclaimed, "Venom glands?!" Bryson frowned in surprise **"What?"** Hecate raised an eyebrow in equal surprise. "Indeed!-" Claude replied as he gazed up at said glands, which were two large noticeable pillow-sized bumps on the roof of her mouth, right behind her long fang-like upper canines: "I've seen similar glands in several species of venomous snakes, there is a difference in the size and morphology of course, but they're in the same general location of the mouth where a snake's venom glands would be located. I wonder if..." he raised his hand and gently pressed up against the left-side gland: Midnight flinched a little as she felt him pressing on said gland, sending a bolt of dread up Bryson's spine yet again, but the flinch was nothing more than a knee-jerk reaction and her mouth remained open. The former scout watched in amazement as the vivid green venom oozed out of the tip of her left fang, and dripped in large droplets onto the forest floor, forming a small puddle, "Ohohoh quickly! Grab something to scoop it up in! We _must_ get a sample!" Claude panicked. Patting himself down for anything that might be in his pockets and glancing down around the forest floor, Bryson noticed a small stone with an indentation near the boulder: rushing over to pick it up, the titan tried to turn its head to bite him, but it hardly had any strength left as it feebly closed its jaw. As Claude continued to massage the venom gland, Bryson was careful to catch several droplets as they fell into the stone's indentation: "Okay, I got some" he patted Claude on the side, who then carefully stood upright, being careful not to snag the top of his head on the rest of Midnight's teeth.

Gazing down at the droplets in the stone, Claude smiled up at Midnight: "My dear, once again you continue to be full of surprises!" **"Uh huh?"** she regarded him with a weird look, **"Well? You do: venomous fangs? When did** _ **that**_ **happen?"** Javorin noted: **"I could say the same for you Mr Crystal knuckledusters"** she shot him a look: **"Touché"** Javorin admitted flatly. "This day seems to be full of surprises..." Bryson frowned; glancing over at the titan, the former Scout couldn't help but wonder aloud: "Do you think there's a chance the titan could recover from the venom's effects?" "Oh, it's hard to say ol' boy," Claude adjusted his pince-nez with one hand as he took the stone in the other, "From what we know of the titan's regenerative ability, they can recover fast from any physical injury bar a direct strike to the nape (obviously): but this is a _poisoning_ , an assault against the body's chemistry and compromising it on a number of levels; it's _entirely_ different altogether. From what I understand of snake venom, it can either make one rather sick or kill a human outright, it depends on factors like age, body mass and blood volume, possible allergic reactions and whether the immune system is already compromised: and of course the species of snake in question. But it's a _titan_ that made the bite, and one that's _far_ from your average abnormal: with fangs and venom glands _that_ large, it appears Midnight delivered a dosage that adequately compromised the titan's regenerative ability" he hypothesized. "And yet the titan isn't dead yet," Bryson observed as the titan's skin continued to turn black as the necrosis spread throughout its body: "Which can only mean that its body must be fighting the venom" he concluded. "Or, contrary to its appearance the venom has yet to reach the critical bodily systems that sustain its vitals: the brain, the heart and so on: without performing a proper detailed examination we can't say for sure" Claude offered. Thinking about it for a moment: the two humans suddenly froze as they heard the distant sound of titan footfalls echoing through the trees; "We've lingered out here too long" Bryson sighed with an annoyed frown, "Okay, let's not take the chance this thing might recover: Midnight?"

Getting back up on her feet, Midnight grabbed the titan by one arm and flipped it over: its body was totally limp with no strength remaining, and with a firm slash to the nape she killed it instantly. But as she let it fall back down to the ground, the body didn't disintegrate rapidly as it would normally do, instead, it simply continued to turn black all over, and began gently fizzing as large wisps of steam and embers drifted off its skin a little at a time. "How strange, even when dead the body doesn't break down and evaporate" Bryson thought aloud as he climbed up into Midnight's waiting hands with Claude, being careful not to spill a drop of the venom in the stone. "Come on, let's go" Bryson patted Midnight on the hand, and together she and Shadow treaded quietly back towards the grove. "You _do_ know you've got nothing to contain that in, right?" Bryson pointed to the stone: "Eh, sadly yes: but not to worry, I can write down some brief notes in my journal to make sure I get round to studying it another time... Goodness only knows, I-, won't be able to indulge in my scientific curiosity for a good long while yet" Claude sighed ruefully.

Upon returning to the grove, everyone greeted the two best friends in a mix of worry and relief: "Finally! _What the hell_ was keeping you guys?!" Gustav exclaimed, "You had us worried sick! What were you four doing back there?!" Freya exclaimed as well. "Well? ..." Claude nervously smiled as he carefully stepped down from Midnight's hand, being mindful not to spill a drop of the venom: "Um? We made a bit of an interesting discovery..." he showed them the stone.

While Claude and Bryson explained what happened, Shadow turned his attention to Ariana, who approached him with a relieved smile; holding his hand out, she climbed up into his palm and hugged his thumb. She knew he could handle himself, but after yesterday she was (understandably) being doubly concerned for him: "You okay big guy?" she asked; he nodded with that ever warm smile of his, and brought her up to his face so she could hug his cheek. Glancing up at him, Ariana pulled away from his face as she realized he was gazing at something else: following his eyes over to where he was looking at, she saw Bemadette sitting on a large root by Angel's root cave; surrounded by Belle, Shyla and Fox, and looking rather sullen. "...Oh yeah" Ariana sighed, "Miriam and Gustav just gave her and the boys a real chewing out". Reading her aura, Shadow could see Bemadette was raw: her emotions wrung and her energies spread thin, never mind the realization that they just had a close brush with death; her mind wasn't in a good place, and it _wasn't just_ because of what happened yesterday. Ever compelled by his instinct to help however he could, he treaded over to the cave and sat himself down on the grass where the roots disappeared under the ground. As Ariana jumped down out of his palm and onto the grass, Shadow noticed Brendis, Brenden and Bren hiding amid the roots near their big sister.

Feeling the titan's gaze on them, the three brothers retreated further into the tangle of roots, while their sister (knowing Shadow wasn't likely to do anything) merely gazed up at Shadow with an apologetic look; taking a moment to regain her composure as Ariana, Belle, Shyla and Fox came closer. "You okay? I know Miriam's lectures aren't the easiest things to survive, especially when she gets riled up like that" Fox offered: "You scared all of us, running off like that" Shyla glanced down at the three brothers, and up at Bemadette. "I know, and I have no excuses: what happened was stupid and reckless, and it _never should have happened_ to begin with..." she glanced behind her, shooting her brothers a scathing reprimanding glare: it was their fault they nearly got eaten, and they didn't seem to know it. "I'm sorry Shadow, I didn't mean to scare you guys like that" she glanced up at the titan, who simply nodded in understanding. "You gonna chew us out too?" Bren asked hesitantly, Bemadette simply huffed in exasperation and stared down at the grass beyond the roots: "Given what just happened? I don't think another chewing out is necessary"

An uneasy silence hung in the air between the four siblings, before Brendis sat down in his hidey-hole, and sighed with a frown: "...This doesn't change anything you know?" he glared up at her "Mum's waiting for us in Trost, and once we get there, we're gonna find her _with or without_ you..." he stated sternly. Bemadette sighed in bitter disappointment; "-Besides, _why_ do you even care about us?" Brendis challenged her: " _We know_ you hated mum and we know you hate us too: you're only keeping us around because you're our big sister, that it's your job to look after us whether you want to or not!" "-THAT'S NOT TRUE!" Bemadette snapped spinning round to face him, " _Who the hell said I hated you?!_ Did I ever say that even once? NO! _I damn-well didn't!_ " she shot back, "... Look, I know we haven't gotten along very well even at the best of times: but given the situation you guys were growing up in and what mum did for a living, can you _honestly_ say it wasn't surprising? I didn't like it anymore than the three of you, and I _hated_ the fact that-, _she had a way out_ : all that time she could've come to work for Miriam at the Black Stallion, she _didn't have to be_ a woman of the night...She could've done _so much more_ with her life, but instead she spent it wallowing in her own self-pity, and blaming everyone else _but herself_ for all the shit in her life. And _don't you dare tell me I don't know shit!_ I've known her way longer than you! So don't go claiming you knew her better than me! _Not when you don't even know half of what happened between us!_ " Bemadette bitterly spat out with tears welling up in her eyes.

The boys were quiet for a moment: but still not satisfied, Brendis continued to stir the pot; "...Maybe she let _you_ down, but at least she was always there for _us_ : _she cared about us_ " "...She _cared_ about you? ..." Bemadette gazed down at him as she wiped the tears from her eyes: with an impassive gaze, she challenged him in a bitter tone: "... _Tell me_ : do you remember that time she brought that John home, and he was so drunk and angry that he beat her up and _forced you guys to watch him do it?_ Do you remember that time she was gone for _three days_ and left you guys alone in the house with _nothing_ but a bucket of dirty water and a loaf of stale moldy bread? She _never_ told us she was gone, nor had the sense of mind to drop you all off at the Inn. And do you remember that time when that man calling by the house asking to 'buy' you three off her? _And she accepted?_ If Miriam and Pops hadn't shown up when they did _I don't even want_ to imagine what might have happened to the three of you. And of course I don't have to remind you about that 'dispute' she had with the landlord's old lady that resulted in you guys ending up _homeless_ on the streets for nearly a week, before Miriam found out and had words with her: again, she _didn't_ tell us. And let's not forget the day before last: _she locked you_ in the house and didn't bother to drop you off with me; she didn't even _tell you_ where she was going... So tell me, how does any of _that_ : plus all the other times she brought drunken and violent Johns back to her place, forced you to sleep in the basement with the rats and cockroaches, and deprive you guys of food and water when she had plenty of money to feed herself; make _her_ a good mother?..."

Another silence stretched out between them: Brendis simply sat there, his face scrunching up as tears ran down his cheeks, unwilling to amid the truth; he _didn't want to believe_ any of it. Their mother was waiting for them in Trost, she was sick with worry, and she would scoop them up in her arms the moment she saw them: he wanted so desperately for that to be true; but he wouldn't give his sister the satisfaction, no way, he was right and she was wrong: "...You're lying..." he sobbed angrily, "... _She's our mum_ , she didn't mean to do those things, she just-..."

"-Just what?" Bemadette frowned down at him, " _Just what_ exactly? What, she didn't mean to be so uncaring? About _not giving a shit_ about us or our safety? About not caring what would happen if someone got their hands on us?!-" she fumed as she stood up, grabbed her shirt and threw it off: the three brothers stared at her in shock, as did Shadow, Ariana, Belle, Shyla and Fox as they gazed at the deep ugly scars across her chest and abdomen: obviously burn marks that took their time to heal. "-You see this?! _This is what she did to me!_ This is what I got for refusing to give myself to a perv, just so she could earn some extra coin!" She fumed. Sitting upright, Brendis wiped the tears from his eyes as she straightened out the sleeves on her shirt and sat back down. Knowing what they were all thinking, Bemadette took a deep breath, and obliged as she explained: "...When I just turned six: mum brought this one John home so she could 'entertain' him. I went to my room as always and stayed out of the way. Later, when they were done, the guy said he was willing to pay double if he could 'spend some quality time' with me too: and mum, to my complete shock and horror, accepted without question. Realizing what he had in mind I knew I was in trouble, and the second he opened my door I kicked him in the loins and told him I wasn't for sale. Luckily he didn't want to push his luck and got the hell outta there: I shouted and screamed at mum, demanding to know why she did that. But she was more pissed off at the fact I just drove away a customer, and so she punished me by grabbing the pan of boiling oil off the fire and throwing it over me: the pain was unlike anything I'd ever felt, and I ran outta there screaming in agony: I ran all the way up to the Black Stallion and Miriam took me to see Breck immediately. After he took care of my wounds and bandaged me up, Pops called the MP's on mum and I told them what happened. Of course nothing came of it: the MP's ruled it as a 'family dispute' and didn't do anything further except issue her a warning...Mum asked me to forgive her; but the second I saw her, and I saw _that look_ in her eyes _I knew I could never trust her_ ever again. And neither could Miriam: she let me move into the Inn that same day: and I'd been there ever since..." she sighed as she put her shirt back on.

"...I knew you had issues with your mum, but _geez_. Why didn't you say anything Bem'?" Belle pleaded. "...I don't know?" Bemadette admitted, "I just-, didn't want to talk about it..."

Another long silence hung in the air as Bemadette gazed up pleadingly at Shadow, as if asking for strength: through her aura Shadow could see she was struggling, but she was strong, and way too stubborn to back down as she pressed on. Taking a deep breath, the kids listened as she continued in a more measured tone: "...None of us asked for this: you, me, Brenden, Bren? None of us asked to be born into poverty, violence and having to fight every day of our lives, _just_ to survive long enough to see the next day; beyond that? It was hard to say? Hope was a fragile luxury: it still is, now more than ever..." she gazed down at her brothers: "...I'm sorry if I ever gave you the impression that I don't care: even living with the Willums I never felt truly free of mum, and I used to get _so angry_ at times, knowing what she did, _knowing what she was willing to do_ ; I just can't help but think 'why would she do that?' ...For so long I wanted to believe that it was one big misunderstanding, that somehow _I_ was the one that got it all wrong. But as the years went by and she kept coming to visit me, I could see it was all a front: she was simply paying lip service to stay on Miriam's good side, when in reality she just wanted to have her own way, regardless of me or my welfare. And when she had you guys I realized she was about to let history repeat itself all over again... I had hoped that-, by inviting you guys to the Inn that she'd realize she had an alternative, that she didn't have to repeat her mistakes; Miriam confronted her about it several times, but she refused. Her pride wouldn't allow her to see Miriam get the satisfaction of knowing she was right, and that _she_ was wrong. In the end she couldn't be asked to keep the facade up any longer, so she left... I guess what I'm trying to say is; _it's not my fault_ mum was who she was, and it's _not yours_ either: she may have said that we made her life miserable and were a burden to her? But honestly? I think she was a miserable person _long before_ she ever had us; the fact she had neither the strength courage nor smarts to improve her own circumstances wasn't our fault. She just couldn't learn to accept her own failures, and admit when she was wrong...It was always easier to blame us..."

Heaving a heavy sigh, Fox sat himself down beside her and stared down at the grass: "...You know? You're not the first to be let down by the one person you thought would be there for you, no matter what" "No..." Bemadette suddenly realized, glancing up at him, "I'm not ...Sorry Fox I didn't mean to forget- "-Hey, it's okay?" he laid a hand on her shoulder, "Besides, things could have turned out a lot worse...I should know..." he sighed ruefully, "We both do" Shyla added as she approached her, "And if you still feel raw about it? And you want to talk, we'll listen okay?" she patted her on her other shoulder, "You three too..." she glanced down at the brothers. As they stared up at her with unreadable expressions, Shyla crouched down in front of their hiding places, and told them: "...I've been let down by my mum too: so don't think you're alone"

Brendis stared up at her for a moment, unsure what to think or say: but then quiet unexpectedly, Bren climbed out of his hole, and hugged his big sister by the waist: "Sorry sissy" he mumbled quietly. Surprised but relieved: Bemadette hugged him back and ruffled his hair. Brendis and Brenden glanced at one another, and simply sat there: neither accepting nor denying the truth of the matter; it was all too much to mentally digest at once. Sensing this, Shadow raised a hand, and spelt out, : Perhaps it would be a good idea to talk about it sometime? When you're ready:, "...Yeah, I think your right" Bemadette nodded as she thought about it. "Whoa, how'd he do that?" Brendis blinked in surprise as he got up and leaned out of his hole, "Magic" Ariana smiled, "Stick with us and he might show you some other tricks"

"So we take it you guys are back on talking terms again?" Lucy smiled as she and Lucius climbed down from where they'd been listening in atop the roots over Angel's cave. "...I don't know? Are we on talking terms again?" Bemadette asked her brothers with a weak smile: "We can talk!" Bren beamed; Brendis and Brenden glanced at one another and shrugged, "Meh, I guess?" Brendis replied as he and Brenden climbed out and sat next to her: "But I still ain't taking orders from the old witch" he frowned, gesturing over to Miriam: "Oh, I don't think _that's_ advisable" Bemadette smiled slyly. She was about to say something else when she saw the rest of the kids (bar Lawrence and Drake) approaching: "Hey" she greeted wearily.

"So? You guys finally resolved your family issues?" Jaye asked offhand as he idly stroked the two healed scars he now sported on his left cheek, "Eh, I think it's as good as it's gonna get. There's time I guess? ..." Bemadette shrugged. Seeing the tired and worn looks on Hazel, Clay, Ashlyn, Hawk and the Raven twin's faces, Bemadette couldn't help but ask: "...So? I know this goes without saying; but how're you guys holding up?" Glancing at one another, they didn't show much expression: "Like you said: as good as it's gonna get I guess? We'll be okay to make the journey to Trost" Hazel sighed with a forced smile, "Dad say's we'll have time to morn mum once we're safe; and he's right, we gotta get there if we're to stand any chance of survival" Clay added.

"By the way, speaking of 'family issues': there's something I've been meaning to ask you two..." Ash glanced over at Lucy and Lucius with an unreadable expression. The twins grew uneasy, as they could guess what it was he was going to ask. Everyone simply listened as Ash sighed in a worried tone; there was no easy way to ask this, and so he tentatively dithered: "...I heard my dad talking with Miriam earlier" he glazed at them both: "He said he found you guys locked in the basement of your home?" Everyone blinked in astonishment as they snapped their heads towards the twins: "Wha-, is that true?!" Belle exclaimed. The twins glanced at one another and nodded: there was no point in lying about it; together they lifted back their sleeves to reveal the red marks and bruises where the handcuffs had dug into their skin: "Holy shit, _what?_ " Jaye stared at the marks in surprise: "What the hell happened to you guys?" Hazel exclaimed in alarm.

Both Lucy and Lucius were quiet for a moment, as if unsure what to say at first, before Lucius explained in an unreadable tone: "...It was something Muller had been doing for a while now: mother and father didn't approve of us hanging out with you guys so they tried to keep us locked up in our rooms, or get Gilda to chaperone us whenever we went out; of course that wasn't a problem once we learned how to unpick door locks and give Gilda the slip by using that 'Celtic stealth' of yours. But, recently the whole thing was starting to get on Muller's nerve, so she had that chain put in the basement. Where she got the cuffs from I don't know, but a few weeks back she started drugging us and locking us up down there whenever mother and father were away on business in the interior... Of course, after some careful observations and sneaking around the house in the dead of night we soon located where Muller hid the key, snuck it out, and took it to your forge to have a copy made" he glanced over at Bemadette, who stared at him in surprise "Huh, I wondered why you were being so secretive about that key?" she thought aloud. "Well anyway," Lucy continued, "Now that we had _our own_ key we could sneak out of the basement window whenever Muller locked us up: she never figured it out of course, she didn't bother to check on us until nightfall long after we got back"

"So? What happened yesterday? If you had a spare key why didn't you try to get out?" Josefa interjected. A look of anger overcame the twins as they stared down at the bruises on their wrists: "...Muller found the key under my bed while we were with you guys up on the roof" Lucius stated bitterly, "When we got back she grabbed us both and marched us down there, and told us we wouldn't be let out until next Friday, when we were supposed to join our parents in Stohess..." "After she locked us up we heard her talking with Gilda," Lucy continued without skipping a beat, "She not only planned to leave us down there, she would _starve_ us as further punishment" "When we heard the first explosion, we realized very quickly that something bad was coming: Muller realized it too because she didn't waste any time packing up her things and getting outta there. They were probably already leaving the inner gate by the time the giant titan had kicked in the wall,...Gilda _didn't even beg_ for her to turn back and let us out; Muller had her so scared that she was more afraid of _her_ than the titans!" Lucius bitterly spat out as tears welled up in his eyes: Lucy put her arm around him and almost right away he felt at ease.

" _Holy shit_ guy's why didn't you say anything?!" Bemadette exclaimed in disbelief, making her brother's jump "-That's just-, _fucked up!_ " "Yeah, I mean if you were afraid or anything we'd have listened to you, we'd have tried to help out somehow? To hell with Muller's bullshit over whose fit to 'associate' with you guys: we were _never_ afraid of her!" Poppy stated vehemently. "...Lucy? Lucius? ..." Ash placed a hand on Lucius's shoulder as he gazed at them earnestly: "Did your parents _know_ anything about this? ..." Both the twin fell silent as their hurt frowns morphed into bitter scowls: it wasn't any secret that the twin's relationship with their parents had been a strained one, and not just over the issue of who the twins chose to be friends with. It wasn't obvious and it didn't show in any outstanding ways: but being friends with them for so long, the kids just _knew_ that something had always been 'off' when it came to family matters. And it was in the details where the cracks could be seen; even then, the twins were reluctant to share anything about the subject. "...Like they would have believed us anyway" Lucius stated darkly, "Just like when we told them we nearly drowned in the flood four years ago" Lucy added without skipping a beat.

"Huh?" Clay blinked in surprise: an uneasy silence fell over the group, before Lucy explained: "...The day after the flood, when we got back to Shiganshina your parents took us home and explained everything that happened the day before (leaving out one or two 'titanic' details of course). Although we'd been sent to our room, we overheard everything; your mum _lost her shit_ with our parents, telling father how he was a selfish bastard for not wanting to come and help her and the others with the search, to _not want to look_ for his own children, who damn-near almost _drowned_ and nearly got _kidnapped_ by human traffickers..." "You know? I _honestly thought_ that would shock them into coming to their senses: to at least _give enough of a shit_ to care about our well-being. But they just- ..." Lucius bitterly growled as he began to cry, remembering his father's words from that day, not long after Tyto and Freya had left the house...

 _How the hell can you two be so reckless as to go running off and doing such a stupid irresponsible thing! Getting caught out in a storm, nearly drowned in a flood, and nearly getting kidnapped?! How can you do that to us?! TO ME?! After all that I've invested in you two: good care, good tutors, good food and a good home, and this is what you do to repay me?! Never in my life have I been treated with such insolence and contempt! You two are the most selfish pathetic attention-seekers I've ever known! Better those human traffickers had taken you both, at least then your mother could birth a couple of obedient and grateful replacements! Or better yet, I could adopt a couple of pigs to be better offspring than you!_

"-Hey I just remembered," Belle suddenly realized, "Your parents took the barge up to Trost the day before yesterday: so? Unless they've already heard the news about Shiganshina and the titans, they should still be somewhere in Trost, right?" "And your point is Belle?" Ash raised an eyebrow: "Well? We're _going_ to Trost tonight aren't we?"

The twins glanced at her impassively before casting their gaze away: with a heavy sigh, Lucius explained: "...About that, when your grandmother told us about the plan to go to Trost tonight, we talked about it between ourselves," he glanced at his sister impassively, who returned the same look with a reaffirming nod, "And we've come to a decision" "We're not going to look for our parents" Lucy stated flatly. The others all stared at them, slightly taken aback: but no one questioned or contested them; knowing they were all expecting some kind of further elaboration, Lucius reluctantly explained: "...I know you all must be wondering why we didn't tell you, about our parents treating us the way they did? Well? To be honest we're not entirely sure ourselves..." he admitted as he sat down on a large root, his sister sitting down next to him: "...For the longest time we both believed that-, things were not always _that_ bad, sure Muller gave us a hard time, but by and large we just accepted it as the norm: that that's what all parents allowed their housekeepers to do to their kids... And then, we met you guys" he glanced up at Shadow, "And from that day on everything changed for us...Having you and your 'cousins', Mrs Jaeger, and everyone else put a lot of things in perspective: and little by little we began to realize what Muller was doing was wrong. What mother and father were _knowingly allowing her to do_ was wrong _"_

"There's _a lot_ about our parents we didn't talk about, for good reason: mother is a self-centered narcissist who _hated_ growing old so much she _couldn't even stand_ to look at us, she's _that jealous_ of our youth (if you can believe that). And father has a silver tongue and _knows_ how to talk his way around anyone; hell, the guy could commit murder right in front of a packed courtroom, and he'd be able to talk his way out of a long drop and short stop" Lucy explained, "If anyone had a complaint against him, he was usually able convince everyone that they were lying and _he_ was the injured party...Everyone except, your folks" Lucius gazed up at everyone. "Tyto was the only guy who could see right through him, and _he knew it_ : that's why he used to give your dad's such a hard time" Lucy added ruefully: "And for that I'm so sorry"

"Guys, did you _really think_ we wouldn't believe you?" Jaye blinked in surprise, "-That your old man would try to trick _us_ into thinking you were lying?" Josefa asked without skipping a beat: "No of course not!-" Lucius snapped, before instantly regretting his sharp tone: "...We _know_ you'd never think such a thing of us, and we'd never think the same of any of you!" "...It's just-..." Lucy hesitated as she gazed up at Shadow: "Over the years we spent time with you, the things you showed us and the lessons you taught us: we realized there were _so many things_ wrong in our family, things that our parents took for granted and treated with so little respect and consideration. Like us..." Gazing over at Bemadette, Lucius sighed as he thought aloud: "...You know? I realized it's kinda the same for us as it was between you and your mother... Up until the day of the storm, I _actually believed_ there may be something we could salvage from the relationship with our parents: some common thread we had yet to discover, or something that would bring them to their senses and force them to realize the truth of their actions. Something, _anything_..." Lucius glanced up at Shadow with a sheepish smile: "I confess I even contemplated introducing them to you: and asking if you could teach them some genuine wisdom about family, about _caring_ for one another, and _loving_ each other unconditionally; as _all_ parents are supposed to love their children..." He let his gaze wander back down to the grass as his face turned unreadable yet again: "... The day we were caught out in the flood, we were stuck on that giant tree and I realized we might just die, I wondered if they were worried about us? Being caught out in that weather, unable to get home; I _hoped beyond hope_ that that was true...But when Mrs Grayson, Miss Willum and the others showed up to rescue us, and they weren't on the cart: part of me still held out hope that they weren't able to come out for some good reason, that they were helping out with the evacuation in the city or something like that..." Lucius's expression turned darker, "...But the next day, when we got home: instead of scooping us up in their arms and crying their eyes out with heart-felt relief: father _reprimanded us_ for our 'selfishness and attention-seeking' and told us we weren't worth his time or effort... _We knew_ right there and then, _he was no father_. Parents don't punish their children for nearly dying; parents don't treat their children as part of their estate, as if they were another trinket to place on the mantelshelf and display at their own convenience. Mrs Grayson _told them_ we were in trouble, that we _might die_ if they didn't come and help: she begged, pleaded and even _ordered_ them to come help her. And _do you know_ what they said? ..." he glared daggers at the ground as tears rolled down his cheeks, "... _Do you know what my father told her?!_ "

"Just let me know when you find them so I can make the necessary arrangements: coffins aren't cheap you know, even _if_ their made to fit a child" Lucy bitterly quoted.

Another uncomfortable silence hung in the air, before Lucius continued in a sombre, self-loathing tone: "... _I can't believe_ it took us this long to realize we'd been kidding ourselves this whole time" he sighed as he wiped the tears from his eyes: "...All these years, and it _never_ occurred to us to question what was going on within our own home; and even then, part of me _still_ didn't want to believe our own parents would be _that_ heartless. To think of us as _disposable_ : less than garbage... But then, they're our parents; what's a child supposed to think? Is it too much to ask, for a little consideration at the very least? ... If our parents can't even be asked to come and save us, then _neither of us_ want anything to do with them anymore"

Everyone stared at them in shock: the sound of soft footfalls snapped them out of their daze, and made them turn around in time to see Freya and Carla steadily walking over to them with their arms linked and Angel following them close behind; it was clear from the looks on their faces that they'd overheard everything, and Angel was looking a little stressed out about it too. "...Mum, is this true? Did Lucy and Lucius's father really _say_ that?!" Ariana exclaimed, "...I'm afraid so darling" Freya sighed regretfully; "That's why he had that black eye when we got back, I'm afraid I-, lost my composure" she admitted sheepishly, "That's putting it mildly," Carla couldn't help by smirk, "From what you told me you completely went insane on him" "Yes well? It's not like the MP's were in a position to arrest me at the time anyway. Besides, he had it coming..." Freya frowned before unlinking her arm from Carla's and approaching the twins with a more motherly expression. "...Lucy? Lucius? Listen to me: we're all well aware of what your father was like; everyone in our street knew he was a snake _and_ a condescending bastard, and I'm _so sorry_ that you had to put up with him and your mother for so long..." she apologized, before letting her gaze drop to the ground in thought "Being who I am, ever the optimist: some part of me always held out some small slither of hope that maybe, being a father would force him to reconsider what he thought he knew. But as time went by I realized that wasn't the case; and, though I knew fatherhood was not a role he was qualified to commit to, I _never imagined for a moment_ he could be _that_ heartless; until that day," "Neither did we" Lucy offered: "But what he was and what he was like? That wasn't your fault Mrs Grayson" "Thank you," she smiled, "And in lieu of your decision to not want to find your parents, we took it upon ourselves to act in your stead, and came to a decision about you _and_ your well-being"

"When we get to Trost, one of us will 'adopt' you both" Carla smiled.

The twins nearly gawked at her as they exchanged surprised looks, as did the other kids, "Seriously?" Lucius stood up and stepped in front of her, "I mean-really? But who?" "We haven't figured that out yet: either Tyto and I and the rest of our family, the Willums or the Fitzsimmons; either way, you're _not_ going to be left to fend for yourselves in a place you're not familiar with. With no roof, bed or food to keep you going: none of us will have it" Freya stated. The twins didn't know what to say, as a pair of genuine smiles tugged at the corners of their mouths, and tears pricked their eyes yet again: "...I-, I don't know what say?" Lucius nearly choked: "You don't have to say anything Lucius" Carla assured him as she lay a gentle hand on his shoulder, "Whatever happens, no matter how dangerous or unpredictable things get, we're _not_ giving up on each other: _no one gets left behind_ , and that includes you two". Overcome with joy, the twins hugged both Carla and Freya, while the rest of the children sounded their delight.

Watching the happy little scene from where he sat with Clemmy, Marigold and Phoebe on the grass by the fire, Lawrence glanced up as Mable and Bren came over to sit with him and the girls: "Are _you_ gonna adopt them?" he asked impassively, "Maybe? Who knows?" Mabel shrugged, "We've got to get to Trost first, and it's going to be a very long and very dangerous journey, what with all those titans about: I don't know what's going to happen, and I'm sorry to say I can't make any promises Lawrence. But _I can_ tell you, no matter what happens I'll take care of you, okay?" she smiled down at him. "And speaking of caring: we got something we wanna ask _you_ buddy" Bren placed his hand on Lawrence's shoulder: "Me and Bren have been talking with Miss Willum and the other grown-ups, and we decided since you, me, Bren and the girls have got off to such a good start: we thought, you might want to come and live with us once we're inside wall Rose; the six of us together" Mabel smiled, "Would you like that? You can be Marigold, Phoebe and Clemmy's big brother? You seem to be doing such a good job of it already, it just seems a shame to break you guys up" Bren joked. Lawrence stared up at Mabel and her husband, before suddenly standing up and hugged them both around the neck. "Uh-, I'll take that as a yes then!" Bren laughed as he and Mabel hugged Lawrence back.

"Well? I take it you guys are fine with that little arrangement?" Gustav smirked as Carla and Freya rejoined the campfire with the children at their side, while Shadow repositioned himself by the fire: "Given the chaos Trost is going to be in, there's no way we're letting you kids go off by yourselves" Miriam stated. "But-, what if the Cooper's are in Trost and we run into them? What'll we do then?" Bemadette realized; Lucy and Lucius glanced at one another, before Lucius impassively stated: "We tell them we're not going with them, and that the subject is not up for debate" "I think it's highly unlikely they'll try to kick up a fuss; if they really cared about us to begin with, then they wouldn't have allowed Muller to lock us down in the basement of our home" Lucy added without skipping a beat. "Yeah but, what if they get the MP's involved, saying we kidnapped you guys or something?" Ashlyn pointed out worryingly: "Then they're gonna have to speak to _me_ about it" Miriam stated darkly as she cracked her knuckles, "There ain't a 'dispute' with the MP's I ain't walked away from yet: and I doubt those lazy pampered good-for-nothing swine's in the interior have met the likes of _me_ " she stated with a sly smirk. "Oh for Maria's sake Miriam this isn't the Shiganshina branch of the MP's we're talking about! The MP's in the interior are far better trained then those way out in the countryside! They'll have you in handcuffs in less than three moves flat!" Freya exclaimed.

"Uh actually? She's more likely to have them on _their_ backs in _two moves_ or less?" Derek sheepishly pointed out as he scratched the back of his neck: "Yeah, I wouldn't hold a candle to the MP's of the interior either: Shiganshina's district branch was riddled with slackers and bent MP's left and right: but those in the interior? Particular in wall Sina? They ain't much better, and in some places are actually worse" "Not to mention the fact they only do their jobs if you bribe them well enough" Pascal added as he and West rejoined the group, carrying a small chest between them. "Where the hell did you two disappear off to?" Miriam shot them both a look: "We went to go take out one of our 'long term deposits'" Pascal stated as they placed the chest down on the ground: and with a small key in hand he unlocked and opened the chest to reveal a whole stash of gold coins and paper notes: "We're gonna need some serious coin if we're to stand any chance of getting a better deal than everyone else" he stated as he scanned his eyes over the money, making sure it was all there: "Or? We could use it to by food? Clothing? A new house or two maybe? There's gotta be enough in there for each of us to receive an equal cut, surely?" Tyto surmised as he gazed down at the loot.

"Uh-, yeah! An equal cut! That's what we were thinking! Because, you know, we're practically family, and families share everything right?" West smiled nervously: hoping to avoid the worst of Miriam's skeptical gaze; "There's only enough in here to pay for a week's bed and board in Trost" Pascal stated flatly as he picked up wad of notes and counted out a certain amount: "But fortunately, this ain't the only 'long term deposit' we got stashed away" "What?! You mean there're _more_ of these you got buried elsewhere?!" Belle exclaimed in amazement. "Well duh?" West smirked as he rolled his eyes, "Back in the day: when we first made up our minds to run away to wall Maria, we came up with a plan so that if for whatever reason we had to run with only the clothes on our backs, we'd have money for provisions and wouldn't get caught short" Pascal explained as he continued to count out the money, "I got the idea from watching a fox raid a hen house: one by one he'd snatch a bird, slip out from under the fence, and once he was back near his den he'd bury it, so come lean times he'd have food readily available" he smirked: "We made sure we had stashes in all three walls, so that wherever we go, we'd have a 'bird' to keep us going through 'lean times'" West smiled. "Here..." Pascal handed Carla the sum of money, "This should be enough to get you a permit to enter Rose: in addition to any traveling expenses, food, accommodations? It'll be enough for two weeks at least" he stated.

"Huh? Why does _she_ need it more than us?!" Brendis demanded, to which Bemadette smacked him upside the head. "Because she needs to go and find her husband; he left Shiganshina long before the titans attacked, and I doubt the coach would've turned back once they heard the news of the breach. With any luck, he'll be waiting for her somewhere in or near Trost" Pascal stated as he closed the chest and locked it.

"Holy shit Grisha!" Gustav gasped in realization: "-How did we forget him?!" Rosemary exclaimed as she pressed her hand to her head: "I have to confess, in all the-, _stress_ of all this, Grisha completely slipped my mind" Carla admitted, feeling rather ashamed for nearly all but forgetting her husband, "...Oh god..." she suddenly began to panic, "...what do I-,...How am I going to tell him Eren and Mikasa are dead?!" she realized as fresh tears rolled down her face: "-Oh darling please don't stress yourself out again" Lucile gently took her by the hands, "Listen, I'm sure once we get to Trost and we find Grisha, we'll try to explain things as best we can" she assured her. "What? The guy just lost his son and daughter! There ain't no easy way to explain it no matter how much you sugar-coat it!" Gustav exclaimed, before huffing a deep sigh: "Besides, with all the refugees flooding into Trost by now: its unlikely Grisha will be in the city: they'll have moved everyone with a permit to the towns and villages on the outskirts of the district; he'll probably be there waiting for news or something?"

"That's why she needs the money, so she can bribe the MP's into issuing her a permit, right?" Drake threw in: "But then? Why can't _we_ have any of that money to by our own permits?" Rowan frowned: "Listen kid, there's _a whole slew_ of reasons why it wouldn't be practical to take that kinda cash with us: so to keep things simple I'm just gonna explain the big three obvious. One: all of us carrying money in a crowded city full of refugees and Sina knows who else is an open invitation for trouble, if someone notices we're all loaded, we could get our throats slashed and robbed in the dead of night. Two, all of us carrying cash is one thing, but all of us bribing for permits all at once? That's gonna look shady as hell, even to those crooked MP bastards: and three, we're gonna _need_ to keep a low profile: being Celts and hiding magical titans aside, we're gonna have enough on our plates just trying to deal the fact that we'll be refugees. If there's a food shortage or something, no amount of money is gonna make a difference besides drawing unnecessary attention to ourselves" Pascal glanced down at the chest: "The best way to get into wall Rose would be with discreetness and smarts, being patient and waiting for the right opportunity" he smirked.

"Why not just fly up over the wall whilst invisible? Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel won't have any trouble pulling _that_ off" Rowan shrugged: "Why bother going through the gate in the first place if we're just going to be lumbered together with all the other refugees?" " _Because_..." Dale glanced sideways at him dryly: "A whole bunch of people from Maria, suddenly showing up out of nowhere in the middle of wall Rose is going to look more than a bit suspect" "He's right Rowan," Bryson sighed, "First thing they'll probably do when we arrive is take our names, addresses and other details: they'll want a record of how many people have entered Rose, so as to figure out things like food rationing, accommodation allotment etc; if we just allow Shadow and his cousins to spirit us away into wall Rose in the dead of night, and someone catches us without any permits: it's going to cause more than a bit of trouble" "Like how we all scaled a fifty meter wall?" Miriam stated dryly, "I don't know about you, but it's been _decades_ since I even climbed a tree, never mind try to scale any of the three walls" she regarded her sisters with a weary smile.

"Hang on a sec-" Dale suddenly realized: "If taking money into Trost is gonna be a bad idea, why'd you dig _that_ up?" he pointed to the chest, "Because Carla needs the money more than any of us right now, and stopping off at any of the other of the 'long term deposits' on the way to Trost _won't_ be an option" Pascal stated as he and West picked the chest up and carried it off back to its hiding place inside the nearest root cave: "Grisha's already inside wall Rose, so her permit's more likely to get issued if she's got a spouse or relative with an already pre-existing permit!" West called out from deep in the cave. "Oh yeah that's right" Gale suddenly remembered, "People like doctors, traders, merchants and military personnel are allowed to keep a three-gate permit that allows entrance to all three walls" "Exactly!-" Pascal smiled as he and West jogged back to the group, "And if we play our cards right, we could pass ourselves off as the rest of the 'extended' Jaeger clan, and get in under an all-family permit!"

"Uh..." Carla blinked in surprise: glancing down at the money he'd given her, she couldn't help but sigh: "Listen, thank you Pascal: but-, can we just concentrate on getting to Trost first? The journey ahead of us is going to be dangerous enough as it is: we don't need to be worrying about things like that just yet," she handed him back the money, which he took with a shrug "Eh I guess you're right: but I'm telling you, I could pass for a 'cousin' Pascal three times removed?" he grinned in an attempt to be charming, to which she couldn't help but smile, "Oh no, you're the black sheep of the family" "What about me? Grisha's long-lost nephew?" West smiled, "Nephews and nieces?" Ariana gestured to herself and the rest of the kids, "And me? His mother in law?" Miriam smirked: "Oh god Miriam that'd be too perfect!" Carla burst out laughing, "And what about me? Can I be the 'dotty ol' uncle' who never shuts up about anything?" Claude laughed from where he sat half-way inside Midnight's mouth.

As Midnight lay on her front, her maw was wide open as he leaned right in with his journal and drawing stick in hand, sketching her venom glands while Drake sat next to the titaness on the grass, flicking through one of the other journals with great interest: ", Might be quite fun to pass ourselves off as one big family, right Drake?" Claude concurred: "Yep!" the boy nodded: "Will you get out of Midnight's mouth already?!" Bryson snapped nervously, " _Just the sight_ of you in there is giving me the cringes!" "Oh stop your worrying! I'm nearly done anyway!" Claude waved off as he continued to sketch, leaning on Midnight's lower lip and incisors as he remained seated on her hand. "So? You've got venom glands?" Rowan regarded in favorite titaness with a skeptical look, "When the hell did _that_ happen?"

: Don't know: she spelt out with her one free hand, frowning down at him in annoyance, : Give me a break, I only just found out! :

"I wouldn't worry Rowan, she's not the only one" Bryson replied, "Shadow just found out he can create some sort of crystal from out of his hands" he thumbed over to the titan, as he reclined on his side; sitting upright as he realized he was now the center of attention, he watched as Ariana ran up and jumped onto his folded knee, desperately scrambling to climb up onto his leg; giving her a push with his finger, she stood up and gawked: "You got a new power?! Show me!" she beamed in excitement. Glancing down at his hands, Shadow shook his head in helplessness,: I'm sorry, but I don't know how I did it? : He spelt out with one hand. Realizing he really didn't know, Ariana sighed in disappointment; "Well? I'm sure you'll figure it out big guy, you usually do" she smiled up at him, patting him on the hand reassuringly. Shadow frowned down at his hands, racking his brain for any inkling as to how he did it. "A titan with venom that can cripple regular titans, and a titan that can create crystals from outta his hands?" Pascal raised an eyebrow, " _Geez_ , and I thought you guys couldn't get any weirder..." he glanced up at Boar and Angel, "And I suppose _you two_ have got some fancy tricks hidden up your proverbial sleeves?" he asked dryly, to which the both shrugged and shook their heads.

"A venom that can cripple a titan?" Breck studied the bright green venom, as he held the stone it was contained in: "What the Scouts wouldn't give to get their hands on something like this" he thought aloud, "Still, if it can induce necrosis within a titan, I don't even _want_ to think what this could do to a human" he swallowed hard, being careful not to drop the stone. "Speaking of which..." Bryson knitted his brows together as he gazed up into the giant trees. Without warning he flew up on his ODM gear into the canopy, perching himself high enough where he could see over the northern rise, just beyond the grove. There, right where it had fallen, the dead titan was still steaming away, completely turned black and still largely intact; "Remarkable" he blinked in surprise. "Bryson?! What's wrong?!" he heard his brother shout up from the ground: "Nothing!" Bryson called back as he flew down to the campfire and landed where he'd taken off: "-It's the titan Midnight bit, it's still there; I had to check to see if it was still evaporating, and it is" "What?" Claude poked his head out from Midnight's mouth, "It's _still_ evaporating?!" "Normally, a titan of that size: the bones should be just about gone by now, but instead; the soft tissues are all completely black and are still in one piece: it's hardly evaporated at all" he explained, "Huh, Drake, make a note: we'll look into that some other time" Claude turned to the boy, who picked up a spare drawing stick from Claude's pack, and scribbled the note into the spare journal he had in his lap.

"Speaking of titans" Ash thought aloud in a serious tone, "Even if we evade them under the cover of darkness, what're we gonna do when we reach the plains? Our ODM gear will be useless out in the open, and once we run out of arrows that'll be it, we won't have anything to blind them with" the other kids glanced at one another in alarm as Bryson approached and told him frankly: "I'm sorry Ash, but you and everyone else will _have_ to leave you're gears behind: once we're out on the plains they'll slow you down, plus if you run out of gas you'll be in serious trouble;" Hang on, what about me?!" Ariana jumped off Shadow's knee and ran over to the former Scout, "You've been training me to know how to fight these things! I can take one easily!" she stated boldly, "With what? You don't have any pairing blades, and my last pair got broken yesterday" Bryson pointed out grimly, "Besides, a whole gang of kids plus two former thieves walking into Trost wearing ODM gear? That's _not_ going to go unnoticed" "Not if we hide the gears somewhere _before_ entering Trost" Ariana suggested, "Besides, we got _four magical titans_ to cover our asses! I'm pretty sure between me, you and them we can take _any_ regular titan that comes our way!"

"Bold and tenacious as always" Bryson smiled wearily, before letting his smile drop in all seriousness: "...We'll think about it, we've got until tonight to get a plan together; until then, I want you all to help out with the prep-work as best you can" he told Ariana and the other kids. "Listen, there's a lot of that stuff Midnight's got stashed away in her tomb: why don't you help us pick out what we'll need and help get everything else in order?" Tyto suggested, "And then after lunch, back to bed and get some shut eye: we got a long night ahead of us and we'll need everyone at their best" Evrard stated.

As everyone semi-dispersed and got back to work, most of the kids split up and went off to wherever someone needed a spare pair of hands. Returning to her giant best friend, Ariana climbed back up into Shadow's hand and flopped down in a mix of annoyance and helplessness: "This _sucks_ " she huffed as she ran her hands over her face, "No ODM gear with titan's around? That's not gonna work, is it?" she gazed up at Shadow, who merely shrugged as he spelt out, : It's not a good position either way, and our powers are not a guarantee we'll be able to get all of you to Trost safely:

Ariana gazed up into the sky through the canopy, as the idea of losing someone else began to tie knots in her stomach; trying not to think about it, she sat upright, and gazing up into Shadow's dazzling blue eyes, she couldn't help but think aloud: "...You know, as horrible and fucked up as this situation is? (Or, _any_ fucked up situation for that matter) I'm glad you're able to be honest with me; I think, at this point, being promised everything will be okay when in fact it's not, would feel just as bad as loosing someone" Smiling in appreciation of her maturity, Shadow spelt out : Thank you. We'd all like to reach Trost together, but the way things are? Unless something happens that'll enable us to gain an edge over the titans? I'm afraid we have to be realistic:

Flopping back down in his palm, Ariana stared up at the blue sky, as she contemplated the possibility of maybe not making it to Trost alive; it was a horrible feeling, but after everything she saw yesterday, how much worse could it possibly get? At least if she was on her ODM gear, she could distract the titans long enough to allow everyone else to get away, maybe even trip them up with her cables if it ever came to that. But there was just _no way to know_ , what was going to happen.

" **I don't like this any more than you do you know?"** Herne sighed ruefully as he curled up by the fire like a dog in his master's hearth: **"Even if we do make it to Trost without losing anyone, there's always the possibility that the gate might have already been closed" "And sneaking them into wall Rose is going to present a whole load of problems: and not just for the obvious reasons"** Hecate threw in as Claude finally got out of her mouth, and she could sit up again: though not before Ash Rowan and Dale decided to check out her venomous incisors for themselves, climbing up onto her shoulder's and lifting up her lip to get a look; annoyed, she jolted her shoulder, making them fall forward and caught them in her cupped hands. **"I don't intend to let any of them down"** Javorin stated confidently: " **Despite the odds we have to at least try" "Oh I know** _ **that**_ **, if any one god has the determination for a suicide mission like** _ **this**_ **, it is the Overseer of Mankind"** Hecate smirked, before turning serious: **"...Listen, given that 'needs must' under these circumstances: you don't think it might be a good idea to introduce them to the more 'advanced magics' in our 'divine arsenals?' you know? The one's we swore we wouldn't reveal unless absolutely necessary?"**

" **I was afraid you'd say that..."** Javorin sighed wearily as he gazed over at her: **"Okay. What did you have in mind?" "Nothing too big or too fancy,"** Hecate idly thought aloud, **"Something along the lines of the Umbra-Via? As a goddess of the night that wouldn't be too hard for me to pull off, and since I know Trost's location I could get us there virtually in less than several minutes"** she smirked.

" **The shadow-path?"** Herne blinked in surprise, as did Javorin, **"...Huh...That might actually work"** he nodded as he thought about it. **"What's the 'shadow path'?"** Elysia asked offhand, **"Okay, you know Hecate's one of the Night Roamers, and as such, one of her main powers is the manipulation of shadows and darkness?"** Herne explained, **"Yeah?"** the avian titan raised an eyebrow, wondering where this was going: **"Well, part of being able to manipulate darkness includes the Umbra-Via, a spell to open a portal** _ **through**_ **the darkness, that can transport you from location to another, in hardly any time at all"** he smiled; **"The speed of darkness is twice as fast as the speed of light, ergo, we Night Roamers are able to travel vast distances, sometimes from dusk to dawn: literally from one side of a hemisphere to another in one night if need be; the whole dark side of the planet is our domain"** Hecate smiled smugly _:_ _ **"Whoa, you can really do that?!"**_ Elysia gazed at her wide-eyed: **"Anything and anyone who can manipulate shadows can brat: we night gods invented it, and some managed to acquire that particular trick for themselves... Though, it's not to be attempted lightly; unless you know what you're doing, and know** _ **exactly**_ **where you want to go, you could be trapped in the shadow realm with no way out"** the black and white titan-goddess warned.

" **I've heard of the shadow realm"** Elysia remembered: **"Isn't that like, the border between the mortal and the spirit realms? Where the two kinda meld into one another?"**

" **Not quite, you're thinking of the astral plane"** Javorin corrected, **"You're correct in as much it is where the two realms meet, and humans and spirits are separated by the thin veil of life and death; both can cross over into either realm, and safely travel back again under the right circumstances...The shadow realm however, is a** _ **much darker**_ **and foreboding place: nothing but absolute pitch black, and filled with the souls of those who lost their way in life now eternally wandering the darkness, trying to reclaim what they no longer possess"**

" **What they no longer possess?"** Elysia gulped nervously. **"** _ **Life**_ **"** Hecate clarified, **"They do whatever they can to try and possess a body,** _ **any**_ **body, regardless of whether their still alive and are already imbued with a soul;** _ **anything**_ **to try and be alive again, even if it's for a few short seconds. That's why we Night Roamers roam the night, it's not just our job to banish demons and consume creatures derived of evil magics; part of our divine duty means ensuring the living are able to sleep without the threat of being possessed by those who dwell in the darkness" "And, we'd be traveling through** _ **that same darkness?**_ **With all those dead human souls haunting it?!"** Elysia exclaimed in a mild panic, **"Like I said"** Hecate drolled dryly, **"Unless you know what you're doing you could be trapped: and having done this** _ **a billion**_ **times over, I'd say I know a thing or two about traversing the shadow realm safely. So quit worrying about it okay?** _ **I got this**_ **"** the goddess waved off nonchalantly.

As she continued to laze about in Shadow's palm, Ariana saw something on the side of one of the giant tree's that made her sit up and take notice: standing up as she inspected it more carefully, a smile crossed her lips as she finally recognized what it was: "Chicken of the wood!" she beamed, "-My favorite!". Snapping back to reality, Shadow glanced up above him: and sure enough, hugging the side of the giant tree he was sitting under, beneath a large branch was a large bracket of chicken of the wood; freshly sprouted too, as the shelves were still rather small. "Oh I'm putting _that_ in the stew!" Ariana smiled as she climbed down out of Shadow's palm: "-Hold on big guy I'll be right back!" Ariana smiled as she ran over to where her family and the other grown-ups had placed their packs and bags; "Where's my knife?" Ariana huffed as she rummaged through the different packs: digging deep into her father's bag, she felt a familiar piece of large rolled up leather. Pulling it out, she saw it was the Semitam: unrolling it just to make sure it wasn't something else, she gazed upon the intricate pattern and smiled in relief; at least her father had the sense to want to save it. Placing it down flat on the ground behind her, she continued to rummage through the packs for her hunting knife, even checking her uncles and cousins to make sure one of them didn't pick it up by mistake. Finally, having had no luck, she gazed down at her father's hunting knife: even in her hands it was quite large for her to hold, but it was a good blade that had served her family well for countless generations, and she knew her father wouldn't mind her using it to collect some good fungi.

Running back over to Shadow, Ariana hopped back into his waiting hand, and he lifted her up over his head so she was standing alongside the fungi, "Thanks Shadow" she smiled. As she held the knife in one hand, she was about to cut into the underside of the bracket when her foot missed the side of his palm and she fell; in one quick move Shadow dropped both hands and caught her gently, but the knife slipped from her grasp and fell onto his leg, penetrating all the way into his flesh right up to the hilt. Ariana gasped in horror, looking back up at Shadow in abject shock: "Oh my god! Shadow I'm so sorry!-" she panicked as she jumped out of his hands and down onto his leg, inspecting the blade and seeing how far it had gone in: " _Oh hell!_ I'm so so sorry! I don't mean to drop it!" she glanced up at him, : It's okay, really, it doesn't even hurt: he assured her. Indeed the blade being embedded in his thick hide wasn't painful per se, more like a sharp irritation: more of a nuisance than an injury; hearing Ariana's panicked voice, Tyto was at Shadow's side in no time. "Ariana? What's wrong darling?" he asked worryingly.

"Dad! I accidentally stabbed Shadow with your knife!" she panicked, pointing to the blade: blinking in confusion, Tyto looked at the blade and saw it embedded deep in the titan's flesh. Shadow shook his head with an exasperated sigh, and spelt out, : I'm fine, really, it'll heal the second its pulled out. Just go ahead and remove it, it won't hurt me I promise: he gazed down at her reassuringly. Ariana hesitated a moment, before swallowing hard: "Well? Okay, just try not to flinch and throw me off alright?" she kneeled down, and grasping the handle tightly in both hands, began to pull hard: straining her back and shoulders, she pulled with everything she had, but the knife wouldn't budge, "Do you want me to try sweetheart?" Tyto asked as he climbed up onto Shadow's leg. Looking more closely at the wound, Ariana saw the flesh around the blade had already healed, essentially sealing the knife into the titan's leg: "It's no good, his skin has already healed, the knife's now stuck" Ariana huffed as she stood back up. "Oh dear," Tyto sighed as he grabbed the knife in both hands, "You might brace yourself Shadow, this could hurt a little" he warned as he started to pull hard. As he fought against the flesh, the tissue started to rip and bleed, causing Shadow to wince in discomfort, but he didn't dare let his leg jerk, least Ariana and her father might end up getting injured from being thrown into the roots of the giant tree. Finally, as Tyto gave it one last almighty pull, the knife suddenly slipped out of the titan's leg, and Shadow yelped in pain: however, forcing the knife out while still pulling hard caused Tyto to fall over backwards, practically doing a back flip, "Dad!" Ariana tried to grab him but missed; Shadow caught him no problem, but he lost his grip on the blade and the knife went flying up into the air, arching high over the encampment. "CAREFUL! FLYING KNIFE!" Ariana called out as she watched the knife sail through the air, landing next to the packs and bags while everyone else ducked down. "Ah, well at least it's out Thanks Shadow" Tyto sighed with relief as he climbed down out of Shadow's hand and stood up, "Oh hell! It didn't hit anyone did it?" he worried, "Nah, it landed by the bags" Ariana pointed to said bags and packs. "Oh good, go and clean it off then" he told her.

Ariana climbed down and ran over to where she saw it land, but as she approached the bags, she saw there was a strange glow coming from behind them: as she approached closer, she spotted the knife sitting in the middle of the Semitam, and something that made her gasp in amazement. The symbol on the blade, covered in Shadow's eerie glowing blue blood was glowing pure white, as was the Semitam's intricate design: every symbol and pattern all glowing white, radiating up into the canopy like pure starlight and moonlight. "DAD! SHADOW! GET OVER HERE!" Ariana shouted frantically. Hearing her near-panicked voice, everyone looked up and paused as they too saw the white beams of light radiating upwards, lighting up the underside of the canopy. In no time at all they were all crowded around the Semitam, and completely taken aback as the sight before them. "What the hell?!-" Bryson exclaimed, "What's this?!" Miriam gawked, "Shadow, What is this?!" Ariana snapped her head up at the titan, who was equally as surprised as everyone else, "What's going on?!"

" **Please tell me that isn't what I think it is!"** Hecate gawked at the blade in utter surprise: **"It is!"** Herne beamed, **"It** _ **really**_ **is!" "What! What is it?!"** Elysia demanded. Raising one hand, Shadow spelt out, : It's the key to the Semitam: he smiled, "WHAT?!" Pascal, Bryson, Gustav and Breck shouted in unison, "What?! How's that possible?!" Evrard gawked: "But-, I don't understand" Tyto glanced over at Freya, who was equally at a loss what to think: " _This_ is the key?! Are you sure?" he glanced up at Shadow. The titan kneeled down, and gently as possible, gripped the glowing blade between his finger and thumb: looking it carefully over, he blinked in surprise, handing Tyto the blade, he spelt out, : It's the symbol, and our blood: a wave of astonishment swept through the humans as they glanced down at the knife, : They are the key to opening the Semitam:

Hecate was at a loss what to think as she was suddenly haunted by her own words:

 _If the Semitam was left for us why wasn't the key included as well?_

" **...They** _ **did**_ **leave us the key... It was waiting for us right** _ **here**_ **, this whole time..."** Shadow breathed in astonishment, his voice full of a newfound surety: through his divine power he glimpsed back into the past, and finally saw how the long line of chance and serendipity finally pieced together. At last, it all made sense: his first encounter with Ariana, being led to the cellar of the Black Stallion and overhearing that meeting, Tyto and his extended family being able to read and decipher the hand of the ancients; none of it had been an accident. And now, the final piece of the puzzle had availed itself: was this the reason why he and these humans were meant to be together? Was this the ancient one's doing? Was this part of their great scheme of things? Either way, this was _not_ coincidence: and Hecate _knew_ it. **"Remember what I said earlier? I take it all back"** she admitted flatly: **"Unbelievable"** Herne couldn't help but smile: **"The kay was the blade this whole time?"**

"- _Oh sweet Sina_ I don't believe it!" Claude gasped as he suddenly realized, "-The symbol on your knife _is_ the key! This is the map your grandfather told you about! This is the map to the hidden land!" he beamed, grinning from ear to ear like an idiot, "WHAT?!" everyone stared at the scientist like he'd lost his mind, even the titans were taken aback by his claim: "What do you mean 'this is the map to the hidden land?'" Eraman gawked. "Remember that story you told us five years ago? About how your grandfather and his fellow Celts stumbled upon a hidden land deep within the forests of Maria: the one where the 'city of humanity's lost memories' lays hidden in the heart of a mountain? This is the map to that vary place! What else could it be?! You were told the symbol on your knife was part of the map to find it, well, here it is! The Semitam and your grandfather's map, THEY'RE THE SAME THING!" he bounced up and down ecstatically: "-Oh good lord! _Why didn't I see it before?!_ This is incredible! This is unbelievable this is-" "-WAIT!" Bryson clamped a hand on Claude's shoulder, instantly making him stop and shut up, "...You said, _our_ blood" he gazed up at Shadow, his head still spinning with amazement: "Does that mean, the key only works if _all four of you_ place a drop of your blood on the symbol?"

Glancing at one another in realization, the other three titans immediately offered Tyto their hands (and wing): one by one Tyto nervously sliced into their finger's (Angel's wing), drawing their glowing blood and making sure it trickled onto the symbol: "Uh, _you're sure_ that's a map that's gonna pop outta that drawing? Right?" Pascal fretted, "Only one way to find out!" Claude practically bounced on his heels as he watched Tyto hold the blade, the symbol now glowing brighter than ever as all four blood samples seem to meld into the light. "Oh this is exciting!" Lucile grinned like a schoolgirl. "Shadow, what's going to happen?" Ariana asked worryingly, : I think we'll be alright: he spelt out. "YOU THINK?!" Pascal gawked, but before he had a chance to say anything else, Tyto kneeled down and stared at the Semitam dumbly, "Uh? What do I do now?" he nervously glanced up at Shadow, : just draw the symbol on the blade into the center of the pattern: the titan assured him. Trying to keep his hand steady, Tyto carefully drew the symbol as instructed, and the second the blade left the leather, the whole design exploded in a blaze of blinding white light. More intense than the sun, it lit up the entire forest forcing everyone to cover their eyes and stagger backwards, nearly tripping over their packs and bumping into the titans and each other.

With a few seconds, the intense burst of light died down, and everyone unshielded their eyes to see a spectacular sight. The entire pattern had somehow come alive: the symbols floated up off the leather and danced around in the air like snowflakes and autumn leaves: glowing blue, violet, gold and white as they circled above the leather. "... _Holy shit..._ " West breathed in amazement, unable to take his eyes off the incredible phenomenon "That's some _genuinely weird_ magic shit right there" Pascal concurred. "Whoa, that's pretty!" Drake gasped, "Yeah, you said it kid" Rowan nodded in equal astonishment. "What's going on?" Breck breathed as he watched the symbols twist and turn through the air, falling back down onto the leather into a completely different configuration. When the design was completely in place, the glowing died down until the hide was back to normal: Tyto looked at his knife in time to see the symbol lose its glow to, until it too was back to normal and the titan's blood was completely gone. Gazing down at the map, everyone gasped in amazement. "No way!" Belle grinned, "Is that, _the map_?" Ash stared down at it dumbfounded: "Looks like it to me" Ariana smiled as her father gently stroked his hand over the new-unveiled map.

The image was completely different now: instead of a circular pattern of interlocking symbols and rune-symbols, now, the image depicted a detailed illustration of the heart of the south-eastern Marian forest. In its center there was a land surrounded on all sides by mountains, except for the very far south-east where wall Maria ran alongside it. Situated in the center was a vast lake with a large island in the middle: on its south side there was a queen seated on her thrown with a two fish either side of her and on the northern side of the island was a great tree reaching skywards and shadowing the island, with another queen seated upon the center-most branch, reaching for a star with one hand. To the east there was the biggest of the mountains, with a king seated upon his throne looking towards the island with a raised fist; between his feet there was a tiny door which was connected to a path, that led to an image of the inside of the mountain, and there, surrounded by what looked like giant crystals, was a city vast and tall with a great white tree overshadowing it, and in the middle of the tree a white queen stood with a long staff and outstretched hand, as if guarding over the city itself. While all around the edges of the map was a complex pattern of rune-symbols and other illustrations, including one of a green mountain, and what looked like a set of standing stones each arranged in a circle and bound together through more of the patterning. Tyto stared at the illustration in a mix of amazement and shock: it was more or less as his father and grandfather described it, almost down to the last detail; all at once he was suddenly overcome by emotion as tears welled up in his eyes and he just about managed to stop himself from chocking out a sob.

Glancing up at his wife, Evrard, Falken and Eraman, he could see they were thinking the exact same thing as they helped him back up onto his feet: "Freya, my brothers-" he nearly sobbed, pointing to the map, "-I know darling, I know!" Freya smiled as she rubbed his hand, "It's-...It's just as my grandfather said it was" he tried to regain his composure, "I-, can't _believe_ this!"

"Neither can I," Gustav sighed in dismay as he mopped the sweat from his brow, " _Holy shit_ , that symbol _really was_ part of a map: _the_ map!" "All this time and the key was right under our noses?!" Derek gasped as he ran his fingers through his hair, "This is-, that was incredible!" Mabel gazed down at the map, as did Lawrence as he stared up at the titans in astonishment. "Did you really do that?" he gawked up at Shadow, : No :, Shadow smiled, :Tyto did, and he's just performed the first magic cast by a human for over an age: "Whoa seriously?!" West gawked, "So, does that mean he's a wizard or something?!" : No, it just means he unlocked the Semitam, nothing more: Shadow clarified. "...Whoa..." Bren couldn't help but smile "You weren't kidding when you said it was possible for _anyone_ to bring magic to life!" "So? _Where is_ this 'hidden land' exactly? Only, I can't see any roads or paths leading to it" Miriam gazed down at the map.

"Wherever it is, it's in the south-east and right alongside wall Maria!" Gale pointed to the wall on the map, "It's practically within reach!" "Yeah, but _how much_ within reach?" Lucy thought aloud as she studied the illustration. Picking up the map and reading over the text carefully, Tyto nearly let out a gasp in shock: after managing to suppress his excitement, he explained: "According to this map, the path-, the 'starting point' where we pick up the trail, is about six miles south of where we are now"

"Whoa seriously?!" West blinked in surprise, "And how far from there?"

"It doesn't mention specific mileage, it just say's to go to the first stone circle and the trail will be unveiled through the door stone" Tyto knitted his brows together as he studied the map more closely, unsure whether he translated it correctly or not. "The stone circle?" Ariana remembered, before suddenly realizing: "Wait a sec, there're _more_ than one?!" "Apparently?" her father shrugged. "So? This 'hidden land' is about a day's journey from here?" Breck surmised, "Probably even less than that if I'm reading this correctly" Tyto replied. "An entirely new stretch of land completely unknown within the walls of Maria!" Claude grinned giddily with excitement, "-Oh we _simply must_ go there! If the journey is less than a day's travel we can easily-

"-Wait! Hang on a minute! ..." Miriam interrupted: Claude paused in his elation, and everyone gazed at the former landlady as she pointed out: "I thought the plan was for us to go to wall Rose, remember?"

The excitement and astonishment amid the group defeated fast, as everyone snapped back to reality: "Look..." Miriam sighed: knowing she couldn't lie about being equally amazed by this revelation, offered:"I want to go and see it as much as all of you, I really do; but right now we've only got what we could pack in a hurry and we've only got enough food to last us three days: let's get to wall Rose, settle in and find somewhere to live first, and when we're ready we'll properly plan an expedition and take off over the wall to go find it: sound good?". The kids and Claude glanced at one another, and sighed in reluctance: "...Yeah I guess you're right Auntie" Belle admitted reluctantly. "It makes sense," Tyto nodded, "The longer we spend out here the more likely we are to being attacked. Let's get to wall Rose and get ourselves sorted out first, _and then_ we can go looking for the Hidden Land" : That's a good idea: Shadow spelt out; glancing up at the fifteen meter titan, Ariana suddenly noticed how his gaze was full of sadness, : But I am very sad to say, we will have to part ways once we reach wall Rose:

"WHAT?!-" Ariana exclaimed in shock, "What'd you mean 'part ways'?! What're you talking about Shadow?!" she demanded. Everyone gazed up at Shadow in astonishment as he, Midnight and Boar each exchanged regretful looks; Elysia was starting to get worried as she suddenly realized where this was going, before Shadow elaborated, : We'll help you get to wall Rose safely and help you find a place to settle down; but after that we must go to find the Hidden Land. The map and its key was left for us for a reason, our being here was meant to serve a purpose; and whatever that purpose is, part of the mystery is waiting for us in the Hidden land: he paused a moment as he gazed down at Ariana, his heart weighing heaving inside his rib-cage as he watched her eyes fill with tears...

Seeing that look in her eyes, and in the eyes of all the other children, he knew what was coming next; then, an idea suddenly occurred to him, : ... Of course, you can join us on our journey if you wish? We would be very glad to have you all with us. But I'm afraid I don't know what we'll find, nor can I promise it will be good; either way, you are my family and I would feel terrible leaving you all behind: he spelt out. Touched by his words, many of the humans couldn't help but smile: "You really mean it Shadow? We can come with you?" Ariana smiled as she wiped her tears away. : Yes, but the choice must be unanimous. If some of you are not comfortable joining us that's okay, we'll take you to Trost and make sure you're safe; but _we have to do this._ We have to know why we are here, and we've waited too long for a chance like this; it may never come again for all we know? :

A pause hung in the air for a moment, before Ash tentatively asked: "...Will we ever see you guys again?" Shadow hesitated before spelling out, : I don't know Ash; I like to think we can come back, but I don't know what's waiting for us there. Or even, if our journey might take us far out beyond the walls? :

"...After everything we've been through, after what we survived yesterday: I'm _not_ leaving you Shadow" Ariana stated flatly: her tone making it clear to her parents the issue wasn't up for debate, and they knew it (much to her mother's annoyance). "I agree. After _everything_ we've done and endured together these past five years I don't intent to chicken out now" Fox stated, "Neither do I" Shyla stated impassively; "I confess I have to agree. After all the research, experimenting and translation work we've done, how can we just 'postpone' it all now? Right when we've just been shown the way to what might be the greatest discovery in all of human history?" Derek threw in. "And more importantly, if the city of 'humanity's lost memories' is real? This could be what mankind has been waiting for! The way to rediscover _all_ that was lost to the titans a hundred years ago; maybe even shed light on the origin of the titans themselves?" Claude pointed out. "As much as I agree with Miriam, as a former Scout I have to concur with you on this Claude" Bryson admitted: "If there's even the _slightest chance_ the city of 'humanity's lost memories' might hold a clue some kind as to how the titans came into existence? I _have_ to make sure of it myself" "...Our great-grandfather spoke of this place," Rowan frowned as he pointed to the map "He and the other Celts went there, saw it with their own eyes, and he said one day our people would return; maybe that day _is_ today, maybe this is why Shadow and his cousins are here?" "Well? Come hell or high water I'm with you too" Claude stated as he glanced up at the titan's confidently, "An opportunity for adventure and discovery doesn't come along very often, and I won't miss it for anything".

"I feel I have to agree with Rowan: all this time we were brought up to believe Tyto's blade was the piece of a map pointing to the Hidden Land, and sure enough _it is_ (albeit not quite in the way we were expecting). And the fact that the titan's markings _made up_ said map, and their blood was the power needed to 'awaken' the key's magic? I'm sorry, but all that just seems way too coincidental to simply be brushed off as a random fluke" Falken thought aloud, "Crazy as it sounds I agree with you Falken" Bryson sighed, "If I hadn't just seen it with my own eyes I don't think I'd have believed it" he scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. "I think we can all agree with you on that one" Miriam sighed reluctantly: "Okay, I'll admit you all make a good point, but we _still_ ain't in any position to suddenly change course and just take off to somewhere we don't know about: hell for all we know the titans might have already found the place and swarmed it; just _getting there_ alone is going to be dangerous. And I ain't prepared to put my life on the line unless I know the pay-off is gonna be worth the risk"

"What do you think Rose'? Lucile?" Gustav glanced over at his other two sisters, who were all a little overwhelmed: "I think it sounds like it could be exciting!" Lucile grinned. "Oh, I don't know? This is a big first for me" Rosemary admitted sheepishly: "I agree there could be much to learn from seeing if this city is real, and indeed of it really does contain all of humanity's lost memories: but like Miriam rightly pointed out, we just don't know what to expect?". "Actually, if it's the regular titan's you're worried about the most, we may not necessarily be in danger when we get there" Dale pointed to the map: "See that island? We could use that for a base camp: even if the regular titans have already swarmed the place, they can't swim, so we'd be perfectly protected there; and besides, between us and our bows and arrows and Shadow's ability to grow an _entire orchard_ of food, plus plenty of water from the lake, we won't have to worry about going hungry"

"True, but if _these guys_ don't know what's there how can we be sure we'll be any better or worse off?" Pascal thumbed over to Shadow, "Sorry for being the party-wrecker, but it sounds like it could be too much of a risk for us" "Listen..." Tyto grabbed everyone's attention: "We can debate this back and forth all day, but in the end it'll just be moot: there's only _one person_ here that can decide whether we go with the titans or not, and that's Carla"

"Me?" the raven-haired woman blinked in surprise: "Think about it, none of us here have anyone waiting for us in Trost... No one, who will be relieved to see us at least..." he glanced sympathetically over at Bemadette, Lucy and Lucius, each of whom didn't hesitate nor show any regret in their choices: "Except you: Grisha is waiting for you in wall Rose, and I've no doubt that with every hour that passes he must be thinking the worst case scenario" "But-" Carla hesitated, "My choice shouldn't have to dictate _your_ choice! Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel are all practically family to us, I couldn't bear to leave them either!" she glanced up at Angel worryingly, before thinking back to her husband: "-But I-...You're right Tyto, I can't leave Grisha worrying himself to death over me" she sighed ruefully.

As the cogs turned in his head, Bryson suddenly got an idea: "Carla? How about this" she listened as he explained: "We go with Shadow and his cousins to the Hidden Land, and set up a base camp on the island like Dale suggested," he gazed up at Shadow: "We let you guys go off to do-, whatever it is you need to do there, and if whatever happens the demands of your journey mean you'll have to leave the walls, and it might be too dangerous for us to tag along? Then that's when we'll turn back and go to wall Rose; we'll make the journey and scale the wall, before letting you embark on the rest of your quest. Does that sound okay to you?"

Shadow, Midnight and Boar glanced at one another skeptically for a moment, and before unanimously nodding in agreement, : It's fine with us; what about you Carla?: Shadow asked. Carla stared off into space as she contemplated the idea, before agreeing: "Okay: but we can't be gone too long: how long would you consider to be 'too long' do you think?" "I'd have thought over a week?" West threw in offhand: "Five day's at the most?" Pascal suggested. "Yeah but we don't know how long its gonna take for them to find-, whatever it is they need to find" Poppy pointed out, "What about two weeks? If anyone asks how we survived for so long we can always say we hid from the titans during the day and only traveled at night?" "I don't know if that'll fly with the Garrison or not, but it's the best 'explanation' we'll be able to offer if we reach wall Rose" Bryson thought aloud dubiously. "Or how about, instead of trying the scale the wall we wait for the Scouts to 'discover' us? We can remain here until their next expedition comes along, and when the opportunity's right we approach them and tell them we simply weren't able to evacuate with everyone else in time, and that we've been hiding from the titans in a cave somewhere?" Poppy suggested. "Cute trick but that's only gonna raise questions with the Scouts" Pascal pointed out flatly, "And while we can easily hunt some game out here to keep us going: hunting while having to keep an eye out for regular titans _isn't_ a safe proposition" Eraman stated. "Not to mention the fact those root caves are most uncomfortable to sleep in" Lucile threw in.

While everyone continued to debate the subject: Carla glanced up at Angel and saw she wasn't happy about this; like a toddler about to throw a tantrum, she sourly glared down at the grass, really wishing this wasn't so. Carla could give a good guess as to what it was on her mind, and what she wanted to do about it. Discreetly slipping away from everyone, she caught the avian titan's attention, and gestured for her to follow her behind one of the giant trees for a privet chat. Leaning right down with one wing unfurled, Angel listened as Carla sighed in frustration: "Listen, I think I can guess what you're thinking, and believe me when I tell you, _I don't like this_ anymore than you do" she stated in a hushed voice. Angel nodded in agreement as she continued: "You and Grisha? You're _both_ my family, and I love you more than you can imagine..." she hesitated as she tried to think straight, feeling the dove pendant beneath her blouse: "...I've already lost Eren and Mikasa; I don't want to have to lose another member of my family"

: Whatever it is that's waiting for Shadow and the others in the Hidden Land? I don't care about that, I care about you! You're my family too Carla and I have no intention of leaving you: Angel spelt out with a wave of her wing. Thinking back on the last five years, and everything that happened yesterday, Carla couldn't help but think aloud: "But, what about Shadow, Midnight and Boar? They won't want you to leave: and I don't want you to stay with me, not when they need you more" she stated, much to Angel's shock, "Listen to me Angel," Carla clarified before she had a chance to protest: "I love you very much, these last five years have been incredible, and _nothing is ever_ going to change that: but Shadow, Midnight and Boar? They're _your family_ too; they're going to need you for what lies ahead, and I _know_ you'll be able to have their backs and look out for them"

Angel paused a long moment, before a look of sadness flickered in her pale ice blue eyes, : They won't need me: she spelt out sombrely, : I'm not brave or smart or wise. I don't have anything of any real value to offer, whatever this 'quest' is, I won't be able to do much except get in the way: "Hey, That's not true!" Carla firmly stated in a motherly tone, grabbing the bird titan's attention by surprise: "-You are _every bit as valued_ as the next person here: and _don't you dare_ put yourself down! Not after what's happened! You took on a titan all by yourself and _killed_ it, you healed me right when I was on the brink of death: and because of you I've learnt _so much_ these past five years; about the titans, about the world in which I live, and what it means to have one of the best friends anyone could ever ask for..." she paused as she felt her heart sink, "...What happened to Eren and Mikasa-... that _wasn't_ your fault okay?" she swallowed hard, " _Don't ever_ tell yourself they died because of you; the situation was what it was, and there was _nothing_ either of us could have done..." she took a deep shaky breath; forcing those words out was so hard, having to face the reality was like trying to push a mountain to one side. But as much it was daunting and painful, she knew it was a truth she'd have to accept, bitterly if need be: "...I-,...I have to come to terms with that, and I, _know_ , I did what I could at the time, with only what I had..." she gazed back up at the worried Angel; mentally trying like crazy to keep her train of thought straight as the grief threatened to resurface again: " _..._ I guess? What I'm trying to say is: _please don't put me_ before your own family, _before your duty_ ; if there really is a reason for you, Shadow, Midnight and Boar being here? Then you _must_ seek out the truth, even if it means we must say good bye; for all we know it could mean something important, _point_ the way to something important. All I know is, after everything we've been through together, everything that's happened; _nothing_ has been a coincidence. And even if I'm _not_ the reason you're meant to be here? I'm still so thankful for the time we've had together, and I know you are too" she smiled softly.

With a heavy shaky sigh, Angel let her tears roll down her cheeks as she tried to mentally bargain her way out of this: to hell with fate, providence and the secret workings of the Ancient ones, why shouldn't she be able to choose what _she_ wanted to do with her life? If the choice really was her's to make, then why couldn't it be spent with the one person she had truly come to care about? Even if Carla was mortal and her time upon this world would be brief, it would still be a life well spent. Javorin, Hecate and Herne? They cared about their humans too, so what could possibly be so important that they'd leave them to go off to find this 'Hidden Land'? What could be worth abandoning them, and maybe never seeing them again? Families are supposed to stick together; they're never supposed to leave anyone behind. Elysia didn't understand their reasoning for it, none of it: if families are supposed to stay as one then why this? It made no sense to her: all she cared about was Carla; and she _wasn't_ going to abandon her, not after everything she'd been through.

Wiping her tears away, Angel replied impassively, : If you want to be with Grisha I'll take you to him. I'll turn back into a dove and I'll watch over you both wherever you go; I won't abandon you. Shadow, Midnight and Boar will be fine without me; they know how to take care of themselves. But you're my family, and I'm taking care of you now okay? :

Carla couldn't help but sigh as she knew she wouldn't be able to talk her out of it, and at the back of her mind she couldn't help but wonder if this was really the right choice she was making? If she'd thought this through well enough; knowing Angel? Probably not, but then no one is perfect, not even magical weather-summoning bird titans. Folding her arms, Carla gazed up at the bird titan and nodded: "...Okay... But _are you sure_ this is what you want? If there's a chance you might never see Shadow Midnight or Boar again, are you going to be okay with that decision?" she asked in all seriousness. Angel didn't hesitate to nod in reply; she was _sure_ this was the right thing to do: with a deep sigh, Carla then got back to the subject at hand: "... Alright, but we still need to decide how long we're going to stay in the Hidden land. What do you think?"

Angel thought about it a moment, and smiled, : Ten days? That should plenty of time to find our 'mystery answer', right? : "Ten days?" Carla nodded as she thought about it, "Okay then, ten day's it is then" she gestured for her to follow her as she rejoined the families and friend. Some of the group were still deep in discussion about what to do, while the rest noticed her absence and had waited for her to return. "Ah, I take you two have agreed on something?" Gustav raised an eyebrow. "You could say that," Carla addressed the group: "How about ten days? Ten days for us to camp out on the island and let the titans 'do their thing' (whatever it is), at the end of which we'll turn back and head for wall Rose. Does that sound okay with everyone?"

"Sounds good to me!" Ariana smiled from where she was perched up on Shadow's shoulder: "Sounds like ample to time to properly explore the place, I concur!" Claude nodded in approval; "Ten days isn't too long or too short? I'm good" Pascal shrugged, "I'm fine with it" Tyto smiled, "brothers? What do you think?" "I'm alright with it" Evrard nodded, "Me too" Falken added, "I'm good" Eraman threw in. "Looks like we're set for an extended camping trip" Miriam sighed; "We're still traveling at night right?" she glanced up at Shadow. "Yeah, but if the first leg of our journey is only six miles from here, then we don't have to worry about walking an all-nighter, right?" Clay thought aloud. "We'll stick to our original plan: get some shut eye this afternoon and this evening, and then leave the grove during the early hours before dawn; that way we can be at the stone circle by the time the sun comes up and we should reach the island later that day, depending on how far we have to walk"

"Sweet! So we leave first thing in the morning?" Jaye smiled, "First thing in the morning" Tyto nodded with a pleaded grin, "But we still have to get the provisions in order before then: so come on kids, back to work" With a renewed sense of excitement and adventure, the kids and grown-up's got back to work with a kick in their step, especially Claude and Bryson as a feeling of fervour began to well up inside them. "You're really okay with this Carla?" Mable asked offhand, placing a concerning hand on her shoulder, "As much I'm excited to go see the Hidden land, I'm worried for _you_ as well: are you sure Grisha can wait that long?" Freya worried; Carla thought about it a moment, before forcing a weak smile: "As much I miss him and I want to be with him again: at least he's safe behind the wall, that's all that matters to me right now. Besides, I know we'll see each other again, no matter how long it takes"

As the women continued to talk and help out the others, Elysia breathed a sigh of relief, feeling safe in the knowledge that she and Carla won't be parting ways: she allowed a small smile to tug at the corner of her mouth, before she felt a familiar gaze at her back.

" **You know? I can't remember how many times I must've come to that same conclusion"** Javorin spoke as he approached her, kneeling down to let Ariana off his shoulder and place her back down on the ground: before standing back up and gazing down at her with a frank yet understanding look: **"Figuring that, if indeed I really have the power to shape my own destiny, that the choices I make are supposed to mine regardless of everything and everyone else, right?"** Knowing he'd been telepathically eavesdropping (what was the point of trying to be secretive around him anyway?), Elysia huffed as she ruffled her feathers in frustration, refusing to meet his gaze: **"Are you going to try and talk me out of staying behind wall Rose with her?"** she cut straight to the point. **"No, it's your choice and I'm not going to take it away from you; neither is Hecate or Herne"**

Elysia turned and stared at him, slightly taken aback: **"Their not? But I thought you guys would be mad at me for leaving you" "Mad? No, upset? After five years together I thought maybe we were doing pretty well?"** Javorin thought aloud, **"Yeah well, unlike you guys** _ **I know**_ **my priorities: families are supposed to stick together, they don't break up for anything, right?"** she shot him a look.

" **...Ah..."** Javorin realized: **"So that's what this is about..."** he gestured for her to follow him behind one of the giant trees: once out of sight of the humans, he folded his arms, and spoke in a more frank tone: **"...Listen Elysia: I'm not going to lecture you on whether your decision to stay with Carla is good or bad: all-father knows I've been in this exact same position many times before, and every time I was certain my choice was the right one too. sometimes it worked out, sometimes it didn't: one thing I've learnt is that it's not necessarily about making a choice that carries no regrets at all, but rather, making the choice you'll come to regret the least. And in** _ **your**_ **case, that still remains to be seen"**

" **What do you mean?"** she frowned.

" **Elysia:** _ **I know**_ **you care for Carla,** _ **we all do**_ **, and you feel you must be there for her, now more than ever; your heart, your dedication and loyalty is unquestionable: and if you were human I've no doubt that is where your life will be; with her as part of her family. But** _ **you are a goddess**_ **, one of many who choose to remain upon this world to oversee its care and protection: your duty is** _ **not just**_ **to Carla, but to the** _ **whole world**_ **, and the question of whether you can become mortal to avoid that responsibility is** _ **not**_ **an option. You are what you are, just like the rest of us and every living being upon this world. I'm not saying this to dissuade you, I'm merely pointing out that every action triggers a reaction, good** _ **or**_ **bad: and if this is the choice you are willing to stick by? Then you** _ **must**_ **be prepared to deal with the consequences if it turns out wrong"** he explained.

" **You think I care about that?"** Elysia frowned, **"You think** _ **I care**_ **about what the Ancient One's want us to do? If they want the world fixed so badly why don't they come down here and do it themselves?! Letting humanity become cruel and uncaring? That's as much on** _ **them**_ **as it is on whoever created the titans and forced humanity to the brink of extinction!"** she fumed. Javorin sighed: **"You don't understand: if it were** _ **that**_ **easy they would never have left to begin with; but the way this world-,** _ **this entire universe**_ **functions?** _ **It's not that simple**_ **: and being a god** _ **does not**_ **come without terms and conditions, you** _ **know**_ **that" "So what if there're things we're not allowed to do, or can't do? That doesn't mean we don't get a say in everything else?"** she exclaimed angrily.

" **No, we don't, but just because you can bend the rules to suit your own needs** _ **doesn't necessarily mean**_ **you should..."** Javorin stated as he took a step closer, gazing down at her with an air of authority. **"...You know? Back in the early days of civilization, the humans used to believe that we created them in our image, when in fact it was the other way around. Over the millenniums we spent alongside them, there were many things that imbued our powers with different strength and qualities: things like love, generosity, courage and even sorrow; all the different things that made humanity what it was, in turn (to a greater or lesser degree), governed how we existed as gods: right down to our very corporeal forms. It was dynamic, ever-changing, and nothing ever stayed the same for long; it made them so notoriously difficult to anticipate. But over time we learnt the hard way that** _ **the only thing**_ **predictable about humans was their** _ **unpredictability**_ **: when knowledge is in reach humans attain it and apply it to their lives in one form or another, and it was always their choices that proved to be the X-factors in the vast unfathomable equation that was their existence...Choice can be a powerful thing Elysia: whole destinies can be shaped by a single moment of decision, and even the lives of those we've never met can be affected drastically by one's choice. That one realization alone holds as much power as the very ocean of creation itself: and it was something we, as gods, had to be careful about. Humans alone could shape an entire era based on their collective choices, but for us gods it was an entirely different story, and one not so different from the humans as the Ancient Ones liked to think..."** he turned to gaze out into the forest beyond the edge of the grove: **"...I know I'm a hypocrite in saying that, being a god demands that I put aside my own personal feelings and wants aside, and do what is required of my divine duty: when I purposely go out of my way to use my powers to help improve the lives of my human families and friends. Is it selfishness? Some might think it is, is it ethically wrong? Possibly? But at the end of the day it was** _ **my choice**_ **to do what I did: were there regrets? Sure, here and there, but that's to be expected: and just because you're a god doesn't mean you can't indulge in having human friends, and having a life with them; all that is required of any of us, is that when something happens and we are given signs that point to trouble, we** _ **have to be there**_ **to heed the call, and to address it accordingly..."**

Elysia was quiet for a long moment as she contemplated his pearls of wisdom, before meeting his gaze with an impassive expression: **"...So? You're okay with me going to live with Carla?"**

Javorin smiled as he placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder, **"Elysia; as your kin, when the time comes for us to part ways I will pray that you and Carla receive all the best luck the Ancient Ones can give. But as one god to another, I ask that if and when trouble arises and we summon you to aid us in our endeavors, please don't ignore us, alright?"**

" **...Okay"** she nodded, **"But-, for what it's worth: I've kinda enjoyed our time together; the four of us I mean" "Kinda?"** he raised an eyebrow with a sly smirk **: "Okay, maybe it's been kinda cool to hang out with the 'top dogs' so to speak"** she sheepishly smiled, **"The top dogs?"** he couldn't help by chuckle, **"Well I'm flattered: but don't let Hecate hear that though, or you'll never hear the end of it"**

" **Eh, I suppose not"** Elysia sighed in exasperation, as the thought of the Night Roamer making fun of her over that one played over in her mind. She was about to change the subject, before something suddenly occurred to her: **"...Wait-...Seriously, human's shaped us in** _ **their**_ **image?"** she frowned in confusion. Javorin let out a hearty laugh that echoed around the grove, making everyone jump as he led the goddess back into the middle of the grove: **"Well? It wasn't** _ **quite**_ **as simple as you think: give me a hand sorting the provisions out and I'll explain"** he chuckled as they rejoined the group.

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere:

" **... Ah good you're back, what do your sisters report?"**

" **It would appear the first of the Semitam's has been unveiled brother"**

" **About time: who's was it may I ask?"**

" **Javorin, Hecate, Herne and Elysia's"**

" **Huh, no doubt they had some help from their little friends: all-father only knows my little brother never quite got the knack for translating cryptic texts: even those laid out in the easiest of formats"**

" **Easy for** _ **you**_ **maybe. Not all of us can be the god of the scared word and understand** _ **every tongue**_ **that ever existed"**

" **True, but then not all of us can be one of the Night Roamers: able to creep out beyond the confines of the Veil through shadow and darkness to spy on the outside world"**

" **Touché...So: they'll be on their on their way here presently, and no doubt with their 'little friends' in tow. What should we do?"**

" **We do exactly as we promised; go inform the others and make the necessary preparations. Oh, and do be sure to mention the others will be joining us in due course; it's going to be getting a bit cramped around here"**

" **Very well: will you receive them in person or shall I take care of the welcoming party?"**

" **I trust you to not scare the humans off: it's your sister I'm quite amazed by; off all the Night Roamers I never expected** _ **her**_ **to warm up to humans"**

" **Neither did I: but then, so much has changed in the time we have been gone"**

" **Indeed, and we've got** _ **much**_ **to make up for...Go now, I'll join you when I can; I've got some things to tie up here"**

" **Alright, I'll see you later"**

* * *

 **ADVENTURE TIME! Oh, and in case you were wondering about Drake, don't worry, he'll get adopted out to one of the gang somewhere in the near future: Bemadette and the Cooper twins were the human focus for this chapter, as well as Carla of course; by and large, plot progression chapters like these usually require a lot of chiseling and sanding down. It took nigh-on forever to get the dialogue just right, and even longer to aim for the right tone that would end the chapter on a good note, because goodness only knows the next chapter is going to be a mind-blowing experience for our survivors :) Hope you can all join us next time, as we set off for the Hidden land! :D  
**

 **Oh, and don't forget to R &R before clicking off, cheers! :)**


	14. Chpt 13: An Impromptu Quest

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Chapter 13: An Impromptu Quest

Dawn:

Indigo turned to deep Azure as the night turned to dawn, and the last few stars slowly disappeared behind the coming light of day: all around as far as one could hear the forest was still and quiet, save for the dawn chorus of the birds and the chirping of insects slowly stirring to life. The first rays of the sun began to light up the top-most layer of the forest canopy, gilding the leaves in rich warm gold: it would have been a most splendid morning for anyone to enjoy, had it not been for the distant thundering echoes of titan footfalls emanating up from the valley several miles away.

The damned monsters were _everywhere_ : practically ten, fifteen to twenty titans for every mile walked, and with the sun slowly arching up into the sky they were starting to become active again. Clumsily getting up and wandering off, some simply ambled around aimlessly, but the vast majority were all walking northwards. "You think they're heading towards Trost?" Mabel thought aloud as she kept a firm hold of baby Phoebe: "Wouldn't be surprised if they are" Bren swallowed hard as he watched a particularly bulky thirteen meter class strolled right by, barely ten meters away.

After waking up and rechecking the provisions, the humans gathered together as the titans threw up a new concealment spell, and together they all moved as one through the forest. With Gustav and his sisters riding Boar: Mabel, Bren, Lawrence and the babies all riding Angel, and Bemadette's little brother's all seated within Midnight's palm, while everyone else travelled on foot; the elder Celts had their bows and quivers at the ready, while the kids, Bryson, Pascal and West were all kitted out in their ODM gear. No one flew through the trees though as the need to conserve gas was the main concern at hand: the only acceptation being if the concealment spell was to somehow fail, and their position was exposed. "Did we _really_ have to bring the refill canisters with us? I mean, they're a little bulky aren't they?" Lucile glanced up at the three large gas canisters Shadow had tucked under one arm: "Not for him they're not: besides, considering how much money I forked out _no way_ am I leaving them in that damn root cave to rust!" Miriam grumbled, "And anyway, we don't know what we're gonna find when we get to this 'hidden land': the brats'll need their tanks full if we encounter anything unfriendly; speaking of which, _what can_ we expect to find Tyto?"

"According to the sagas, the whole land is supposed to be deserted" Tyto piped in as he read the map over again, "However, my grandfather said he and the rest of our kin had left markers on the island and in the heart of the city, as a way of confirming that it's the place they spoke of" "What kind of markers?" West asked offhand: "I don't know? But I'm sure we'll know them when we see them" Falken offered as he watched Evernight glide overhead, flying from perch to perch as she and the Ravens kept pace with their masters: "Hey Tyto? There's something I've been curious about since you first mentioned it...The way you talk about this 'Hidden land', and how your old man's old man and his buddies discovered it: you kinda make it sound like it's an inheritance or something" Pascal asked, brows knitted together in curiosity.

Passing a dubious sigh, Tyto confessed: "I wondered about that myself once, not long after he first recounted the story to me; and to be honest I secretly doubted if such a place could exist within the walls. I mean, if it were a valley that was somehow hidden away by the lay of the land that would be one thing. But the way he used to talk about it? The way he described the mountains, the lake, the island _and_ the city? He made it sound like such a grand and vast place; somewhere that would easily take up the whole length of Maria from wall to wall... As for the land being an 'inheritance'? I don't know about that Pascal: by the time he got back, the wall cult had just started coming after us, and he probably figured that the hidden land would be a suitable place for us to retreat to in due course; seeing as no one had ever gone _that_ deep into Maria before"

"But, surely if your predecessors were able to travel _that_ far into the wilderness, why didn't the wall cult chase them all the way there?" Carla thought aloud: "Oh they did: but you see, the wall cult are mostly descended from those of nobility and far-off royal blood; people who are not at all suited for the demands of the wild. Many chased us into the wilderness, but without the proper knowledge and preparation needed to survive, most perished. I remember my grandfather telling me how: on the return journey from the hidden land he and his brothers passed by a good number of destroyed and abandoned campsites: many had died of the cold, hunger, dehydration, or in the worst cases, cannibalism" "Cannibalism? Seriously dad?" Ariana blinked in surprise: "You'd be amazed, and horrified, at what you can do when hunger forces your hand: that's why the Disciples always had a network of supply depots and halfway houses, so they could avoid incurring those kinds of losses" Tyto explained.

Glancing over at his sons, he noticed Dale talking to Claude, Drake and the Cooper twins, while holding one of his arrows in one hand; glancing at the arrowhead, he noticed the crystal point was coated in a strange bright green substance of some kind: "Hey Dale? What's that stuff on your arrow?" he asked offhand. "Oh this?" Dale smiled, "It's Midnight's venom: Claude came up with the idea to coat an arrowhead in the stuff to test it's potency; we dipped it into the venom once, let it dry, dipped it again, and repeated until it had all been used up. _This_ is the result" he held the arrow up "Indeed" Claude beamed proudly as he jumped over a large log, "The next titan that comes along will be-

"-Oi! We don't have time for one of your mad-cap experiment's genius!" Gustav snapped in a hushed voice, being careful not to wake the babies up. "Oh don't worry! _I promise_ it'll hardly take any time at all!" Claude smiled back as he took the arrow and held it up for Gustav to see, "If this stuff is as potent as I think it is: it should cripple a titan in virtually less than a minute!" "Well it looks like you won't have to wait long to test it out, look!" Miriam pointed to the right: everyone snapped their head's round in time to see a fat chubby ten meter titan slowly sauntering towards them with an odd limp and one arm extended above its head: "That oversized idiot's gonna plough right between us anyway, you might as well get rid of him!" the old woman added. "That's an abnormal: the one Midnight bit was just a normal titan, think it'll have the same reaction?" Bryson asked offhand, "Only one way to find out: Dale?" Claude handed him his arrow, "Certainly" the boy grinned as he locked the arrow into his bow and took aim, "Aim for the jugular if you can: we should get a near-instant result with a direct hit to the cardiovascular system" Claude added enthusiastically.

Everyone stopped and watched as Dale fired the poisoned arrow up into the titan's neck, hitting the jugular right under the jaw. Almost immediately, the titan stopped and seemed to become dazed, as within about a minute its tanned skin started to turn pale and pasty, dark circles appeared under its eyes, and the area around where the arrow was embedded started to turn grey. The titan's breathing grew short and shallow as it staggered around in a tight circle for several seconds, before toppling over and crashing to the ground with a resounding boom. There it lay, its whole body now a mix of deathly white and grey, with its head, face, neck and shoulders turning black. "Well, I'd say that was a resounding success!" Claude beamed as he threw his pack off, reached in for his journal and writing stick, and started quickly scribbling down notes: "Obviously if we had the time I'd _love_ to be able to conduct further experiments on other size classes: see if the potency is a 'one size fits all' so to speak, or if the venom has slightly varying effects from individual to individual" he thought aloud as he finished writing and packed his journal away, before throwing his pack back on and following the rest of the group as they set off again; leaving the titan to languish where it had fallen. "Of course, if this 'city of lost memories' really does contain all the knowledge of mankind, there could be _all_ the information anyone could _ever wish_ to know about the titans!" Claude beamed as he walked with a spring in his step.

"Or _anything_ for that matter..." Ariana thought aloud, before something suddenly occurred to her, "Actually, _how do_ you 'store' memories? How would you be able to take them out of people's heads to begin with? ... Hey dad, when Great-grandpa Grey Owl told you about the city, did he say how those memories are kept there?"

"He was a bit vague," Tyto dithered as he recalled his Grandfather's story: "But he explained it as something along the lines of, 'a vast city of shining temples, taller than anything he'd ever seen before: filled with thousands of shelves that were lined with countless books; and housed all manner of strange and wondrous things, made by both nature and man alike" "Huh, sounds like it could be a library, or an archive of some kind?" Breck thought aloud, "A library?" Ariana raised an eyebrow, "What's a 'library'?" Rowan frowned. A little taken aback by the question, the doctor glanced over at his equally surprised brother and best friend, and explained: "Um? Well? It's a building that contains all kinds of books, which can be loaned out if you want them; you take them home to read at your leisure, and then when you're done you take them back so other people can borrow them"

"Really? That sounds pretty cool" Lucy smiled, "How come we never had anything like _that_ in Shiganshina?" Drake exclaimed in surprise: "Eh, library's are something that are generally associated with the wealthy and educated: they're more common in the 'well-to-do' towns and cities of Sina; particularly Mitras. You don't find them in Rose _or_ Maria I'm afraid" Claude explained regretfully. "But why not? I mean, a place that lets you read whatever you want? Whether it be to learn new stuff or just enjoy a good story: shouldn't that be something _everyone_ can experience?" Shyla glanced over at him curiously, "Yeah, why can't _everyone_ learn whatever they want?" Drake piped in. "Oh indubitably master Drake, Miss Shyla: the freedom of knowledge is something I believe everyone should be entitled to. But sadly, there are a lot of people in the interior that believe being knowledgeable comes at price. In many of those libraries you can _indeed_ borrow whatever books you like, but they come at a rather hefty fee; one I'm afraid, that can be seldom afforded by those from the outerlands"

"It's true: I remember when I was studying medicine in Mitras, at the university library the fee for just _one book_ would be enough to buy three sacks of flour" Breck threw in, "Seriously? _That much?_ " Carla breathed in amazement: "Oh yes, and those were just standard medical text books: the more specialized volumes would probably pay for six horses and three cows" the doctor replied, "Whoa, that's _a lot_ of money," Gale blinked in surprise, "No shit: that would set us up for _months_ " Miriam thought aloud as she scratched her chin in contemplation. "Looks like we might have been in the wrong business all along" Pascal discreetly smirked, to which West couldn't help but smile. "But why does learning stuff have to _cost_ so much?" Drake whined, "Well? Making and printing books isn't cheap, but then, making pamphlets doesn't exactly coat an arm and a leg either. It's more to do with the caste system than anything else: the idea that being able to afford an education gives off the appearance that you have money, and being able to go to the right school or academy means you know people with the right social standing and connections. Ultimately, everyone within the walls has been brought up to believe you can only really get ahead in life if you were born into wealth" Bryson explained frankly, "...It was one of the things that made me leave Sina: _I couldn't stand_ the attitude of the nobles and upper classes, how they looked down on those they considered lesser than themselves; even a former Scout, who gave seven years of his life to fighting the titans and ensuring humanity didn't suffer their hunger, was not exempt" "It's sad to say. But for all its elegance and grandeur: Mitras is not a place where equality and fairness thrives" Claude threw in ruefully, "There's a reason why we have the old saying: 'He who is not contented with what he has, would not be contented with what he would like to have'"

A long pause of silence stretched out as the group headed down into a shaded glen, before Ariana turned to Bryson and asked him: "...Bryson? When we're done in the hidden land, and we all go to the interior to find new homes: do you think we could be happy there?"

The former Scout glanced down at her offhand, and with a dubious sigh replied: "...I don't know? ..." he gazed up at the paling morning sky through the canopy: "Things like money, possessions, status? If anyone tells you they matter more than anything else in life? don't listen to them; all that stuff is overrated. If you can find something that makes you happy: that gives you satisfaction and joy, even if it means you earn a pittance, or nothing at all; I'd say it's a worthwhile endeavour. Of course there'll always be those who criticize you, who might say you're lazy, or fanciful, or just plain crazy: but if it's something you really want to do, and you know you'll have no regrets doing it; then go for it. The only one really stopping you is yourself"

As she pondered his words of wisdom, Ariana remembered Armin, and his dream of leaving the walls to go see the ocean: she couldn't help but tear up as she remembered the day he showed her that book he found in his grandfather's attic; how his eyes were filled with such wonder and awe. He almost looked as if he'd strayed into dream, and a part of it became embedded in those bright blues of his. "Magpie? Are you alright sweetheart" Tyto leaned down, placing a hand on her shoulder. "I'm fine dad" Ariana quietly assured him, taking a deep breath and wiping her eyes: she fired her lines up into Shadow's back and flew up to sit herself down on his right shoulder; seeking solace in his company. The titan acknowledged her with a sideways glance and a soft upbeat hum, keeping his eyes forward as he took point, leading the group through the trees. Glancing at her again, he saw how she had a distant look in her eyes: as though her mind was far from the here and now. Holding a hand up, he spelt out with his smoke light,: What's on your mind? :

Ariana was quiet at first, before admitting: "Having to pay money just to learn stuff sounds so stupid: I mean, why does money have to be so important to some people anyway?" she glanced up at him, "I mean, don't me wrong: I know not everyone's like those people Bryson hates. Pascal and West used to steal gold and stuff to survive, the Willums had the Black Stallion because it had always been their home, and Mabel and Bren were saving up to buy their own house: anything else didn't really matter... Why can't that just be enough for some people?"

Shadow sighed ruefully as he spelt out,: Humans can be complicated, and sometimes they don't always make sense. One person's idea of happiness can be another's idea of suffering, and vice versa; it depends on the individual and how they see the world. And for some people, their view of the world is very obscured by a lot of things that aren't necessary. You can have all the gold in the world but that won't guarantee you happiness or fulfilment: and likewise, you might not have a single coin to your name, and yet you can find joy and delight in the simplest of things: he smiled warmly at her. Ariana couldn't help but smile as he spelt out, : Don't worry about it, you know what's important right? : She nodded: and with a glint of content in his glistening blue eyes, Shadow faced forward and carried on.

Having caught a glimpse of Shadow's words, Mabel gazed out into the forest as her mind wandered: thinking back over the years to her youth, to a time when things were very different for her...

 _If there is one thing you must remember above all else, it's that money is the only way to get anything done in this world; everyone has a price, and believe me girl, there is not a single human in this walled world who wouldn't give up their loved ones for the sake of a few gold coins. People are ruthless like that, that's what makes them so easy to manipulate._

"...Money isn't everything..." Mabel unconsciously mumbled to herself, "Hm? What's that sweet-pea?" Bren glanced over his shoulder at her: "Oh, uh sorry, I was just thinking aloud" she brushed off with a small smile: "Anything particular on your mind?" he smiled as Marigold sat on his knee, playing with one of Angel's long hackles: "Not really, just-...Thinking back to when we were kids" she admitted sheepishly; "You're thinking about that? Now of all times?" Bren couldn't help but blink in surprise. Mabel was quiet for a moment, before telling him frankly: "...I was thinking about the life I was born into, and how from the start part of me always knew it wasn't the life I wanted. I can't help but wonder: just how many other children like me there were, that wished to run away and live their lives on their own terms" she gazed down at baby Phoebe, who was fast asleep in her arms: "I hope, I wasn't the only one is all..." Knowing what she was talking about, Bren turned around and gently grasped her hand, and with a reassuring look in his eyes, told her: "I'm _sure_ you can't have been the only one darling; I hope that anyone else who managed to pluck up the courage to do what you did, also found what they were looking for"

"Pluck up the courage to do what?" Lawrence yawned, having just woken up from a light doze after succumbing to the warm fluffy softness of Angel's feathers, with baby Clemmy seated on his lap; "Oh, don't worry sweetie, it's not important okay?" Mabel assured him as she playfully ruffled his hair, "Okay" he groggily replied as he checked to make sure Clemmy was still fast asleep. Gazing over at the young couple and their newly adopted brood, Boar couldn't help but admire Mabel's strength; as he used his divine powers to read her aura, he saw just how much she had gone through to become the person she was today.

Aura's were strange and fascinating things: the living substance of all life that reflected the character of the mind, body and spirit, aura's told a lot about a being's nature and state of existence, and humans were certainly no acceptation. No other lifeform in all of creation possessed an aura that read so much like book: intrinsically complicated, nuanced with emotion, thought, logic, reason, and the strange paradoxical relationship between moral ambiguity and transparency, which could differ greatly between one individual to another. Quite often these qualities were denoted in the aura by its size, shape, form, colour, and the flow of energy: no two auras were ever alike, even the Cooper and Raven twin's were different in their own slight ways; and even a god's aura, though greatly different from that of a mortal's, could be just as telling on a number of levels. Over the course of his long immortal years, Boar had come to find reading Aura's to be a curious affair: though humans were not perfect, he could see why Javorin found them so fascinating. In particular, the one thing that was most telling of a person's aura: was not the strength and courage they possessed at present, but rather, _how_ they came to acquire that strength and courage in the first place.

Being a good person in a cruel world didn't come easy, more often than not one had to endure suffering to understand the difference between comfort and pain: that was the nature of human nature; and it was something that could either instil compassion, or cruelty. Some aura's, like Mabel's, 'felt' like metal: strong, confident, unyielding, and yet she wasn't hard on those around her or abrasive in her demeanour. At her core she was loving, caring, understanding and generous: but those endearing qualities didn't come from nowhere; metal (as it was understood during ancient times) was the universal element of ultimate strength. Metal can only become strong after being exposed to intense heat to purify it, put under great pressure to yield as much flexibility as possible, and then finally pounded over and over again, to give it its inherent durability and strength.

Boar didn't know Mabel's past, come to think of it no one else seemed to know where she and Bren originally came from either: all that was known was that they ran away to Maria to elope, a few years before the four Celtic families moved to Shiganshina, as her family didn't approve of Bren; but it was of no great concern to anyone. They clearly were not the types to get involved with criminals or anyone else of that ilk, and they weren't looking for anything else besides a roof over their heads and the means to financially support themselves: Derek too when he showed up at the Black Stallion not long after. No questions were asked, and despite Mabel fitting right in with the Willum household, she never did confide in anyone about her origins or how she first met Bren and his brother. It was clear from the start that some things were just too painful or too complicated to discuss: and it certainly reflected in her aura; from what he was able to discern, Boar could tell Mabel's childhood was neither easy nor happy; whatever happened back then, the one constant happiness that seemed to keep her from the clutches of utter despair was Bren. They both shared a long history together: found strength and resolve in each other, and ultimately that childhood friendship blossomed into love. But from the amount of emotional scars her aura bared, it was clear the life they made together didn't come without a price. Whatever it was she had to sacrifice to be with the man she loved, it was something she had been willing to abandon: to give up entirely for the sake of herself and her heart, and one that didn't leave her with any lingering regrets or doubts.

" **Considering how guarded she is about her past, you have to wonder who she was before she came here to Maria"** Hecate piped in: telepathically eavesdropping in on his train of thought: **"...Whoever or whatever she was, it's clear she's compartmentalized that whole other life: locked it up in a little box and threw away the key; as far as she's concerned its ancient history"** Boar sighed offhand, **"And it's none of our business"** Javorin reminded them both in a slightly mother-hen tone: **"If she didn't confide in any of the others about it, she won't be willing to confide in us: don't go poking around where you're not wanted" "Yes 'All-father'"** Boar glanced sarcastically up at his brother, **"I can't help it if I have a natural curiosity: I'm a night roamer after all, we're naturally attracted to fellow dark horses..."** Hecate smirked: **"Anyway,"** she changed the subject in a more serious tone, **"This 'Hidden land': what're you thinking? Shangri-La? Eldorado? It wouldn't be the first time a vast stretch of land was hidden out of sight and out of mind by magical means"**

" **Well we're on the European continent so that limits our options: I know the Black Forest had some secret places that humans were not allowed to go into, but those were mostly sanctuaries for the spirits and nature gods. An entire land surround by mountains with a lake and large island, plus a city built beneath a mountain? It doesn't ring any bells for me"** Javorin shrugged. **"I can't recall any place like that either, and this continent was one of my favourite stalking grounds back in the day: if there were any place like that, I'd have been the first to know about it"** Boar threw in. **"It's a shame the map's not more accurate, if I knew what it looked like from up in the air, I'd know if I'd flown over it at some point"** Angel commented. **"Well either way, we'll know more when we get there"** Javorin thought aloud as he gave a wide berth to a trio of nine meter titans.

"Hey, we're nearly there" Ariana smiled as the pale face of wall Maria began to appear through the canopy in the distance: another fifteen minutes of walking soon brought the first part of the journey to its end, as the giant stone circle came into view. Gently removing Ariana off his shoulder as he knelt down to meet everyone's level, being careful to keep a firm hold of the canisters, Shadow listened and watched as Tyto took off his pack and got out the map again: "Finally, we can start the first true leg of the journey" he sighed with relief. "What?! That six mile hike didn't count?!" Pascal exclaimed as he leaned against one of the stones for a brief rest, "Six miles? _Pft!_ _Please_ , for some of us Celts that's just a stroll around the block: our sister clans up in the northern mountains and eastern highlands can walk for _days_ following the herds on their winter migrations" Evrard waved off, "Wherever that map's leading us, it's nowhere even close to _three_ miles". "That's a relief" Miriam scoffed, "Relief? But you're not even walking Miriam" West pointed out, "No, but _someone_ has to think of Boar's poor back! If it weren't for our shitty creaky bones and bad backs he wouldn't have to carry us!" "Hmm? What'd you think bud? The old folk's getting too heavy for ya?" Clay smirked up at the tusked titan: Boar merely shook his head and hummed a low gurgling thrum, "Nah, he's good" Hazel waved off. "But still, how hard is the terrain going to be? Will it be easy to walk or will Boar have to carry us the rest of the way?" Rosemary asked worryingly. Laying the map flat on the ground, Tyto traced his finger over the line of text that wrapped around the illustration of the stone circle, seeing the look of anxiousness on his face, the others began to grow uneasy: "Uh dad? Is everything okay?" Ash asked worryingly: "... I have to confess, in my excitement I might have missed one or two things: like this text, it's similar to our own rune-symbols but I can't quite place what it says ," he lifted the map off the ground, and held it above his head for Shadow to get a better look, "...What do you think Shadow? You know a lot more about this than me"

Leaning down to focus on the text in question, Shadow squinted as he read through it, after a moment he blinked in surprise with a large smile pulling at the corners of his cheekless maw: **"... Huh, so** _ **that's**_ **what they are"** Javorin smiled, **"What?"** Angel pressed him, "You know what it says, don't you" Ariana realized; holding up his hand, Shadow spelt out, : This stone circle is the first of two doorways to the Hidden Land: "Doorways?" Claude glanced all around circle in confusion, "I'm afraid I don't quite follow ol' boy?"

" **What kind of magics are we talking about here?"** Hecate placed Bemadette's brother's down on Angel's back behind Lawrence, before folding her arms, **"Teleportation, and slipping half-way between the realms"** Javorin smiled, to which both Hecate and Herne glanced at each other in surprise, **"You don't mean it's a- "-Oh yes, it is"** he grinned as he stood up, and spelt out, : Make sure you all stand within the circle, and don't move until the fog clears, Okay?: "Fog? What're you talking about Shadow?" Bryson frowned in concern, as everyone bunched together, half worried as they wondered what was coming next. : You'll see: Shadow smirked slyly, before approaching one of the stones, and gently laying a hand down on part of the carved pattern in the rock.

All the markings on Shadow's body steadily lit up in their usual bright radiant blue, and his eyes glowed white as the carvings on the stone started to glow in a vivid emerald green: "Whoa! I didn't know the stone's could do _that!_ " Ariana gawked, as all the stones illuminated and a gentle breeze began to kick up; then, from out of the dark shadows of the trees, the thick undergrowth and out from the canopy above, a thick heavy fog began to swirl around the stones, blotting out the forest and sky from sight, until only the stones and the grass within the clearing was visible. Everyone stayed close together, nervously watching as the fog continued to swirl around and around, while the stones eerie glow continued to light up the clearing as Shadow kept his hand on the one stone. Then as quickly as it began, within less than half a minute the fog began to slow and dissipate, until the air was clear again. Only, they weren't standing in the forest anymore ...

"Whoa! What the hell?!- _Where are we?!_ " Bryson exclaimed in alarm as he gazed all around: "Wha-, we're in a totally different place?! How'd _that_ work?!" Clay gasped, "That was quiet something" Lucile sighed in relief, "But it appears we're in a completely different place now" she gazed up at her surroundings " _You think?!_ " West exclaimed in disbelief.

Everyone was taken aback by the scenery before them. All around in about a fifty foot wide circle, looming some two hundred feet high overhead were steep vertical cliff-faces, comprised of Chevron folds with flat-lying axial planes in varying hues of green, dark aqua and teal, dusty rose pink and striking rusty red: covered in an assortment of creeping vines and ivy, and at the very top, just barely visible past the top of the cliffs was a thick circle of pines and giant trees, with what seemed like a small circle of blue that was the sky. On the ground, the grassy clearing and the stones had remained exactly as they were: except here, flowers bloomed in the grass beyond the stones and were peeping out from between the rocks at the base of the circular cliff, adding splashes of colour to the already-striking rock formation. The only way out of this tall enclosed space was a vertically narrow gorge some twenty five feet wide that cut through the multicoloured rock, about thirty feet up the sides came closer together, until nearly right at the top they were practically touching one another, with only a tiny slither of sunlight streaming through the gap, lighting up the opposite side of the cove with a long thin serpentine line of golden light.

"HELLO!" Jaye shouted, chuckling as his voice echoed up the circular cliff and seemed to carry on up into the sky "ECHO!", "Holy shit-" Gustav breathed in astonishment, "... You titans can pull off some serious magic tricks when you want to, but I gotta say, _that's_ gotta be the best show-stopper yet" he grinned, "Can't argue with that" Pascal concurred: "So? The stone circle issome kind of magical door? Except, instead of steeping through, the door 'step's through' for you? (what the hell am I even saying?!)" Dale thought aloud as his brain tried to wrap around what just happened. : Not quite : Shadow spelt out as he removed his hand from the stone, and the glowing in the carvings and in his tattoos died down until they were back to normal, : It's rather complicated to explain, but basically, we've all been transported to a place that is 'here', but at the same time is 'not here':

"That _completely makes no sense_ what so ever" Pascal frowned dryly as he folded his arms,: I know, but you must remember, magic is not obliged to make sense. It is, like everything else in nature, simply what it is: Shadow replied, "And it _is?_..." Pascal pressed him, expecting a more transparent answer, : I don't know? You tell me: Shadow smirked as he shrugged innocently; Pascal merely glared up at him frustration, he _hated_ it when the titans were cryptically ambiguous like that.

"Well? Whatever this place is, it's only got one way out" Falken pointed to the gorge; "And the second door is waiting for us on the other side, right?" Tyto glanced up at Shadow, to which the titan nodded, "Okay, forward it is then..." Bryson shrugged as he followed Shadow into the narrow passage, with everyone else filing into place. The going was slow as Shadow and Midnight had to carefully walk sideways, to avoid bumping into the rocky sides and accidental dislodging any loose stones. The bottom of the gorge was covered in large rounded pebbles of all varying colours, and in the centre was a small rivulet of water, fed by dozens of smaller rivulets that trickled out of various cracks and openings in the rock. As they gazed up through the tiny gap between the gorge's sides, everyone could just make out small slithers of blue sky, mostly obscured by trees and their roots. "It's a good thing none of us are afraid of tight spaces, or this would be a most uncomfortable trek" Carla thought aloud: Angel chirped and nodded in agreement, desperately trying to hide her nervousness, as she didn't like being in such an enclosed space. **"Keep it together brat, you'll be fine"** Hecate sighed in exasperation: **"I can't help it! I'm a Tempus goddess! I** _ **need**_ **to be out in the open with nothing keeping me trapped!"** Elysia squeaked in a panic. **"Yeah? Well I'd like the shadows in this place to be a little darker, but that's hardly going to happen until nightfall is it? Just suck it in and deal with it!"**

The gorge carried on for another eight hundred yards or so, steadily growing wider and inclining downhill slightly, until finally the group emerged into a sprawling wooded valley: surrounded on all sides by more sheer vertical cliffs, and up ahead some two or three miles away, a single solitary mountain with a prominent peak covered in snow stood looming above the horizon. "Tyto..." Bryson breathed in astonishment, "That mountain: it's just as you described in your story", "...I know" Tyto breathed in amazement: holding his hand and reassuring him with her smile, Freya led him forward as the group pressed on.

The hike to the mountain was pretty easy going as the centre of the valley was mostly flat, but dotted around here and there were more standing stones with those strange patterns carved into their moss and lichen-covered surfaces: these ones were not arranged in any circles, they stood alone, spaced a hundred to two hundred yards apart; as if they were meant to serve as trail markers. The trees in this valley were mostly oak, birch, ash, hazel and sycamore, and some of the oldest trees anyone had ever seen, with a thick carpet of ferns, brackens and moss coating their roots, and trailing ivy and honeysuckle hanging from the branches like decorative swags: it was a very lush green place with an abundance of animals and insects to boot. Over the last mile leading up to the foot of the mountain, the forest began to thin out and give way to massive rocks and boulder fields, which were all hidden from the sun by the mountain's vast, seemingly endless shadow.

"Hey, something's just occurred to me; if we're still (technically) in Maria, what mountain is this?" Breck suddenly realized, "There're a lot of mountains in Maria, but none with a peak like _that_ " Eraman offered as he kept an eye on his raven's, who were all circling overhead, cawing and cronking down to him; meanwhile Evernight sat perched on Falken's shoulder, giving her wings a rest. "So? Are we beyond the wall?" Mabel surmised, "According to the map, we're still _inside_ Maria: which suffice to say shouldn't make any sense" Tyto replied as he reread the map. "We just travelled from one place to another in a cloud of magical fog without having to take a single step; _anything to do with magic doesn't make sense!_ Period!" Pascal huffed sarcastically in exasperation: "I thought after all these years we all knew that by now?" "I have to confess; it is rather hard to draw the line between science and 'magic', if there is a line at all?" Claude thought aloud, **"Oh there's a line alright genius, it's just not a straight one"** Hecate glanced down at the scientist dryly: he didn't hear her of course, but then, after talking telepathically for so long, it had become somewhat of a habit for her and the other gods.

"What I don't understand is, those stones have been standing in Maria _all this time_ , barely five miles from Shiganshina and hardly _anyone_ else knows they're there; how come everyone missed them?" Carla thought aloud: "Oh trust me dear, _everyone_ who lives in the forest know about the stones" Freya explained, "They just don't know who put them there or what they were intended for. To us Celts they were always 'the crossroads': a place where the spirits could transcend between this world and the next...Obviously that wasn't the case" "Well? Given what we experienced back there, I don't think they were _that_ far off the mark as far as 'transcendence' is concerned..." Claude pointed out; but as he continued to ponder on the extraordinary phenomenon, something else suddenly occurred to him, "...-But wait a minute, we got here because Shadow 'awakened' the stone's power with his own, and presumably that's the only way to get here (thus far?), so? If he and the other 'magical' titans were not around when the Celts first discovered the hidden land, _how did_ your ancestors get here in the first place Tyto?"

Tyto abruptly stopped as the realization suddenly dawned on him; his mind began to spin with confusion and questions: as did Evrard, Falken and Eraman. Seeing the shocked look in their eyes, Bryson suddenly realized: "... Your grandfather never said anything about the stones power?" "...No..." was all Tyto could say as he pressed his hand to his head, mentally trying to calm his growing shock: "...He never mentioned _anything_ about the stones or what they were really for, I just assumed he trekked up here and found this place by accident. _Why on earth_ would he not tell me about this?!"

"Maybe for the same reason _we_ wouldn't be able to tell anyone else either. No one would believe him, maybe not even his own family?" Breck offered; thinking about it, Tyto realized he did have a point: a circle of magical giant stones that could whisk you away to another place in a swirling mass of fog? _Of course_ no one would believe him. Even Tyto himself wouldn't have believed such a story had he not just witnessed the stone's power for himself. "...Okay, fair point: but that doesn't explain how he figured out how to 'awaken' the stones by himself. That information was never divulged!" Tyto exclaimed. "Maybe he did know how to awaken them; he just didn't divulge it for some reason?" Ash surmised, "But if he intended for the Celts to come back here one day, it wouldn't make any sense to keep that information from them: not when he had aspirations of them making this place their home" Falken threw in, "...Or maybe? ..." Dale reached down and pulled his father's hunting knife from out of its sheath, inspecting the symbol on the blade: "The information _was there_ all along. Maybe it wasn't enough to simply tell you about it, you had to find it for yourself?" he thought aloud. "But Dale, half the Semitam's markings came from the tombs and the rest came from the titans themselves: we _never_ would have figured it out if we only had one or the other" Lucius pointed out, before an idea began to form in his mind's eye: "...As weird and crazy as this sounds, could your predecessors have somehow _known_ about the titans being in those tombs? And that one day they would eventually wake up? Did they know that the titans have those marking on their bodies, and would eventually go to seek the hidden land by creating the Semitam? ... Could it be possible, that your great grandfather and the other Celtic elders somehow prophesied the titan's awakening, and timed it so that when they finally woke up the Celts would be ready to go with them, by giving them their pieces of the map?" he hypothesized.

A long silence stretched out as everyone glanced at one another in a mix of realization and confusion: on some level Dale and Lucius's suggestions made sense in an uncanny kind of way; and it did seem to jive with what they themselves had already discovered and experienced first-hand. "Well? If that really was the old man Grey Owl's objective, he certainly hit the nail on the head" Pascal sighed in mental exasperation. "Well? It was clear from day one that the Celts and 'magical' titans were linked somehow: maybe they parted some of their magical ways to your ancestors before they were sealed away in those tombs?" Claude surmised, gazing over at Tyto and his family: "After all, you explained how the Celts were once known as the 'people of the secret places', that they used to journey to locations seldom known by the rest of humanity; well? _No one_ in the three walls knew about the giant tombs, or the fact our titanic friends were buried inside them, even _you_ gentlemen didn't know about their existence: and yet in the dark of night with no stars or map to guide her, Ariana 'found' the grove they were nestled in; for the longest time I just thought it was sheer random luck she found the place, but after hearing this hypothesis, I'm beginning to think maybe it wasn't just chance?" he explained. Miriam was about to object, when Ariana suddenly spoke up: "...Actually? Now that you mention it Claude: there was _something_ that happened that night I couldn't explain; when it was all over and I was back home I didn't think anything of it. Until now"

"What was it darling?" Freya blinked in surprise, as did Tyto: "... Well? It's kinda hard to explain," Ariana thought aloud as she recalled the night she first met Shadow: "But at one point when I was wandering through the forest, I thought I heard a voice telling me to go somewhere: I didn't know where at the time, and the undergrowth was so dark I didn't want to risk going in there, for fear a bear or wolf could be lying in wait. And yet-... _I don't know why_ , but I just got this intense feeling that _something was there_ on the other side of the darkness, and that I would be okay if I went 'there'. Against my better judgement I walked through that undergrowth, half expecting to be attacked: but eventually I reached the other side and that's where I found the grove of giant trees...It's weird; looking back on it now, it wasn't a voice exactly: but rather, 'a feeling speaking to my instincts', if that makes any sense?" she explained sheepishly.

"...Hmm? ..." Claude knitted his brows together, as the cogs in his brain turned at full speed: "...Could it be possible that the Celts not only shared a close relationship with the 'magical' titans at some point in the past, but shared a kinship that transcended the boundaries of each other's species? We know that Shadow, Midnight and Boar can sense when someone's lying: and to a greater or lesser degree even peer into our very memories, but what if it went deeper than that? What if they shared a common culture? Something that would have run _deep_ between them: like instinct, or the power to control and manipulate magic?"

" **Could that** _ **really**_ **have been possible?"** Elysia glanced up at Javorin in surprise, **"It was well known to many that the Celts and nature gods had a good understanding of one another: given their nomadic culture and reliance on the wild for their survival, I wouldn't be surprised if a few of those gods taught them a spell or two"** Javorin explained. **"Magical potential being passed down through certain bloodlines wouldn't be unusual either"** Hecate threw in, **"Back in the day there were a good number of ethnic groups who were descended from some of the most powerful witches, wizards and mages of the ancient world. Even a tiny fraction of their power survived well into the then-modern age, resting within the blood of those individuals as little more than part of their instincts. The Celts were one such ethnicity; chances are Ariana must have 'heard' the spirits telling her where to go...It wouldn't be the first time they did something like that"**

"You mean, as in they might have taught them how to do their own magic and stuff?" West blinked in surprise, "Why not? We already surmised as much when Tyto first showed us the Semitam, what if it went much further than just the map?" Claude glanced up at Shadow, "You said so yourself, it is possible for anyone to learn simplistic and basic incantations; what if, the Celts (or whoever created the Semitam at least), not only learned the basics of magic, but also mastered a much more advanced form of that power. I mean, how else could the Semitam have been hidden the way it was?"

Shadow and Midnight both glanced dubiously at one another for a moment, before Shadow spelt out,: It is possible, but the kinds of magics used to hide the Semitam and entrap us within those tombs, would have been _exceptionally powerful_ ; not just anyone could wield them. It would have taken an experienced Wizard or Mage to control them, and even then the act of casting the spells would have been fairly dangerous:

"-So wait a minute-, your saying we _might_ be descended from wizards?!" Clay exclaimed, "Sweet!" Rowan nodded with a satisfied smile, "You? A wizard?! _Please,_ you'd only turn your sister into a toad!" Jaye chuckled, "So would you!" Clay retorted, to which both Josefa and Hazel both smacked their brothers upside the head. "Well? I don't know about _that..._ " Tyto dubiously thought aloud, "But I suppose it's possible our ancestors _could've_ learned how to awaken the stone circle at least. That makes sense" "-Oh my god!" Derek exclaimed suddenly, "What if _that's_ the reason the first king attempted to wipe out the Celts?! If he knew they had knowledge of magical powers, and could probably use said powers to overthrow him somehow, that would give him more than just a few sleepless nights!" "And maybe? When he 'altered' everyone's memory and erased all knowledge of the outside world, he probably thought all the Celts knowledge of those magical powers would be wiped out too: but they weren't; that must be why he took a particular interest in trying to wipe us out. More so than the Asians" Dale reasoned, "... And so to counteract the purge, the Celts took all their knowledge and hid it in plain sight: encrypting it into symbols and artworks, recounting it through fables, sagas and fairytales. The only knowledge of magic in the world, knowingly orunknowingly handed down from one generation to the next" Bryson realized.

"But then- ..." Ariana nervously thought aloud: " _If that's true_ , how many clans (besides ours) are there left alive with that knowledge in hand? And how many still know what it actually is?" At the mention of the other Celtic clans, Tyto suddenly realized in horror: "... _Oh my god!_ I completely forgot!-" "What? What is it brother?" Evrard laid a hand on his shoulder, as the Grey Owl elder nearly dropped to his knees in shock: "The other clans: they're still out there in the wilds of Maria! _Out there with the titans running loose!_ "

At that moment, the atmosphere grew thick and cold with horror, as the realization dawned on everyone: for the longest time no one spoke as the reality of it sank in; there was no way they could turn back now, and there was no way they could locate and save them all. No one knew where the other clans were: even Shadow and the other titans hadn't seen or heard of any of them in the five years they'd been living within the walls. As if loosing Bestla, Skadi and Ran was hard enough, now the Grey Owls, Red Boars, Ravens and Black Hawks had to deal with the bitter fact that they, in all likelihood, were the very last of their people. The last Celts to walk this earth: _the only ones_ to have survived both the Disciples _and_ the titans. Having lost her home, aunties and best friends: for Ariana the sting didn't hit as hard, but it still hurt to know that the rest of her people were now living on borrowed time; hiding from the titans as best they could, and praying their survival skills would stave off the inevitable for as long as possible. It would only take one or two titans to wipe out a whole clan, and they would be gone forever. How delighted the Wall Cult's Disciples must be right now, knowing the titans are doing their dirty work for them, while they remain safe behind walls Rose and Sina. As the Celts tried to come to terms with the fate of their kin, everyone else just felt horrible.

"...Oh god...Tyto-, I'm _so sorry-,_ I..." Bryson nervously uttered, not really sure what else to say: Tyto only gazed at him ruefully, before placing his hand on his shoulder and sighing deeply; not sure what to say himself. "...How many clans are there?" Breck asked ruefully: "...All over Maria? I don't know," Tyto shook his head, "With the wall cult ever vigilant, gathering and migrating in large groups was always dangerous, so every clan had to make their own way through Maria by themselves. Some smaller clans like ours would join together for protection: but as a whole, it's impossible to say how many survived the first purge some ninety eight years ago; and since the wilds of Maria are a vast green labyrinth, communication is just about impossible unless you lived within a ten mile radius of a neighbouring clan". " _Geez..._ " Rowan pressed his hand to his forehead as his face scrunched up with a look of hopelessness in his eyes, "...Why did this have to happen? Why did that titan destroy the wall? What the hell did we do to deserve this? What did _anyone_ do to deserve this?!"

Finally regaining her composure, Freya couldn't help but sigh: "...What do we do now? ...". Carla placed a hand on her shoulder, and told her softly, "...We press on: we've come this far, let's go to the place your elders spoke of...If all of you really are the last of your people? Then you owe it to them to complete this journey..." With tears welling up in her eyes, Freya hugged Carla tightly, before glancing over at her family: "She's right, let's carry on eh?" And without another word, the whole group sombrely set off once again.

After another several hundred yards of navigating a wide boulder field and another large narrow gorge, the group finally arrived at the very base of the mountain; the vertical side of which seemed to reach up into the sky, going on forever as it encompassed everyone's field of vision. And there, situated in the rock was the second door. Over thirty meters tall, the broad Gothic arch double stone doors were covered in the most intricate carvings yet, which spread out from the door themselves to cover the frame, ground, surrounding rock-face and boulders. In the middle of the doors there was the carved image of some kind of tree, with light beams streaming from it and long curling branches spread out, and what looked like a flame in the centre: below that on the trunk was a crown, and below that at the base of the roots was a flower of some kind (a Tudor rose? Claude recalled vaguely), and surrounded by the roots was the sun half rising; or setting? Either way it looked like half a sun. Below that, a stepped pyramid comprised of seven layers took up the rest of the door, and on each of the layers bar the top most one directly below the tree: there were little arches within which there were faces, all with their eyes closed and depicted with blank expressions. Though basic, the whole carving was quite something and even the titans seemed to be impressed by it: "Wow, now _that's_ a door..." Derek breathed as he ran up to it and gently ran a hand over part of the carvings: "This must have taken a fair few decades to carve out!" he called back to everyone, "How big are the hinges do you think? And what're they made out of to support stone as big as this?!" "I dunno? You're the architect you figure it out!" Miriam shrugged, "Actually, there's no key hole, or any kind of lock that I can see" Lucius thought aloud as he scanned the doors up and down.

: That's because they don't need one, their locked and protected by powerful magics: Shadow spelt out as he kneeled down to take another look at the map, scanning his eyes over the relevant text as Tyto held it up for him; "Right. So no ordinary lock-pick's gonna open them huh? _Typical_ " Pascal glanced up at the titan sarcastically, "Hell, I don't think even a cannon could blast them open" Poppy commented offhand as she walked up to the doors for a closer look. Nodding his head in satisfaction, Shadow stood back up and approached the door, **"Well? What's the charm or counter-spell?"** Boar asked offhand, **"Nothing big or fancy, it's just a simple parting spell"** Javorin stated as he reached up and placed his finger on the sealed gap: the tattoos around his wrist glowing as he reached out to the magics embedded within the stone structure...

 _I hereby command you part and open, so the way may be revealed to us_

Suddenly, all the carved lines on the doors flashed blue like a ripple in still water: there was a deep boom that echoed from somewhere deep in the rock, followed by a low rumble of stone grinding hard against stone. As the doors slowly swung open, Derek and Poppy jumped and ran back to the group, just in time to see the doors come to a halt, and the dark passageway inside revealed for the first in over an age as a sudden gust of stale air blew up from out of the darkness. The doors were unbelievably bulky, over ten feet thick and completely carved out of solid rock, the hinges too by the looks of it. "...Whoa..." Ariana breathed as she stood before the threshold, gazing into the passageway, "It's really dark in there"

"Hang on a sec..." Tyto said offhand as he and the others took off their packs, and grabbed the torches they'd made the day before: with Boar setting them alight with his 'fire power', everyone pressed on; walking into the gloom of the thirty meter high passageway. Suddenly, the doors slowly closed on their own, and sealed shut with a dull boom that echoed down the sides of the carved out rock: everyone was nervous, but not deterred as they continued walking. Between the flickering of the flames and listening to their footsteps echo down into the dark, they saw the sides of the passageway were covered in yet more carved patterns and images, this time it was much more varied, from just random shapes and lines to animals and people, but further along, they saw several images that made them all stop and stare up at the walls in wonder. "Is that a titan? ..." Ash stepped closer to the wall for a better look, "Yeah, except, he's just like _ours_ ; all those people gathered around him look happy, they're not running away" Gale pointed out.

The image in question depicted a titan: happy and smiling, surrounded by many humans, but instead of running away in fear all the humans were smiling up at the creature: one human was even standing on his palm, and the titan himself was covered all over in markings; not as intricate and detailed as Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel's, but it was clear this was a titan of their same ilk. "...You're right, and look at the markings he's covered with..." Ariana gazed up at Shadow, "He's just like you guys". "Look, there's more..." Ashlyn held her torch up to light the rest of the wall. Slowly strolling along, everyone scanned the passageway as more titans appeared from out of the darkness: there were all kinds of titans, of all manner of shapes and sizes, and all with uniquely different markings. Some were like Angel, with the bodies, tails and wings of birds, but with human faces and heads: some were like Boar, half-titan and half-creature with tusks, tails, hooves, fur and other animalistic features; and some were part animal with the upper half of a titan but with the antlers and lower half of a deer, or like a fish, with the upper half of a titan and the tail of a giant fish with gills instead of ears, some were shaped like mountain cats, wolves, bears and foxes, with only the heads of a titan, and some were even part snake with long serpentine bodies from the waist down. The rest were all entirely humanoid with long pointed ears, some with long flowing hair that almost seemed to turn into water or clouds, and others stood with their feet planted in the ground as if they were trees, with vines and flowers growing up their legs and bodies. All the images of the humans, titans and animals were intertwined together in an intricate pattern of lines, circles, dots, and spirals, as if it were one enormous tapestry, and every figure were a design in the overall depiction.

Gazing up at the images, and seeing the similarity in them to Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel: everyone couldn't help but feel a sense of awe, and familiarity to the figures; as if the people depicted in the carvings were not too dissimilar from them on some level. "Looks like your theory about the Celts and the magical titans could be right on the mark genius" Pascal thought aloud as he glanced over at Claude, "Do you think all these titans could be the rest of your kind Shadow?" Ariana thought aloud, "Makes sense, there _had_ to be more than four, right?" Rowan shrugged: "It's really quite extraordinary," Claude thought aloud with a beaming smile spread across his face, utterly entranced by the carvings "To think, there was once a whole other species of titan in the world; one that wasn't hell-bent on consuming humans, but living in harmony with them!" "...They must have thought of them as family: they all look fairly happy together" Carla smiled as she noticed one particular titan holding three smiling children in its palms. As she gazed up at all the carvings, Angel steadily lost her fear of the dark passageway, and smiled as she noticed all the different bird titans in flight. **"Do you think they could be the other gods? The ones we could never find?"** She surmised: Shadow, Midnight and Boar all glanced at each other in astonishment, **"You don't suppose-, they're** _ **here**_ **do you?"** she gasped, **"Only one way to find out"** Shadow replied anxiously as he pressed on: daring to hope, but at the same time, trying not to get his hopes up too high; for fear of encountering disappointment and heartache.

The passageway carried on for over two miles, steadily descending downhill with more intricately carved images lining the walls and ceiling: little by little the passageway grew wider and taller, and soon the sound of a huge waterfall could be heard in the distance. Following the sound of the thundering water, the tunnel began to fill with blue light, until the group emerged into a vast tall cave that seemed to be part of a lake: as the water's edge lapped at the side of the rock, the cave mouth was completely covered by an enormous waterfall over forty meters high, completely obscuring the view beyond it, and nearly all but deafening everyone with the constant thundering roar of the falling water. The rest of the cave was filled with glistening stalactites suspended from the ceiling and dripping with water, while the floor was covered in stalagmites with pools of water trapped between each one and covered in various species of algae and mosses, all varying hues of green. "WOW! This is one hell of a cave dad!" Ash shouted, "I know, it's quite something!"He shouted back, "Well which way do we go now?" Miriam shouted, "I'm not sure, give me a sec!" Tyto shouted as he consulted the map yet again: "Uh? I don't know about you guys but I don't see any way out big enough for you to squeeze through!" Belle glanced up at the titans. Indeed, there were various other openings in the cave that obviously lead to the outside, as sunlight poured through one particularly large opening on the right: but they were all too small for the titans to squeeze through, the only opening that would allow them enough room to leave was the one right ahead with the gigantic waterfall spilling over its mouth. "They could shrink down to their animal forms! That won't be a problem!" Lucile shouted, "But we don't know what's out there! We might need some serious muscle to give us cover in case shit goes down!" Gustav pointed out.

"Looks like we don't have much choice," Tyto shouted, "The map says we go straight through the waterfall! That's where the island is!" "That's all well and good except we ain't got a boat handy! What'd you reckon we do instead?" Derek shouted back. Gazing down at the water, Hecate suddenly got an idea: **"How about we take the iceberg express?" "Iceberg express?"** Elysia glanced at her weirdly. Midnight approached the water's edge and kneeled down, extending her arms out and holding her hands over the water, all her markings glowed pale lilac as sparkling white snowflakes appeared from her hands, and swirled all across the water's surface. Through her magic the water froze into a giant boat-shaped block of ice over twenty five feet wide and fifty five feet long, and slowly began to rise some fifteen feet above the water's surface. As everyone gazed at the crude ice sculpture in amazement, Ariana suddenly remembered how it looked like an 'iceberg': a giant mass of frozen water that was commonly found in the waters around the frozen wastelands; one of the many wondrous things described in Armin's book. Before long, the structure was complete and Midnight carefully stepped onto it: it sank a few feet into the water, but it held her weight without cracking; with a satisfied smile, she gestured for everyone to hop aboard. Shooting their lines into her upper arm to fly up and sit on her shoulder, Ash, Rowan and Dale all gazed up at her with satisfied grins spread across their faces, "Did we ever tell you how _awesome_ you are?" Rowan patted her on the cheek, 'Hm? You three can afford to mention it more' she thought offhand as she gazed down at them with a wink.

Stepping onto the front end carefully so as to balance the weight out, Shadow gently lowered the gas tanks down to the deck, and stood as still as possible while Boar and Angel stepped onto the middle of the ice, followed by the humans. With everyone safely aboard, the iceberg boat drifted away from the edge of the rock, and headed out towards the waterfall: propelled by Midnight's manipulation of the water, forming strong currents to push and pull it along. As they neared the waterfall, the black and white Titaness held up one hand and the waterfall parted like a set of giant drapes: eliciting a few wow's and whoa's from the kids and grown-ups alike, even Bemadette's hard-to-please little brothers were impressed. Once on the other side of the waterfall, the whole group found themselves staring into a thick gloomy pea-soup-like fog; " _Great_ , what now? We ain't being whisked off to somewhere else are we?" Miriam grumbled. **"Javorin?"** Elysia worried, **"This doesn't feel like normal fog"** **"Hang on a minute..."** the god flexed his powers, reaching out into the fog and reading all the ambient auras present; what he saw, made him smile with relief: **"...That's because it's** _ **not**_ **normal fog, it's a guardian spirit; it's keeping our destination hidden from us until it can determine whether we're a threat or not"**

" **So? you're the prince of all spirits, tell it we're not here to do any harm"** Hecate gestured to the air around her: with his tattoos glowing with the flow of his power and spiritual energies, Javorin reached his mind out to the omnipotent entity, and conveying a sense of peace and benevolence, recited the ancient words:

 _Elneenya-mor-hanna-freyra: peace be with you mighty one, and all that you protect; I Javorin, god of wisdom, guidance, nourishment and balance, speak on behalf of these humans, and ask that you grant them safe passage through your mists_

Almost right away, Javorin felt a sense of acknowledgement from the spirit, as if it were pleased to have been asked in such a respectful and gracious manner (spirits were usually nit-pickers for decorum: it was half the reason they use to fall out with humans so frequently back in the day; because of the rudeness of some humans, some spirits would raise hell over the littlest of slights), and within minutes, the fog began to part and sunlight filled the air. Pascal was about to say something, when the view before him suddenly made his train of thought come to screeching halt, and his jaw practically smashed into the ice as it dropped to the floor: as did everyone else's, as they were unable to avert their gaze from the scenery ahead...

It was the Hidden land, more or less as Tyto described it, but so much _more_ : beyond just mere words, beyond what any painter could ever hope to capture on canvas, or any musician in the notes of the sweetest song ever sung...

The lake was the richest shade of sapphire blue, and seemed to stretch on forever into the both north and the south: beyond that, tall majestic snow-capped-mountains reached up into the sky, with thick alpine forests carpeting their slopes and foot hills in rich shades of pine and deciduous green. But between the mountains and lake there was an island: a good few miles in length and covered in dense tall forest; but on the north side of the island, stood the most spectacular and breathtaking sight of all. A tree of unbelievable size and proportions, probably some two hundred plus meters tall, it virtually encompassed one sixth of the sky as its huge branches stretched out in all directions, shrouding half the island in dappled shadow and sunlight. "...Dad...That-...That's _the biggest_ tree I've ever seen" Ariana gawked as she stared up at it amazement: "...I think that's the biggest tree _anyone's_ ever seen Magpie" her father replied in equal astonishment.

Unbeknown to the humans, the gods were equally as astounded, for this tree, was one they had not seen in over an age: **"Javorin..."** Elysia gawked, **"Is that, Yggdrasil?** _ **The**_ **Yggdrasil?!" "You better believe it kid! I'd recognize that tree anywhere!"** Herne grinned **, "Yggdrasil? It's still alive?"** Hecate blinked in surprise: **"After all this time, it's managed to endure into this age?"** she smiled in relief. **"If Yggdrasil is still alive, that can only mean-..."** Javorin smiled happily as he realized what this meant, **"Find us somewhere to land on the island Hecate, I have to see for myself"** he gazed over at her, and without another word she directed the iceberg boat towards the island.

As they steadily approached the north end of the island, the great tree loomed overhead, getting bigger with every meter they came closer: forcing everyone to crane their heads right back so as to get a better look; the base of the tree was equally as vast and encompassing, with the biggest roots imaginable. So wide in diameter that they looked to be almost as big as wall Maria, and so long in length that they completely covered the whole end of the island in a seemingly endless tangled network of intertwining and curling wood; some of the roots even extended out into the water, forming secure pillars and flying buttresses for the great tree to remain anchored to its spot; and growing out of the numerous cracks and crevasse of the bark was a carpet of mosses, lichens, ferns and other ground-hugging plants. Growing off the roots and everywhere in between was a thick forest of equally vast and tall trees, their root systems fully fused to the roots of the giant tree, feeding and sustaining them: while growing out of every available nook and cranny was a veritable range of smaller trees, bushes, creepers and vines in every shade of green imaginable, and blooming with flowers in every colour one could imagine. Amid the vast knot-work of roots was a wall of rock that towered high above the lake, in varying in hues of dull lilac and periwinkle that kept the great tree some forty meters above the water's surface.

Never in their lives had any of the humans seen such a vast and grand landscape, so huge in size and proportion that it extended beyond the range of their vision and made them feel like tiny ants, and so breathtaking in the scope of its richness and lush splendour, that it almost felt as if they'd left the mortal world far behind, and had wandered into some heavenly paradise: one that was untouched by human hands, and totally free of the world they knew within the walls.

As the iceberg boat moved closer to the edge of the rocky shore, Midnight brought the ice up alongside one of the behemoth roots that extended down into the water, which curved up and then down again, forming a natural jetty that would allow everyone to walk up to the island. The root was covered in mosses and small plants, with a few small trees along the sides, and long thick creeper-like bushes that hung down to kiss the water, each with leaves as big as tea plates and with huge bright pink, orange and yellow trumpet-shaped flowers that were buzzing with bees and other insects.

" **Think we should take it slow? They look like their heads are about to explode"** Hecate smirked, **"I think** _ **my**_ **head's about to explode!"** Elysia gawked, **"I've flown over Yggdrasil enough times to see it was big: but by the All-father,** _ **I had**_ _ **no idea it was this huge!**_ **" "Life really is different when you're on the ground huh?"** Javorin smirked, **"Yeah no shit!"** Elysia grinned as she resumed her place next to Carla's side. "What the hell kinda tree is that?" Pascal was finally able to speak again, after picking his proverbial jaw up off the ice, "I have to confess" Claude adjusted his pince-nez on the bridge of his nose, "It's no species of tree _I've_ ever seen before" "Yeah no shit, even the giant trees of the titans grove aren't _that_ huge!" Gustav threw in, "A tree that gigantic, how _old_ do you think it must be?" Derek thought aloud as he stroked his beard in contemplation, "Oh great Sina it would've taken hundreds-, no, _thousands upon thousands_ of years to get _this_ big!" Claude exclaimed. "The rest of the forest looks just as big too" Bren gazed over at his wife, and then up at the vast wall of green that loomed over the top of the rocky cliff and peeked out from in between the giant roots: "Everyone stay close and watch your blind spots: there could be predators hiding in there" Tyto warned as he readied his bow and quiver. Taking that as their cue to cover the rest of the group, the other Celts all kept their bows and arrows at the ready, as the others tentatively walked up the giant root, and into the dense green foliage.

The sun became obscured by the vast canopy of the great tree, shrouding the forest below in patchy dappled light: and below the upper canopy, everything seemed to be tinted the same shade of green as meagre patches of sunlight shone through the leaves. The humans kept snapping their heads back and forth as they tried to take in their surroundings, all the while wondering and worrying what might be hiding just out of sight. This forest was very strange, the bird calls were totally different, the insects that buzzed and chirped were unfamiliar, and many of the trees and plants were not like those that grew in Maria: their leaves were more broader and oddly shaped, most were shiny and variegated in their colouration, and those that bore flowers were weirdly shaped and coloured too: half the trees that formed the majority of the canopy were growing from out of the great tree's root system, while the rest stood firmly in the ground amid the countless root caves and naturally formed arches, bows, spirals and multi-serpentine curves of the great tree's gigantic roots. It was warmer here too: much more humid, as if the air felt thick and dense with moisture, heightening the ambient scents of the forest and making everything damp. And with every step they took, there was the growing feeling that they were being watched.

"Tyto? ..." Evrard glanced over at the Grey Owl elder in a hushed dubious tone, "I know Evrard, I feel it too" Tyto nodded, his eyes and ears trained on the thicket: "Question is, might it eat us, or can we eat it?" Falken swallowed hard as he kept his children close. As she scanned the bushes for any sign of a predator, Ariana stopped and squinted as something caught her eye: she thought at first her eyes were being fooled somehow, but when she looked again, she stared at the object in surprise; "Magpie? Why've you stopped darling?" Freya asked her daughter in a hushed voice.

Everyone stopped as Ariana pointed: "There's a house over there," Ariana stated; "What?" Evrard exclaimed, not sure if he heard her right: "A house, over there through those trees!" Ariana insisted. Training their eyes in the direction she was pointing, everyone stared in amazement, as indeed; there, in a small clearing nestled beneath one of the larger tree roots which had a stout tree growing overhead, was a small two story house. Run down and abandoned, and looking as if it had seen better days, the building was intact save for some tiles that had dislodged and fallen off the roof, and part of the chimney looked as if it had caved in. "Whoa, what the hell's _that_ doing here?" Brendis thought aloud from where he sat on Angel's back: "Is it safe to approach Shadow?" Tyto glanced up at the titan, who nodded in reply.

Cautiously stepping towards the house, Tyto, Evrard, Bryson and Pascal looked the building up and down: it was clear no one had lived here in a very long time, as the windows and their frames were caked in mildew and lichens with a few cracked glass panes here and there, small mosses and ferns peeked out of every crack and crevice in the brickwork, and a good portion of the roof and chimney were choked in vines and creepers, most of which looked like it had been growing here for a good number of years. The overall appearance of the building indicated a hunter (or hunters) must have lived here, as the eaves, doorway and windowsills were adorned with animal skulls, antlers, bones, and other bits and pieces collected from the forest: all neatly arranged together in different motifs to form a primitive yet morbidly decorative facade which was overrun with more various greenery growing out of the bones; grim, yet strangely beautiful in a way.

Wiping away some of the mildew with the sleeve of his shirt, Bryson peered in through the window and gazed around the gloomy room inside. It must have been a parlour or family room, for there was a large fireplace against the back wall: there were several pieces of furniture scattered randomly around the room that were covered in grey dust sheets; several wooden crates over in the far corner next to the fireplace that seemed to contain a collection of plates, jugs, tools, utensils and other practical things, while in the other corner were three large rugs all rolled up and neatly stacked up in a pile. Around the right side of the house Evrard saw the remains of a stable and cart house: the roof and side wall were half demolished but the foundations were still intact; and around the left side of the building Pascal and Tyto found, what must have been a dove cote, as the structure in question was a cylindrical dry wall tower about six meters tall with a conical roof, and studded with about two dozen holes that looked to be just the right size for a dove or pigeon to land on and walk through; all covered in ivy and vines.

"Well? Anyone home?" Miriam barked: "Whoever lived here ain't here now!" Pascal called back. "But look at how everything's been put away, and there are dust sheets covering everything" Bryson gestured to the window: "Whoever they were, they expected to return here someday" "Obviously that day never came..." Tyto sighed offhand as he walked around to the back of the house, where the root that loomed over it protruded up out of the ground. As the gentlemen rounded the corner, they stopped as they spotted a large ivy-covered ladder leaning against the side of the root: following it up, they nearly gasped as they saw another house sitting atop the root, bigger than the one on the ground and held in place by a series of thick wooden pillars, with a wide boardwalk that extended all around the sides and along to the root, forming a sizable pathway that led off around the other side of the tree. "What the hell?-, How'd you build a house on top of a big-ass tree root like this?" Pascal frowned in bemusement, "...Oh my god, it's not just the root! Look!" Bryson pointed up into the tree. About twenty five meters up, nestled at the top of the thick truck where the tree spit up to form its numerous branches, they saw a three-tiered set of platforms: one right above the other and spaced several meters apart, all held in place by more stout wooden pillars, and a strange yellow substance no one could identify: "Stay here, I'm going up for a better look" Bryson stated as he shot his lines up at the middle platform, and sailed up to land on the lower level: "Be careful!" Tyto called up to him.

Recalling his lines back, Bryson was taken aback by what he found: it was another house, three stories tall and built in the same basic architecture as the one on the ground, but this one was made entirely from wood, and had been dressed up to look more like a cabin; it's facade was more basic with bare walls, except for a large set of antlers hanging above the front door. Its four corners hugged four massive pillars that supported the two upper levels, all the edges of which were supported by a series of arches that were made from a bright daffodil yellow crystal. But this crystal was no mineral Bryson had ever seen before: from what he remembered of Claude's vast geological collection in his lab, he knew there was no crystal that was shaped like this, that looked as if it had been deliberately sculpted like clay; but as he ran his hand over the smooth glass-like surface, he couldn't feel any indentations or marks that would indicate it had been chiselled, or deliberately manipulated in anyway. The whole thing looked and felt as natural as the trees themselves, which made no sense at all.

Deciding to leave the mystery crystal the Claude, Bryson turned his attention back to the house as he wandered along the huge boardwalk that served as a make-shift courtyard of sorts: the whole structure had been created with the growth of the trees and plants in mind, as the entire platform was suspended in part by a series of thick vines that had been deliberately intertwined around the support pillars for additional strength. By the side of the house at the edge of the platform, the vines had even been twisted and pleated, which had fused together over time to form a large spiral that went up to the levels above and down to an unseen area on the opposite side of the tree, with a flight of stairs carved out of the central vine. It was incredible, a remarkable feat of resourcefulness and architectural engineering. Utilizing trees to build a home? Who would've thought? Bryson couldn't help but smile as he knew Derek would be ecstatic at the sight of this, never mind watching him work as he would (inevitably) try to figure out how such a feat could be achieved. As he gazed up and around the canopy of the tree, Bryson blinked in surprise at the native wildlife flitting and flying about between the branches: here were the birds whose calls he'd heard down on the ground, but hadn't seen on account of the thick canopy. These were nothing like the bird species he had seen in the Marian forest: they were all various shapes and sizes, with different shaped bills too; all of them possessed a dazzling array of plumages. Some of which were so vividly iridescent, that they lit up in the sun in a range of colours he never imaged had existed before. "...Wow..." he couldn't help but smile: Claude was going to have one hell of field day, that's for sure.

"Holy geez-" Pascal gasped as he landed on the platform by the house, "This is some neighbourhood huh? Or it _was_ at least" he gazed around the tree house in amazement, "Yeah, that's for sure" Bryson nodded. "Hey!" Ariana shouted up to the two gentlemen from where she stood on Shadow's shoulder, "-What'd you find guys?" "A house built up in a tree" Bryson stated as he and Pascal jumped down onto the titan's shoulder, "Which, is either mad, genius: or both" he smiled; "Well it seems like it was the trend here at one time, look" Ariana pointed to the other huge trees nearby. The two gentlemen stared in wonder and amazement at, what was practically a whole city block of houses nestled amid the branches like bird's nests or hugging the sides of the trunks like bracket fungus: all interconnected by a network of boardwalks, vine bridges and staircases, and smaller branches deliberately manipulated to form a series of winding paths that stretched between the trees. The houses were all unique in their architecture and design; no two were alike as they hugged their allotted area of the tree they were built onto: and each, (although they were not like the grand mansions and castles of wall Sina), was simply breathtaking just as it was. Many were larger than the average town house with large windowsills and baloneys, cylindrical towers with colonial roofs on the sides, and quite a few had large glass conservatories and atriums attached to the back ends, all supported in place by big broad wooden platforms that served as patios, open and enclosed courtyards, front and back yards, and even small crossroads where more than three bridges connected together. It was so surreal, and yet so enchanting: like a scene from the pages of a fairytale.

"Isn't this place incredible?! I mean-, _just look_ at those buildings!-" Derek smiled as he bounced back and forth on his heels with glee, gawking up at the grand tree houses like a child who had just been inside a candy shop for the first time in his life: his eyes were wide and glistening with wonder, as he stared up into the unique arboreal dwellings. "Living in trees? That actually sounds kinda cool" Drake smiled, "Oh my god we simply _have_ to go up there to get a better look!" "It's impressive alright," Tyto nodded, "But for now, it would be wise to stay together: let's try to find somewhere safe to make camp, _and then_ we can go exploring" he suggested, "So where do we go?" Rosemary asked offhand. "We try to find water, once we have a source of hydration we can worry about everything else" Breck suggested: "Agreed, let's press on" Tyto nodded.

"-Wait a minute!" Clay exclaimed in surprise, "-What on earth is _that?!_ " he pointed up to a dense cluster of bright orange flowers that were trailing down the side of a nearby tree: gazing up, everyone instantly saw the creature in question, and stared at it in a mix of curiosity and weirdness. It was a tiny bird-shaped insect with a long needle-like proboscis and wings beating so fast that they were loudly humming: it was probably no bigger than an adult's thumb, and unusually it had no antennae or any visible legs or abdomen: it's whole body was one sleek form with what looked like a bright green and yellow fan-shaped tail while the rest of it was all dark green with a distinct iridescent red patch on its head. The tiny creature hovered over the flowers with the stillness of a kestrel, dipping its long proboscis into the flower for several seconds, before hovering away and moving along to another flower. "Oh great Sina..." Claude gasped as he approached the tree and gazed up the creature, which continued to hover over the flowers unfazed: "That's no insect species I've ever seen before" he smiled, "It almost looks like a bird" Hazel raised an eyebrow: suddenly, Boar began chucking: "Oh yeah? What do you know we don't huh?" Hazel folded her arms, : That's because it is a bird: he spelt out, "Say what?" West cocked his head to one side with a raised eyebrow, "A bird?" Claude glanced back up at the creature; holding out his hand, Boar whistled a little tune, and the tiny creature zipped over everyone's heads (making most of them duck on instinct) and landed on his waiting finger.

Lowering his hand for everyone to get a closer look, Boar smiled smugly as the humans gawked at, what was indeed, the _tiniest_ little bird they'd ever seen in their whole lives. As it warbled a high-pitched song, they saw its proboscis was actually it's bill, and its iridescent exoskeleton was in fact its plumage. "Well great Sina on a unicorn!" Claude laughed, " _That is remarkable!_ A bird adapted the fly like an insect!" : It's called a humming bird: Shadow clarified, : They're found in other parts of the outside world, but it would seem they've made a home here with all these flowers providing them with food: "Flowers? Food?" Claude did a double take up at the titan: as if on cue, the humming bird flew back to its flowers and starting probing its long bill into them again. : Yes, humming birds feed almost exclusively on nectar, it's why they hover like that, to reach the best flowers that grow on the furthest-most branches: Shadow added as he pointed up into the canopy, where there were dozens of different species of humming birds, all glistening as their feather's caught the light and filling the air with the droning hum of their wing beats. With so many bright and vivid colours all flashing at once, the whole underside of the canopy looked like it was shining with gemstones and diamonds, and with the flowers all boasting their own colours, the whole scene made everyone gaze up in wonder and awe. "Oh my god that's so pretty!" Poppy beamed ecstatically, "They are quite beautiful aren't they?" Rosemary smiled, "Like little lords and ladies all dressed up to go see the king!" Lucile chuckled, "Their so beautiful," Carla couldn't help but smile, "You could watch them all day and never be bored" "Indubitably!" Claude smiled as he craned his head right back for a better look, "Looks like you'll have a 'buddy' for your exploration of this place Derek ol' boy, I've got _a whole journal_ of notes to take on the flora and fauna of this place!"

"Huh, if that's just the birds what else can we expect to see?" Gustav frowned dubiously, "Gustav ol boy' I can't wait to see!" Claude puffed out his chest with a renewed sense of excitement as he marched after Tyto, who the continued on into the dense greenery.

A mile's trek led them deeper into the forest; navigating the great tree's roots as if they were trying to find their way around a stack of randomly scattered giant tree logs: it was just one huge labyrinth of wood with no clear trails or distinguishable landmarks. There were many rises, log tunnels, bows and curves to follow, protruding roots to climb over and under, and large root caves that extended for many meters underground or into the trees themselves: it was all so big and so tall it was like trying to scale small mountainsides without climbing gear. And what solid ground there was steadily descended downwards, in an incline so subtle that it was barely noticeable; in addition to all the smaller trees and dense undergrowth that the titans gently moved to one side, allowing Boar and Angel to carry their passengers safely.

Whist trying to retain what bearings they had, keeping the great tree behind them and to their left for easy reference: the group began to see more and more tree houses; here in this area of the forest, the trees were over forty to sixty meters tall, with clusters of several or more buildings built in and around the trunks and seated atop the bases of the trees crowns: all linked up by a vast network of bridges and boardwalks that were built onto the stoutest branches, and went on for many hundreds of meters between each tree. There were a good number of buildings on the ground too: built into the sides of the trees or partially underground where the forest floor would rise up by a couple of dozen meters in places. But these were not like the buildings everyone was familiar with; instead of being post and beam houses with distinct dark timber frames, the houses were all plastered white (though, more green on account of all the mildew, moss and lichens covering the walls and roofs), and either had tiled or thatched roofs. Some were not even made from bricks and mortar at all: some were large boats that had been turned upside down, with windows cut out from their hulls and a single door cut out of their sterns, with the entire hull doubling up as the walls and roof in one. Others were giant logs that had been sealed off at both ends, save for a door cut out in one, and small windows cut out of the sides of the log with a chimney protruding from the top side. Giant hollowed roots and dead trees had been made into viable shelters too, and even a huge stack of giant tun barrels each had a single door and a set of windows in one end. As they kept heading further into the centre of the island, the number of arboreal and terrestrial buildings seem to grow in number, as everywhere they looked, there seemed to be an overgrown front door or the edge of a wild front garden nestled among the trees and bushes.

With the humans of this strange place long since gone, the islands other residents had claimed the strange town for themselves: every now and then someone would catch a fleeting glimpse of something moving through the undergrowth, or between the branches up in the canopy. Aside from all the unfamiliar bird species there were a good number of spotted and furrow deer, several other species of squirrels beside the red and grey, dormice and other rodents of varying species, owls, and even weasels and stoats; but there were other animals here that had never been seen before. Like the small weasel-like creatures with short pointed faces, bright rust red fur, and long bushy black and red tails that watched them from a distance (Red tailed mongoose, Boar called them): large carnivores that looked like a cross between a short-eared dog and a long-tailed cat with velvety brown tawny fur and eyes that seemed to glow gold in the shadows of the trees (A fossa, Boar elaborated); and a large type of cat that had striking golden sandy fur, with black marbled spots and stripes with brown in-between, and pale golden brown eyes that pierced the darkness of the canopy and watched them curiously (an Ocelot, Boar explained). The insects too were a sight to behold, as large butterflies of varying shapes, sizes and colours fluttered about from flower to flower: beetles that looked like metallic jewels with their bright colourful wing cases, or like strange and terrifying miniature monsters with huge elaborate horns and spikes protruding from their exoskeletons, and centipedes and millipedes as long as a man's arm scuttled and snaked about the leaf litter, while hiding among the bushes and lazing about on the branches, various colourful unknown species of lizards and snakes idly went about their day, unconcerned by the new arrivals.

"We are _definitely_ not in Maria anymore" Ash thought aloud as he watched a vivid shiny blue beetle the size of his fist scuttle under a log: "I think we must be approaching the town centre, so to speak: these buildings are everywhere around here" Mabel thought aloud as they passed beneath a wide set of suspended vine bridges some forty meters above the ground: "I'm just wondering what happened to all the people that lived here: it's clear this place was a thriving community at one point: why did they abandon it?" Bryson thought aloud: "And why didn't they come back?" Tyto added dubiously. "What gets me is the condition of this place" Derek interjected enthusiastically, "This 'town' has been abandoned for a very long time, and yet most of the buildings are still in relatively good shape: aside from a few dislodged roof tiles, overgrown thatched roofs, cracked windows and just general overgrown weeds everywhere, I reckon we could move into one of these buildings and live quite comfortably"

" **You guys have been around Yggdrasil before, who were the humans that lived here?"** Elysia asked offhand as she kept pace with Carla, **"I'm ashamed to say I don't remember"** Javorin sighed as he gazed up at the tree houses, **"Which doesn't make any sense: I can recall visiting Yggdrasil long ago, but I don't remember this island or anything else about the Hidden land"** he knitted his brows together in dubious confusion: **"Could it be part of the curse that made us into titans? We already surmised as much since none of us remember how we ended up in those tombs: could it extend to make us forget other parts of our lives too?"** Elysia raised a sceptical eyebrow, **"Selective memory loss wouldn't be too difficult for someone who knows the right incantations: but the fact all four of us remember Yggdrasil itself should've put a dampener on such a curse"** Hecate thought aloud as she frowned in contemplation. **"What'd you mean 'put a dampener on it'?"** Elysia asked in concern: **"She means that simply remembering something related to something else, should've broken the curse a little bit,"** Herne explained: **"All memories can't be totally erased from existence kid: it's not like wiping chalk off a blackboard, more like locking them up in a little box and hiding the key. All memories are interlinked: from hour to hour, day to day, all lives exist in the sequence of time as it passes by, and like the threads of a tapestry it all connects up; memories are pretty much the same, and it's amazing how different memories correspond to one another. Therefore, if you inflict someone with a memory curse to make them forget something specific: there's a chance that if the cursed individual thinks of something that** _ **relates**_ **to the forgotten memory, that** _ **could**_ **trigger said memory to reawaken and the curse would be broken"**

" **Huh. But then, why not just wipe the memory out altogether?"** Elysia thought aloud: **"Because it's just not possible"** Hecate explained dryly: **"Memory is part and part of the fabric of a being's existence: it is the essence of our past that is the foundation of who and what we are; the starting point from which we embark on our journey through life. Once a memory comes into existence it cannot be destroyed: only transformed into manna, and allowed to be returned to the ocean of creation once the soul who possessed it has finally passed into the eternal realm...Besides; the fact that memory is integral to the foundation of a being's persona and psyche means that tampering with it has always carried a heavy penalty: any god, human or spirit that sought to change an individual's destiny by altering their memories, be they for good or bad reasons, would** _ **have**_ **to face the consequences, regardless of who they were..."**

" **...Wait a minute"** Javorin stopped, the humans gazed up at him in confusion, but he ignored them as the cogs in his head turned: **"We all remember Yggdrasil, but nothing else related to it? And if we really were inflicted with a simple memory curse, shouldn't our memories have reawakened, or at least begin to reawaken?"** he gazed up at Yggdrasil and frowned. **"What're you thinking brother?"** Herne knitted his thick bushy eyebrows together **, "I'm thinking, something about our 'selective memory loss' is off..."** Javorin thought aloud as he stepped over to the nearest tree, **"Most memory-based magics are not the kind an average wizard can summon up on a whim: and suffice to say, cursing a whole plethora of memories related to just** _ **one**_ **memory specifically is damned hard work, even for us gods...What I'm trying to say is: I think this could be the other way around; it's not that we can't remember anything else to do with Yggdrasil, but rather, the fact we can remember Yggdrasil at all"** he explained as he placed his hand on the trunk, and the tattoos on his arm began to glow as he reached out to the forest: reaching out to the spirits and their energies to help him find what he was looking for. All the while the humans remained quiet, as they knew he was unresponsive whenever he did this. "What's he searching for?" Bryson frowned in alarm, "Dunno, but he had a serious look on his face just a second ago" Ariana called down from where she stood on Shadow's shoulder, watching his radiant blue eyes glow as he summoned his power.

Through the vast network of tree roots and the mycelium of fungi, Javorin searched every inch of the island, finally reaching out to the great tree: it's energies were like a vast endless ocean, rich in life and magic, and deep with memories of times long since passed from living memory; it gave him a warm feeling of content and serenity, as he felt the beating heart of the world through its roots, and the whispering breath of the heavens through its leaves. Eventually, after searching the tree up and down, he found what he was looking for: through his mind's eye, he saw a circular talisman hanging from one of the branches, made from a strange red crystal and hanging by a leather cord, it had three charm-symbols carved into the face, each of which corresponded to the magics he had surmised were at work here. **"...Just as I thought"** he thought aloud, **"Someone's placed a breaking spell up in one of Yggdrasil's branches: its power is filtering down through the tree and being dispersed out among the forest..."**

But the second before he removed his hand from the tree and broke the connection: a powerful presence flittered past his psychic sight, one as powerful if not more powerful than himself; and felt as if it radiated peace and serenity...

 _We've been expecting you_

 _Follow the trail just a little further_

 _We're waiting for you_

Shadow flinched suddenly, causing Ariana to fall off his shoulder as he stepped back from the tree in alarm: fortunately he wasn't so far out of it that he wasn't aware of the girl, and smoothly caught her in his hand as he regained his composure. Everyone nearly jumped in alarm, and when they saw the look on his face, they knew something serious had just happened. "Shadow? What's wrong?" Bryson asked him worryingly, "Hey big guy, what's got you jumpy all of a sudden?" Ariana patted him on the wrist. Shadow turned and glanced down at the human's, and then back up at the other three titans in a mixed state of shock and bewilderment: **"Javorin? What just happened**?" Herne asked worryingly. Javorin smiled, and looked as if he was about to cry as he replied, **"...They** _ **are**_ **here" "They? Who's 'they'?"** Elysia frowned, **"Who's here?"** Hecate asked.

Suddenly, Bryson jerked as he shivered all over, " _Titans!_ " he hissed between his clenched teeth, " _Titans everywhere!_ ". At that moment, the bushes and trees rustled as something large moved towards them from all directions, and then stopped. Then, one by one, titans appeared from out of the dense greenery, melting out of the trees and undergrowth as if they were one and the same as the forest, eliciting a series of gasps from the humans as they froze on the spot. The titans were a mix of male and female, all between five to six meters tall, and as beautiful and handsome as fairytale princes and princesses: all with the same style of tattoos as Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel, all had pointed elfish ears, and striking green eyes that glistened in every hue of green imaginable. Many had vines and flowers intertwined into beautiful garlands in their hair, while some grew and blossomed around their arms and necks like bracelets and necklaces. More rustling from the undergrowth announced the arrival of more titans, but these were not like any other titan the humans had ever seen before. They were around five to seven meters tall with golden tanned skin and white freckles over their noses and cheeks, fiery red ginger hair and glistening green eyes, but from the waist down they had the body and legs of fallow deer, complete with ears and antlers: the females had smaller antlers that only reached about a meter and a half, while the males had racks as big as Boars forearms. Then, from out the other sides of the undergrowth, more strange animalistic-looking titans appeared: a few were snake-like from the waist down with long serpentine bodies that were covered in glistening green scales and reached over twenty to thirty meters long; others were more fallow deer-types, only some were sliver and grey instead of tawny and red. From out of the canopy more fully humanoid titans appeared, climbing down out of the trees as if they were cats on the prowl: they too had elfish ears and piercing green eyes, but their arms and legs looked more like tree bark instead of skin, with mosses and lichens growing in between the creases and folds of the bark. Following them were several bird titans that swooped down through the gaps in the top-most layer of the canopy, and perched on the branches overhanging the clearing: Carla smiled as she saw they were just like Angel, with markings on only their faces and necks, they had avian wings, tails, necks and digigrade feet, but humanoid bodies, legs, heads and faces; but unlike Angel they all had different coloured plumages, different shaped tails, wings and crests. And from another side of the clearing, another strange set of titans showed up: they had the head, neck and shoulders of a humanoid titan, but the legs, body and tail of a red fox, with honey-gold hair and golden amber eyes; they to had markings, on their fur as well as their faces.

"Holy Sina!-" Bryson jumped back, everyone huddled close together as the titans completely surrounded them: "Uh, this is just a wild guess, but I'm thinking these guys are the welcoming party?" Pascal thought aloud offhand as he stared up at all the titans, who were gazing down at them as if they'd never seen humans before. "Yeah no shit" Rowan nodded, "Guess these guys must be the locals?" Derek smiled nervously: "Uh? Guys? What do we do now?" West swallowed hard.

Approaching the humans with a child-like innocence, the titans all gathered around, smiling with curiosity and wonder, before bowing to the four larger titans in a show of respect. **"Lords Javorin and Herne, ladies Hecate and Elysia: on behalf of the Dryades, Anthosia and Fauna of Yggdrasil island, we welcome thee and your company"** one of the gods spoke in a courteous tone. **"Nature gods?"** Javorin blinked in surprise, smiling in sheer delight as he placed the gas canisters down on the ground: **"My goodness, this is a pleasant surprise!"** 'Yeah, no shit!' Hecate thought in surprise, rather taken aback by the 'welcoming party'. **"Indeed my lord, long have we awaited the arrival of a fellow god: we had no idea it would be the Overseer of Mankind himself"** the younger god smiled, **"If he had told us in advance we would have prepared the ambrosia!"** one of the bird-gods grinned, **"He?"** Herne frowned: **"He who?" "Ah-, yes, he said not to ruin the surprise: please, follow us. He and the others are most eager to meet you all, especially** _ **you**_ **my lord"** the younger god replied as he beckoned them to follow: the gods-turned-titans all backed off and followed him as he led the way further into the forest. "Uh Shadow? Care to let us in on what these guys are up to?" Tyto discreetly tapped Javorin on the ankle: with a reassuring smile, he replied, :It's okay, there's someone waiting for us, come: he beckoned them to follow, " **Is it alright if my companions comes too?"** he asked, gesturing down to the humans, **"But of course, he is eager to meet them also!"**

"Great Sina would you look at all these different titans?!" Claude grinned ear to ear as he practically skipped along after the group, with all the various humanoid and animal titans keeping pace with them: "-And all with the same style of markings! These have got to be of the same variety as ours for sure!" "They all must live here on the island" Ariana smiled as she gazed up at them, trying to get a good look at each variety, "Shadow! Are these your kin?!" she called up, :Extended kin: he spelt out, :It's a very big family we're a part of: "Yeah no shit" Miriam blinked in surprise, "The cost of all those birthday presents must a nightmare!" "Look at all those bird titans Angel," Carla thought aloud, "Are they your cousins too?" **"Hey! Are you guys my cousins?!"** Elysia called up to the other avian titans that were hopping from branch to branch, **"We are** _ **all**_ **cousins, cousin"** one smiled, **"All of divine blood are brother, sister and cousin alike"** another smiled. **"Huh?"** Elysia frowned in confusion, **"He basically means yes brat"** Hecate huffed: **"Oh okay. Cool!"** Elysia smiled as she nodded down at Carla. "Is it just me of do all these titans look just like the ones carved into the walls of the mountain tunnel?" Dale thought aloud, "I was just thinking that" Bryson replied offhand. **"So you guys were all afflicted with the same curse too huh?"** Herne asked, **"Indeed my lord, but it is hardly a hindrance: our powers are intact and we are able to talk amongst ourselves through our thoughts"** the younger god replied, **"The only concern is that our memories are not what they once were"** another goddess piped in **"But not to worry, all will be explained when you meet him"** another god interjected, **"Okay, who's this 'he' you're referring too? I don't like surprises"** Hecate folded her arms.

" **Even if their good ones?"**

Javorin, Herne and Hecate stopped abruptly with sudden shock reflected in their eyes: "Uh Shadow? ... Guys? You okay? ..." Ariana tapped Shadow on the ankle, but he didn't reply as he stared straight ahead. There was a clearing only a short distance away, and standing in the middle of it was another titan: fifteen meters tall with dark slicked back auburn hair and covered head to toe in the same style of tattoos as Shadow, he wore an old tatty grey blindfold over his eyes and seemed to have a slit running up the middle of his forehead. Gazing at the new arrivals, a small smile crossed his lips as he took a step forward: **"...I have to confess: though I foresaw this, it is still wonderful to see you all here at long last"** he spoke in cool measured voice.

" **... Jarus?! ..."** Javorin nearly stammered in surprise, **"Jarus?"** Elysia raised an eyebrow, **"Who's Jarus?" "OUR BIG BROTHER THAT'S WHO!"** Herne swiftly but gently removed the elder Willum siblings from his back (much to their alarm and dismay), before bounding over to the god like an over-excited dog and throwing his arms around him, nearly knocking him over, **"-Big bro J! By the All-father you're a sight for a sore eye!"** Herne laughed telepathically, while externally he laughed with a gruff hoarse chuckle that sounded more animalistic than human, **"So kind of you to remember I only have one left"** Jarus smiled as he patted him on the back, " **It's so good to see you again Herne" "-Jarus!"** Javorin ran to him and threw his arms around him too, **"Don't worry, I haven't forgotten you little brother"** he patted him on the head; **"You're here? You've been** _ **here**_ **this whole time?!"** Javorin gazed at him in heartfelt surprise, holding back the tears that threaten to spill from his eyes, **"Well? not on the island per se, I came here to give my favourite brothers and cousins a proper welcome,"** he gazed over at Hecate, " **And don't think I've forgotten** _ **you**_ **dear cousin; don't lie, I know you're just as pleased to see me alive and well"** he smiled as the black and white goddess approached with a small smile on her lips, and pulled him into her embrace, **"Nice to see the gods favourite wise-ass is still around to bore us with his boundless trivia"** she smirked, **"Nice to know the god's mightiest is still around to flick her sharp tongue in my general direction as always"** he shot back with a sly smirk of his own, **"Please, don't flatter yourself"** she smiled, **"But seriously, it's great to see you again Jarus"**. He bowed in respect, before turning his attention to Elysia, who felt very out of place here: **"And you must be Elysia"** **"Uh, yeah, nice to meet you"** she sheepishly smiled, wondering how on earth he knew her name: **"From what I have glimpsed, you have been a most interesting addition to my brother's company: a Tempus goddess who enjoys living on the ground? Quite the scandal wouldn't you say?"** he grinned with a raised eyebrow **. "Wait-, how do you know I've been living on the ground?"** Elysia blinked in surprise, **"Because I saw it come to pass, when I glanced into the future five years ago,"** he replied, to which she stared at him weirdly: **"Please, allow me to properly introduce myself"** he stated in a more formal tone, **"I am Jarus: God of the sacred word and all written knowledge, council to mankind, seer of time and truth, servant of destiny, and guardian of the city of Omnes Scientiam" "Seer of time and truth? You can gaze into time itself?"** she gasped, **"Not** _ **all**_ **the time (excuse the pun), but yes, essentially; and only when necessary"** he clarified, **"See that slit on his forehead kid? That's his third eye, that's what allows him to see across all of time and space"** Herne pointed to his forehead. Leaning forward so she could see more clearly, Jarus opened his third eye, revealing a glowing golden orb that peered down at her: Elysia nearly jumped back in alarm, a little grossed out, but she didn't dare let it show: **"Forgive the brat, she's not too wise on who's who in the 'extended' family tree"** Hecate threw in, **"Easily forgiveable: Tempus gods are not known for staying in one place too long: they tend to go wherever the wind blows. Though it would appear** _ **you**_ **have become the general acceptation Elysia,"** Jarus gazed down at the younger goddess: **"Well? I kinda had a reason to stick around"** she smiled sheepishly, gazing over at Carla. **"Indeed; and speaking of which,"** Jarus gestured down to the humans, who were all staring up at them in a mix of surprise and weirded out nervousness. **"Please, allow me to get a good look of your company"** he smiled as he approached them.

"Guys? What just happened?" Pascal glanced at everyone, "A family reunion by the looks of it, they all seem very happy to see one another" Carla offered: "Uh, well? He seems happy to see us too, he's coming this way" West swallowed hard as he and the others backed up a little, allowing the new titan to kneel down in front of them. "Indeed, I am most delighted to meet you all" the titan smiled in a deep smooth voice that softly echoed across the clearing; everyone froze in alarm, "You talked?" Ariana blinked in surprise, "YOU TALKED?!" Claude grinned madly, "A titan, _just talked?!_ " Bryson exclaimed in disbelief. "Of course, I am the only titan here that is capable of speech" the giant replied: **"YOU CAN TALK?!** _ **ACCTUALLY TALK?!**_ **"** Hecate gawked in shock, **"BRO! When did this happen?!"** Herne exclaimed, **"God of the scared word remember? The power over speech and spoken word is** _ **my**_ **domain; that was something the curse couldn't overcome, apparently"** he told her, **"That sort of makes sense"** Javorin scratched his head. Gazing at one another, the humans were all as amazed as they were dumbfounded: "Well shit, a titan who can talk: who'd have thought it possible?" Gustav scratched his head in amazement: "Well? This is another big first" Dale thought aloud, "Indeed, and speaking of which: you are the first humans to step foot on this island in over a century" the titan replied; "Wait-, what?" Rowan did a double take up at the titan, "-Uh, hang on" Bryson interrupted, stepping up to the titan with a serious look in his eye: "...Forgive my forwardness: but, since it's obvious you're a titan of great intelligence and coherence, I take it you have a name?" "Oh, please forgive me, it has been so long since anyone new has come here that my manners are rather lacking: I am the Keeper" the giant replied with a courteous bow, "The keeper?" Carla raised an eyebrow, **"The 'Keeper?'"** Hecate frowned dubiously, **"You were not the first to think it wise to conceal your true identity from the humans: least it might complicate matters if they knew what we really were"** Jarus replied, Javorin blinked in surprise as he suddenly realized: **"You foresaw this?" "Not necessarily: I'll explain later"**. "Yes, the Keeper: guardian of the city of Omnes Scientiam, and keeper of all its libraries, museums and archives" the titan replied, "The city of _what?_ " Evrard frowned, "The city of Omnes Scientiam" he clarified, "The one greatest source of all knowledge in the known world: the place where all mankind came to be enlightened, and receive the wisdom of ages past"

Everyone glanced at one another in confusion, not having a clue what he was talking about, until it suddenly clicked for Lucius: "-Oh wait! Are you talking about the city of lost memories?!" he eagerly asked. "... City of 'lost memories?'" the titan pondered the name for a brief moment, seeming unsure of what he was referring to: "Please, allow me to explain," Tyto stepped in, holding up the Semitam: "... See, it's a bit of a long story, but we've journeyed from the land beyond the hidden mountains: our home was destroyed in a great cataclysm and we cannot go back without risking death... I am Tyto of the Grey Owl clan, my grandfather journeyed to this land long ago with his kin, nearly a hundred years ago in fact, and they discovered the city and its many wonders. He returned with the promise that we too may journey to find it someday; well? After losing our homes and our loved ones, today _is_ that day, and if the city you speak of is indeed the place we are looking for, we would be ever so grateful if you would allow us entrance into its walls, and learn of the world that has been stolen from mankind by the titans" he spoke graciously, bowing respectively. The titan gazed down at him for a moment, before pointing to the Semitam: "My I?", "Of course" Tyto nodded as he handed him the Semitam. Everyone watched in silence as the titan laid the map flat in his palm, and held it close to his face as if inspecting it in detail. For a moment everyone wondered what he was doing, on account his eyes were blindfolded, until the slit in his forehead opened up, and everyone gasped as they saw a third gold eye peer down at the map "Okay, that's a little weird, even for a magical titan!" Josefa whispered under her breath. After an uneasy few moments of waiting and inspecting, the titan gazed down at Tyto with his third eye, and asked: "...You made this yourself?" "Ah-, yes, with the help of my brothers, and friends here" Tyto explained, gesturing to the rest of the group, "And you figured out how to unlock its power?" the titan asked bluntly, not giving away any emotion. At that, everyone glanced at one another as they all suddenly realized, this titan was much more than what he appeared to be: "... You, _know_ what this is?" Bryson frowned, "Of course, a Semitam is quite useful for keeping locations confidential, though, unless you have the key and know how to unlock it, it is impossible to read otherwise" the Keeper explained, "I am familiar with all disciplines of sorcery and the mystic arts: the magics that created _this_ are not unknown to me" he handed the map back to Tyto, "Tell me: how did you happen upon this map? And how did you locate the key, may I ask?"

Glancing at one another as they remembered the events of yesterday, and the events leading up to it, the whole group wasn't too sure where to start; "Well? It uh, it's _complicated_. Let me start from the beginning..." Tyto cleared his throat: and for the next half hour or so he told the Keeper everything: from Ariana and Carla's first encounter with Shadow and Angel five years ago, to Pascal and West's accidental involvement when the rest of the kids first encountered them; the night of the storm, and the rest of the group's first introduction. He spoke of how over the following years, Claude, Breck, Bryson and Derek dedicated themselves to studying the titans and their powers, while he and his extended family helped to translate the tattoos and tomb carvings, eventually creating the Semitam. He also told the Keeper of the events of the day before last, about how the 'giant' and 'armoured' titans attacked Shiganshina, allowing the regular titans to overrun the city, and eventually all of Maria: forcing them to fight for their lives and flee into the forest, where the following day they happened upon the key to the Semitam, and decided to go with their giant friends to the Hidden land. As Tyto relayed the events of the past five years, everyone had their own input as to how they got involved, and how the loss of Shiganshina bound them together in this 'impromptu quest'. As they all listened in, the other titans were totally entranced by the elder Grey Owl's story: gazing around, many of the group noticed how their eyes reflected a mix of amazement, delight, shock, and sorrow; especially when he told of how many people died in Shiganshina. All the while the Keeper listened, he never interrupted nor gave any hint as to what he was thinking: his simply sat there, listening as Tyto finished relaying his story; he sat in contemplation for a moment, before finally admitting: "...I wondered why the trees were so restless that day..."

"Huh? ..." Ariana raised eyebrow, "-Wait, _you knew_ something bad was going on?" "Yes; that day, when your city fell to the 'regular titans': I could hear the trees and the spirits within them growing restless, something _bad_ was coming. Though _what exactly_ I couldn't ascertain: it was not until sunset, when I could hear the cries of the people and smell their blood soaking into the roots that we all realized something terrible had happened. But, of course it was too late to do anything by then: I had wanted to go and help, I couldn't simply abandon my post... I am _aggrieved_ , and sad that such a loss of life came to pass: I am though, thankful to all of you for not leaving my brothers and sisters for dead"

"Well? We're just happy they were able to regenerate: even if it did take the better part of five hours. Besides, it's going to take a lot more than just an armoured titan to get the better of our titanic friends here" Claude smiled up at Shadow and co. "Hang on; Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel are your brothers and sisters?" Bren asked offhand, "I think he means more the figurative kinda brothers and sisters Bren" Derek explained discreetly: "Figurative or literal, such distinctions matter not to us: we are _all_ of the same world and the life that exists within it. As such, we are one and same: the one made many, the many made different, and in our differences; uniqueness, diversity and the cycle of change, that ensure balance and harmony in one and all" the Keeper smiled down at Tyto, "You're ancestors understood this, and knew that life does not merely stop at death". "No, it doesn't..." Tyto nodded, rather surprised he knew that little pearl of Celtic wisdom, "Did you know the Celts? Keeper?" he asked eagerly: "Long long ago, in another age when the world was very different to what it is now," he nodded, "Theirs was a peaceful and magnanimous culture: living in harmony with the wilds of nature, and learning the ways of the spirits and gods...You say your grandfather came to this place a hundred years ago, correct?" the Keeper asked, gesturing to the animal-titans to approach.

"Tell me, do any of these look familiar? " he asked as several deer titans stepped forth carrying a series of large idols: carved from giant tree wood, each one was an animal stylized in the Celtic design; they were an owl, a deer, a raven, a bear, a wolf, an otter, a dove, a boar and an eagle. They all looked worn and aged, as if they'd been exposed to the elements for a good long while, with mosses and lichens poking out from between the gaps in the carved patterns. Gazing at the idols in amazement, Tyto and the other Celts all recognized the carvings and their meanings, and as they approached closer to touch them, they recognized the idol of the Grey Owl. As he stroked the Owl's face, he couldn't help but be reminded of the fact his people were now at the mercy of the regular titans, and little by little, would be slowly wiped out: blinking away the tears that welled up in his eyes, his breath hitched as he smiled in nostalgic delight: "...This is the totem of my clan: the grey owl that sees all and knows the secret places of the forest; swift, silent and wise" he glanced up at the Keeper, "We found these in the centre of the island; there were other's carved by other clans, but we decided to leave them where we found them. In the city...". Everyone gazed up at the Keeper in astonishment; he merely smiled, and told them: "Though I was not here to greet your fellow clansmen a hundred years ago, I and the rest of my kin are able to fulfil their wishes and grant you entrance to the gates of Omnes Scientiam, as well as grant you sanctuary within this land. Besides, the rest of us are eager to meet you all," he gazed over the group, "Come, let us go join them" he stood back up with all the other titans flowing suit. "What right now?" Tyto blinked in surprise, "No time like the present: the whole day lies ahead of us, and there is much to see" the Keeper smiled as he steadily strode away out of the clearing, gesturing for the humans and titans to follow him. With a renewed sense of excitement, the humans followed after him with a spring in their step: ready and willing to see whatever lay ahead. Boar allowed the senior Willum siblings to remount him, though not before getting chewed out for all but throwing them off his back: and Angel kneeled down to let Carla take her rightful place on her shoulder.

Shooting her lines into his shoulder and flying up to be next to him, Ariana stood on Shadow's shoulder as he strode through the trees: discreetly leaning next to his ear and exclaiming in a hushed voice, "Holy shit! You never told me you had a brother who can talk! When were you gonna let me in on that little secret?!", : It was never any secret Ariana, he just never came up in conversation is all: Shadow replied with his smoke light, "Even so, you could've at least dropped a hint. This is so awesome!" she grinned in giddy exasperation as she sat herself down on his shoulder and leaned into his neck. **"Quite effective,"** Jarus observed as the smoke light dissipated: **"The conversations must sound a little one-sided; still, at least it teaches the children proper spelling, grammar and punctuation"** he thought aloud. **"Okay,** _ **I know**_ **you know more than your letting on: you always do"** Javorin looked at him dubiously, **"So what's been going on these last five years?"** he asked as he fell into step alongside him: **"A lot of detective work, and trying to make sense of a world that has changed beyond recognition..."** Jarus sighed. **"That's putting it mildly"** Hecate frowned dryly, **"There's a lot we need to talk about, but first, let us attend to the humans; Asteria and Aureia are keen to meet them" "Asteria and Aureia are here?"** Javorin blinked in surprise, **"But of course, as are Nyiera and Silendra, and all the others" "Wait, Nyiera and Silendra are here?!"** Hecate exclaimed.

At that moment, as if on cue, a loud ear-splitting avian screech echoed through the canopy as an enormous dark shadow swiftly flew over the trees, blotting out all the light: it banked left and circled back around, and with a biting cold gust of wind it landed in the space between the trees ahead of them, kicking up the leaf litter on the forest floor with several powerful flaps of its wings. Many of the other animal-titans nervously darted back into the undergrowth as the giant figure stood up and revealed itself in full: it was another bird titan, the _biggest_ yet; standing over twenty meters tall with wings of an unbelievable size and span, she had a plumage that was as black as a starless moonless night and white as sun-bleached bones, with a double-pointed crest that swept back into two curved points: almost resembling a set of horns, and on the sides of her tail were two large curved feathers that virtually wrapped her on the ground as she folded her wings over her chest, making them resemble a long trailing cloak. Her face was stoic and stone-like with a cold piercing gaze that cut into the soul of any who gazed upon her: with eyes that glistened with rich violet and amethyst, just like Midnight's. She had long pointed ears with feathered tuffs on the tips, and a regular mouth with pale lilac lips, but she had no cheeks except for a pair of fleshy strands either side of the corners of her mouth, with long shark-like teeth exposed, interlocked neatly together as she let out a long sinister hiss. Just like Angel she too had a series of black markings running up and down her face and neck, though her's were much more elaborate. Down on the ground the humans instinctively stepped back as they caught sight of the formidable talons on each feathered foot: black and shiny like polished iron, they looked like they could rip apart the biggest titan with very little effort, and on the bend of each wing they noticed she had a three fingered hand. Both index fingers and thumbs were opposable with small claws, but the middle finger was longer and more robust, with an even bigger hooked talon on the end, while the last two fingers were fused together to form the remainder of the wing. The giant avian titan regarded the other titans with an impassive look for a moment, before she smiled down at Midnight: **"Well well, look at you little sister, all 'grown up' and looking every bit as terrifying as the last time I saw you"** she smirked in a smooth voice.

" **Nyiera?"** Hecate gasped in astonishment, **"Oh come now, who else?"** Nyiera unfolded one wing and pulled her in for a hug, **"I always was your favourite big sister, right?" "Nyiera?..."** Javorin blinked in surprise: **"You look intimidating as always" "Like, twenty percent more intimidating"** Herne threw in, **"Flattered: you two always were a real pair of charmers"** Nyiera purred with a sultry smile. A little taken aback, Hecate stepped back as she looked her up and down: **"...You look quite-,** _ **bigger**_ **than the last time we met"** was all she could think to say, to which Nyiera let out a hearty chuckle: **"That's putting it lightly: as if being the goddess of justice, vengeance and retribution was harrowing enough, now I have the form to look the part. And as you can see, it has quite the desired effect"** she gestured down to the humans on the ground, who were all trying to hide behind Javorin's ankles. But up on his shoulder, Ariana was staring at her in a mix of surprise and confusion: Nyiera noticed her, and shot her a sly smile, **"...Well, nice to see** _ **you**_ **again too brat"** she thought aloud, to which both Javorin and Hecate frowned: **"You** _ **know**_ **Ariana?"** he asked, **"That's her name? Huh..."** Nyiera casually replied, she about to say something else when Ariana suddenly exclaimed: "- _It is_ you!" she shot up and patted Javorin on his jaw: "Shadow! This is the titan that rescued me, Eren and Mikasa from those traffickers up on the mountain last year: holy crap no wonder I thought it was Midnight! you both have the exact same eyes!" she beamed as she glanced back and forth between Midnight and the new titan. At that, the humans all glanced at one another, "... _That's_ the titan you saw Magpie?" Tyto called up to his daughter, "I'm positive dad! It's her!" she shouted back, before smiling up at the avian titan: "So what's your name?".

"This is Storming, the biggest and mightiest of the flyers," the Keeper introduced, "Yeah no shit, she looks like she could lift a whole titan clear off the ground" Pascal discreetly whispered to West, who nodded in agreement. "You'll undoubtedly see her around, as she has made her nest up in the branches of the great tree" the Keeper added. **"Stormwing?"** Hecate raised an eyebrow up at her, **"Don't look at me, it was** _ **his**_ **idea"** Nyiera glanced over at Jarus dryly, **"Still, as pseudonyms go at least I got to pick mine; and considering** _ **my**_ **elemental power, I figured it'd do the job"** she shrugged, **"And 'Midnight?' you could do worse I suppose?"** she smiled, **"...That's true"** Hecate couldn't help but smile, knowing she had a point. "Stormwing?" Carla thought aloud, "She certainly looks like she can raise a storm with those huge wings". At that, Nyiera's attention was then drawn to the nervous-looking Elysia, who was trying to maintain her composure as best she could: as the giant bird titan loomed over her, the smaller avian swallowed hard as she tried to break the ice: **"So uh, you're Hecate's big sister huh?" "Indeed"** Nyiera smiled deviously, **"And you're certainly an odd one; a Tempus goddess living on the ground, and cavorting with other gods and humans no less. How scandalous"** , **"I-, quite like living on the ground actually: you'd be surprised how much more you see compared to all the way up in the air"** she smiled nervously, **"Uh huh?"** Nyiera shot her a deadpan look, **"Are you sure it's not because of your little 'pet' here?"** she grinned down at Carla, who stood on Elysia's shoulder anxiously, while the Fitzsimmons and Bemadette's little brothers froze in alarm; at that, Elysia ruffled her feathers and stood up as straight as she could (being careful not to throw the humans off her back), trying to look more imposing: **"Hey,** _ **leave Carla alone!**_ **You got something to say about her, tell it to my face!"** she sternly stated. Nyiera gazed down at her impassively for a moment, before smiling, **"...So you have got a spine. Well that's a relief, for a moment I thought you'd be taking off to hide up in a cloud somewhere; looks like you and I are going to get along just fine..."**. Elysia didn't reply as Nyiera straitened up and addressed the other gods, **"If you'll excuse me, I've got some things to tie up elsewhere: we'll talk later; oh, and if you're expecting an explanation as to that little 'rescue' last year? Don't worry, I haven't glazed over** _ **that**_ **..."** she glanced over at Javorin, before readdressing her sister, **"Silendra's keen to meet you too, but go with these guys for now, we'll have plenty of time to catch up later"** **"Promise?"** Hecate asked eagerly, **"Promise. Don't go having too much fun without me now"** she smiled. Unfurling her wings and spreading them out, she flapped them so hard that the down-draft nearly knocked the humans off their feet: as the leaf litter all around was kicked up again, they watched as she took off up through the trees and soared up into the air, clearing the underside of Yggdrasil's canopy, and disappearing up and over it.

"Angel? You okay?" Carla asked worryingly as Angel folded her feathers flat: the bird titan glanced at her and nodded with a reassuring chirp, "What was _that_ all about?" the raven-haired woman glanced back up at the hole in the canopy where Stormwing had flown up through: "Just a small 'jest' on Stormwing's part" the Keeper explained nonchalantly, "She can be a tad critical at times: but she means no ill will by it; she just likes to be sure you can hold your own in the face of danger" "How come she didn't stick around after she saved me?" Ariana asked offhand, "Ah... I'm afraid the answer to that question is rather complicated: but all will be explained later, I assure you" **"It had better be"** Javorin frowned as he crossed his armed, giving him a a very mother-hen sort of look, **"I assure you brother, none of us here have anything to hide: but the situation is not as straight-forward as we'd like it to be... Now come,** _ **I promise**_ **I will explain everything later"**

Following the Keeper as he led the way through the forest, the group kept looking behind them as they noticed all the other humanoid and animal titans took their time nervously re-emerging from the undergrowth and trees, constantly looking up above, as if keeping an eye out for Stormwing: "...I take it Stormwing's not well liked down here on the ground?" Breck observed as he walked alongside Boar: "She can be a tad 'austere' at times: her temperament is not as approachable as most others, especially when she's riled up. But she has a good heart and is actually quite agreeable, once you get to know her". "Sounds like someone we know" West elbowed Pascal as he glanced over at Miriam, to which the former thief couldn't help but try to stifle his chuckle: "She looks like an awesome killing machine to me" Rowan smirked, "With those talons, no wonder all the other titans are scared of her". **"She never was keen on nature gods"** Hecate thought aloud offhand, **"Even those that could cut it were hard up to meet her expectations..."** she gazed over at Jarus, **"What's changed? She was never this 'accommodating' before" "Yeah, she didn't shoot me one of her 'black looks' this time"** Herne commented. **"Much has changed, and we've all had to change too, in order to remain flexible"** Jarus sighed.

"So, may I ask where you're taking us? Exactly?" Bryson asked as he flew up to perch on Shadow's other shoulder, "To the city of 'lost memories' of course: there are many ways into it, but today we'll take the simple route through the mountain door" the Keeper replied. "So the city _really is_ inside a mountain?" Claude asked eagerly, "Indeed. Carved from the heart of the great eastern mountain, it has been protected by the ambient magics of this land for many thousands of years, as well as it's guardians" the titan nodded. "You said you were the city's guardian: who else protects the city?" Tyto asked, "There are four of us: there's myself, then there's Rhiannon, the lady of the lake: after her there's Freyr, the great mountain guardian: and finally Starlight, she's also the keeper of the great tree" he gestured to Yggdrasil, "No doubt you will see her around, she likes to wander the island on occasion. All four of us protect the city in unison, and all of us answer to the ruler of Omnes Scientiam; Queen Aurora" "Queen?! You guys have a _queen?!_ " Gustav gawked, "Of course, she is the ruler of this land: and it is by her grace and kindness that any and all who seek sanctuary, may find in within her kingdom; regardless of political, religious or cultural beliefs, if anyone is seeking safety, comfort, and freedom: they shall find it here" the Keeper explained, "Well, that's mighty generous of her" Breck smiled offhand, " _Great Sina!_ If I'd known I'd be meeting royalty today I'd have put a clean shirt on at the very least!" Claude panicked as he tried frantically to dust off all the dirt on his shirt and waistcoat: "Don't worry, such formalities are not required" the Keeper smirked, "The queen asks only that you present yourselves as yourselves, and stand revealed for what you _truly_ are; there are no secrets you can keep from her, that she will not see" "So basically she can read our minds: like Shadow and the other magical titans?" Bryson frowned dubiously, "Yes, but unlike the rest of us, she is the most powerful, oldest, and wisest of our kind: her gaze sees all and her mind's eye can peer into even the most guarded of thoughts, thus lying the her is rather futile" the titan glanced sideways at him. "Hey, that won't be a problem: we ain't go no secrets, right guys?" Clay glanced over at everyone, to which many voiced their agreement. **"Who're you talking about?"** Javorin asked offhand, **"Ah, if I told you, that would ruin the surprise"** Jarus smiled.

Before long, the titans and humans reached the eastern side of the island, which fell away to reveal a vertical cliff that loomed some forty five meters above the lake, with one of Yggdrasil's giant roots hugging the cliff tightly, and the various trees of the forest hanging onto the rocks as they leaned dangerously over the edge. At the bottom of the cliff there appeared to be the remains of a small boat yard and dock, complete with a long stone jetty and large boat house that sat on the water: plus a small sandy beach that had several various types of boats sitting on large wooden posts out of the water. "Whoa, that's some drop" Derek swallowed hard, "Yeah, but check out the view..." Hazel smiled as she looked out across the sapphire blue water: on the other side of the lake some two miles away, the great mountains stretched from north to south in an unbroken chain that reached many thousands of feet into the sky; their peaks capped with snow, and on the steep hilly slopes below were acres upon acres of untouched evergreen forest, complete with ancient giant trees which gave way to thick deciduous woodland nearer to the waters edge. But the most impressive part of this breathtaking scenery, was the one giant mountain that loomed over all the others: at its base there was a vast crescent-shaped inlet that stood vertically hundreds of feet above the water; in its centre was a huge rugged sculpture, seemingly carved out of the side of the mountain that resembled a king sitting on his throne, complete with a spiked crown and a beard and mane comprised of dense forest; the whole structure must have been some couple of hundred meters tall at the most, and well over eighty to ninety meters across his broad chest. "Behold, the great eastern mountain, and the mountain guardian, Freyr" the Keeper announced. "He certainly looks imposing: quite a feat of engineering, carving that hansom fellow out of the mountainside eh?" Claude lightly elbowed Derek, "Indeed, a good few decades I'd reckon" he scratched the back of his neck as he gazed at the impressive monolith.

"Whoever said he was a statue?" the Keeper smirked as he held his fingers to his mouth, and whistled loudly: the sound pierced the air at a deafening pitch, forcing everyone to cover their ears as the sound carried across the water, and echoed off the mountain slopes. But before anyone had the chance to demand an explanation, a deep thundering rumble emanated from below the ground, echoing at such a low tone that it was almost inaudible: the leafs on the trees all quivered as every bird in the land took flight, the water rippled and sloshed about as fish began leaping out to try and get away, and all the other humanoid and animal titans rushed to cliff-side to see what was going on. Through their feet the humans could feel the deep rumble, even atop Shadow's shoulders Ariana and Bryson could feel the vibrations as it resonated through their bones like delicate porcelain. "Shadow? What's going on?" Ariana nearly panicked as she patted him on the ear for reassurance: **"Jarus? Who or what did you just summon bro?"** Herne frowned in alarm, **"An old acquaintance of yours, I believe"** Jarus smiled as he looked out across the lake; "Holy shit! LOOK!-" Miriam gasped as she pointed to the mountain inlet.

The 'statue' of the king had apparently taken on a life of its own as its eyes slowly opened and glowed bright gold: a smile crossed his lips, cracking the stone as his face contorted into a look of delight; the sounds of rocks fracturing and boulders tumbling down boomed over the lake's surface as the great stone monolith got up from his throne, and stood tall over the lake, casting a shadow that reached all the way to the island. The humans stared at the vast giant in sheer disbelief, their eyes practically popping out of their heads and their jaws hitting the ground as their minds tried to wrap around what they were looking at. "That's, _a titan?!_ " Bryson gawked as he finally picked his jaw up off Shadow's shoulder, "Oh my god, that's got to be the _biggest_ titan anyone's ever seen!" Carla gasped, "Or ever is for all we know?!" Mabel concurred in equal dismay. "Holy shit how big is he?!" Jaye stepped back a little, "Uh, looks about two hundred meters from here I'd say" Claude swallowed hard "Two hundred and fifty five to be exact: that's taller than Yggdrasil," the Keeper smiled, "No one passes this way into the city, without him knowing about it" "Yeah no shit!" Pascal scoffed nervously. While the humans nearly freaked out at the sight of the great stone giant, the gods were rather surprised as all but Elysia recognized him: **"Oureas?..."** Herne raised an eyebrow, before smiling in delight, **"OUREAS!** _ **Great All-father!**_ **L** **ong time no see old friend!" "Likewise, great god of the hunt"** a deep booming voice echoed through their minds, **"Long have I wondered when you would return to grace my slopes again" "Likewise! You always knew how to make the best hunting grounds!"** Herne called back. **"You two know each other?"** Elysia blinked in surprise, **"Know each other? Me n' Oureas here go** _ **way**_ **back:** **I helped to introduce the native wildlife to the European Alps after he finished crafting them"** Herne grinned, **"Crafting?"** the goddess frowned weirdly at him, **"Oureas is a mountain god"** Javorin explained, **"He and his brothers created all the mountain ranges of the earth: he's one of the oldest nature gods in existence; one of the very few who witnessed the beginning of the world, and helped to shape it with his earthquakes and volcanoes"** Elysia stared at the monolith in amazement: **"... So** _ **that's**_ **where earthquakes come from? I always wondered which gods were responsible for those" "Well? The more you know brat"** Hecate shrugged, **"** _ **Jeez,**_ **the curse took a real number on you old friend"** Herne called back, **"'Tis but an afterthought: though it would seem it was an improvement upon your unsightly visage"** the mountain god replied with a humorous smirk: Herne let out a hearty bellowing laugh, before grinning, **"Nice to know you haven't lost your sense of humour!" "Likewise old friend"** Oureas replied with a respectful bow of his head, **"...Oureas, would you be so kind as to let our guests here enter the city?"** Jarus interjected, **"Of course: I would say proceed, but Nimue has yet to give her approval. But tell our guests they are welcome through my door anytime..."** the mountain god smiled before carefully sitting himself back down on his throne, closing his eyes, and seemingly going back to sleep: turning back into the great stone carving he had been before, as if he'd never moved in the first place. "...Wow" was all Ariana could say, "Wow indeed, there are not many who can be unimpressed by his size and scale" the Keeper thought aloud, "I'll bet" Clade grinned, "All I can think of, is how big was _his_ tomb?!" Ash gawked, "Oh, Freyr was not imprisoned in any tomb, his cursed sleep ensured he remained motionless upon his throne, his body frozen in place, being one with the mountain for untold centuries" the Keeper explained, **"I was going to say: there** _ **couldn't possibly**_ **be** **any tomb big enough to hold** _ **him**_ **"** Herne thought aloud, **"Indeed, nor any big enough to hold Nimue either" "Nimue? She's really here?"** Javorin blinked in surprise, **"Of course, she chose Rhiannon as her pseudonym: she and the other water gods protect the city from the water, while Oureas guards it from the land and skies"** Jarus replied casually, **"Other water gods?"** Elysia asked offhand.

"Hey Shadow? Why's that titan swimming in the lake down there?" Ariana pointed to the lake, where indeed, swimming some twenty meters from the boathouse was a humanoid titan; at first glance it looked to be about a nine to ten meter class, and looked quite content as it treaded the water, watching them curiously with a child-like smile. "Huh: looks like magical titans have no problem swimming" Bryson thought aloud as he spotted the markings on its face: "You mean regular titans can't swim?" Ariana glanced over at him, "Not that I know of, I've never seen regular titans go near deep rivers or any large body of water" he looked back at her: the swimming titan then surprised everyone as it let the rest of its body float to the surface, revealing a long shimmering golden-green fish tail, complete with fins and a forked caudal fin: " A fish titan? Sure why not? Since every other variety of animal titan under the sun is here" Pascal shrugged casually. At that moment, the water erupted with dozens and dozens of more 'fish titans': all varying in size class and with tails ranging from olive green and gold to deep blue and turquoise; and all of them had the same swirling spiralling markings all over their faces, bodies and tails. "More of the welcoming party I presume?" Bryson smiled, "Actually, they're here to provide your transport across the lake" the Keeper smiled as he watched them swim to the boat yard, and together they all dragged one of the larger boats from out of its berth by the boathouse, out towards the jetty using a couple of long pieces of worn rope to guide it into place: "The second guardian has yet to greet you all, we will meet her half-way across; please proceed down to the boat via the path" he pointed to the old overgrown path near the edge of the cliff-side, before summoning his power to turn himself into a barn owl, and flying down to the jetty.

"Looks like we're walking the rest of the way, that path's too narrow for Boar and Angel to tread safely" Rosemary observed, "Yeah I noticed: someone help me get off here!" Miriam grumbled as she swung leg over and tried to jump down off Boar's back, only for Claude, Breck and Derek to rush over and catch her just in the nick of time: the other humans dismounted their titans and approached the cliff-side with the others; watching their titanic friends turn themselves into their bird forms, and flying down to wait with the keeper. "It looks pretty steep" Lucile worried as she tried to avoid snagging her dress on some of the larger trailing brambles, "Well its a good thing we're in no rush then..." Tyto thought aloud as he and his brothers took point. Following the steep path down the cliff, the humans were all careful to stay as close to the rock-face as possible: even though the path was a good three meters wide, the fact there were no railings or fencing of any kind made everyone nervous of the prospect of inadvertently falling, which was a good forty five meter drop from the forest to the water. Eventually, they reached the boat yard, which was a lot bigger that what they saw from above: set back into the cliff in a series of large caves and alcoves, most were a series of dry docks, some with half-built boats sitting motionless on their supports, and overgrown with ivy and flowering vines. In fact, the entire dock and it's boats were overrun with plant life, and the broad jetty which jutted out into the lake for a good forty meters, had a large weeping willow rooted to the end, surrounded by a collection of smaller bushes and overrun with more ivy and vines. "...Looks like this place was pretty busy at one time" Derek thought aloud as he glanced over at the dry docks: "For this many boats to be here, and some still in the process of being built, there must have been other communities situated around the lake" "So how come the people didn't just head for the shore?" Rowan frowned in curiosity, "Whatever forced them to leave, didn't just affect the island: it forced _everyone_ everywhere in this land to go" Dale realized, "Question is, could that same thing still be here?" Mabel worried as she held baby Clemmy on her hip, "I doubt it, if something was up Shadow and the others would have warned us already" Poppy thought aloud, "Yeah, but remember, they didn't sense how bad that storm was going to be three years ago; they may be able to sense things we can't, but that doesn't mean they can sense everything" Bryson sighed as he followed everyone towards the waiting boat.

The boat (which was a sizeable barge) was quite old and worn, with a few pieces of planking missing here and there: it's mast and rudder were gone and it had a good number of plants and creepers growing out of all its nooks and crannies; but the hull was largely intact and able to adequately stay afloat. After walking up the gangplank and hoisting it onto the creaky desk, the humans hung on as the fish titans guided it out onto the lake, and started smoothly pushing and pulling it along, until they were going at a steady pace: all the while the titans remained perched on the side railings, watching their charges as they gazed down at the fish titans, who were all happily trailing after the boat in its wake; arching up and down through the water like a needle and thread through silk. Meanwhile, as Lucius studied the boat up and down, he realized something troubling: "This boat's not big enough to hold your weight if you transform back again" he glanced over at the Keeper, who nodded with a hoot: "...We're going to have to meet the second guardian on our own, without introduction aren't we?" he realized. : Without introduction, yes: the keeper waved his wing, spelling out his own smoke light which was a bright crimson, :But don't worry, she knows I'm here; you'll be okay: "She?" Lucius knitted his brows together in confusion.

Suddenly, all the fish titan that were trailing after the boat's wake quickly darted away, disappearing into the deep sapphire depths, while the others that were moving the boat hugged the hull as close as they could, as if moving out the way for something large to pass by. "What's going on?" Tyto frowned in confusion, "... Uh, guys?" Lucy pointed ahead. About half a mile away, something _big_ was moving just below the surface of the water, causing a massive bulge in the surface tension followed by an enormous wake to erupt and follow right behind it; but behind that, a huge spiked dorsal fin broke the surface and towered nine meters above the water. The giant creature was moving at an usually fast pace, but slowed down the closer it came to the boat. When it got within in about two hundred yards, the creature banked on its right side, and the fin disappeared beneath the water as the giant circled the craft before stopping in front of the starboard bow. It was hard to make out exactly what it was on account of the choppy wake it had thrown up, but as the waves passed and levelled out, everyone could make out a humanoid torso. Then, the creature lifted its head up out of the water, barely twenty meters from the boat: it looked like a giant beautiful woman; her eyes glistening with hues of green, aqua and blue while her skin had tinges of shimmering pale mint green around her eyes and fin-shaped ears, with symmetrical markings around her eyes: and instead of hair, a great thundering waterfall cascaded off her head. Judging from the dimensions of her face and head, she looked to be absolutely _huge:_ bigger even than the titan that destroyed Shiganshina's outer gate, and as she she slowly rose up out of the water, everyone saw just how big she was. From the waist up she had to be a good forty to fifty meters tall, her arms were covered in rich green scales with fins on the outsides of her wrists, and her long fingers were webbed with claws on the end: she had a set of four gills right beneath her jaw, and all over her were curling swirling markings that interconnected into one long continual design that ran up and down the length of her body.

Gazing up at her, the humans were as amazed as they were nervous: she wasn't anywhere near as big as Freyr, but being so close to a titan of such gigantic proportions, for a moment it brought back memories of Shiganshina. The giant titaness then slowly moved away from the boat, as if sensing their unease, to a safe three hundred yards away: she gazed down at them with a peaceful caring smile, as all the fish titan returned to the surface, and smiled up at her; like little children eager to meet their mother again. "... The lady of the lake, I take it?" Tyto nervously gestured to her, to which the owl nodded: "Uh, hello there! The Keeper tells us you're one of the guardians of the city, correct?" Claude called up to her, to which she nodded, "Ah uh, would you be so kind as to let us pass? Please?" he nervously smiled. With an almost humorous smile. The giantess nodded, and pointed to the inlet where the great mountain guardian sat; "Oh boy, we gotta go past _him?!_ " West worried, "Uh? I don't think he's going to be too concerned about us" Dale speculated aloud as the fish titans resumed their steering of the boat, and headed straight for the foot of the mountain. Off the stern, the giant titaness waved good bye, before diving down into the lake with all the other fish titans following close behind. Her giant green and blue tail lifted up out of the water, glistening like countless millions of emeralds, topaz's, and sapphires in the sunlight, and smoothly slipped down under the deep blue water, without causing too much wake.

"Wow, she had to be well over a hundred and forty meters long with that tail!" Ash realized, "Kinda makes you think: if she and 'his majesty' up there are the biggest titans around here, what other size-class of titans are there that can get _that_ big? If not bigger?" Lucy thought aloud, gesturing to Freyr up ahead, "Heh: all I know is, if I were still a Scout I'd be having kittens by now" Bryson couldn't help but laugh, "I think the Scouts would have _way more_ than just kittens if they saw the titans here!" Carla laughed, to which everyone else couldn't help but join in, as they pictured the 'strength and wisdom of humanity' being confronted with a whole tribe of friendly titans, who would want to play with them rather than eat them. " _Oh my god_ , that would be a sight to see!" Freya wiped the tears from her eyes as she doubled over, "Can you imagine it? The Scouts, trying to go up against _you guys?!_ " Rowan laughed as he lightly patted Midnight on the back, to which she nodded with a caw. **"I know I foresaw the humans you'd bring with you were not an 'average' lot: but I can see now, its hardly going to be dull around here"** Jarus dead-panned: **"HA! You only just figured that out bro?!"** Herne couldn't help but laugh, **"Nyiera's gonna have** _ **a riot**_ **with these guys!" "That's** _ **If**_ **she doesn't eat them out of annoyance first"** Hecate smirked, **"She can try"** Javorin stated with a sly smirk. Jarus simply shook his head and smiled; it was so nice to hear human laughter again.

As everyone regained their composure, Ariana stopped as she noticed something familiar off in the distance: "...Whoa...Guys look! It's wall Maria!" she pointed to the south: sure enough, at the other end of the lake a good eight miles away, the pale whitish-grey face of wall Maria stood out against the horizon, disappearing and reappearing behind the end of the two great mountain ranges that flanked the lake on its eastern and western shores. "What? What the hell's _that_ doing here?" Miriam exclaimed; flying in front of everyone and perching on the railing, the Keeper got their attention as he spelt out with one wing, :That wall is at the very edge of the Hidden land's boarders; the only reason you can see it, is because there is no mountain to hide it:. "So we _are_ still inside Maria..." Tyto realized; for a moment no one spoke as they watched the wall, there was no joy or dread, just a feeling of vexation; flying up to perch on Tyto's shoulder, the Keeper spelt out :What's wrong?:. Glancing at the owl impassively before letting out a deep troubling sigh, Tyto explained: "...It's just that-,... Considering the way we had come in order to reach this place: we thought the Hidden land was far beyond the walls... Turns out its not..." :And that's bad?: the Keeper replied with a curious hoot. "No it-..." Tyto tried to get his thoughts straight, "...Keeper, do the regular titans have any way of finding this place?" :Not unless they travel via the stone circle, that is the only way into the Hidden land, and even then they've got to be able to open the stone doors, which is impossible, for only we are capable of that: "You're sure?" :Possessive...Do not worry, you're perectly safe here:.

As the boat entered the inlet, wall Maria disappeared out of sight as the forested slopes of the mountain obscured it from view: facing forward, many of the group gawked as the vast form of Freyr loomed overhead. At this distance they could see his entire throne was covered in forest, with a waterfall cascading out of a small opening in both armrests, which thundered down the sides of the cliffs and echoed out across the lake; they also saw his body was covered in the same basic markings as all the standing stones they'd seen; but here, instead of being carved out, the patterns and designs looked more like a different coloured rock, darker and more prominent up close. Up right ahead, everyone saw a giant opening in the vertical face of the inlet, right at the base of the monolith's throne between his feet. As the boat entered the cave's mouth, the humans gazed up both his legs, and were taken aback by just how _big_ he actually was: his shins alone had to be as tall as the first titan that attacked Shiganshina; no doubt if confronted with it again, this 'guardian' could easily pick it up in one hand without even breaking a sweat. Truly, this day was full of surprises: and they all wondered just how many more were yet to come.

After clearing the cave mouth, the boat carried on into the pitch blackness, until no one could see anything at all: it was impossible to tell where they were going, they could feel the boat turning slightly to the left, and then a few minutes later to the right; they could only surmise the fish titans knew the way, and knew exactly what they were doing to avoid bumping into the rocky walls. "Hello?" Belle called out, listening to her echo as it carried far into the gloom: "Long tunnel guys" she thought aloud, "Well _duh_ , we're inside a mountain" Clay deadpanned, "Considering its the base of the mountain, this could take a while, as this is where the densest rock is likely to be" Dale replied, "Quite" Claude nodded, "And considering how _big_ the mountain looked from the island, I've got the distinct impression this particular leg of the journey could be the longest yet" "At least let's have some light in here" Miriam interjected; Tyto and the other Celts reached for the torches in their packs, but just as they reached for their flints, a strange glow overhead made them gaze up, and stare in awe.

"Whoa, look at that" Ariana smiled in wonder, "The rocks are glowing?" Bemadette blinked in amazement. All over the walls and ceiling of the tunnel, the rocks were covered in strange lichen-shaped blobs that were glowing in a mix of green and blue: it wasn't a bright glow like that of a flame, more like a soft steady dimly-lit glow, like moonlight or starlight; " _Oh great Sina!_ Bioluminescent fungi!" Claude exclaimed with delight."Bio- _what?_ " Pascal glanced over at the scientist with a weirded-out look. "Bioluminescent fungi, a verity of fungus that glows in the dark" he elaborated, "I've only ever seen one like this before: in a mountain cave in one Sina's protected nature reserves. Mind you, _that_ specimen was only a few centimetres across and in a cluster no bigger than a meter in diameter; _this_ however is so much more!" he smiled, "What's a 'fungus'?" Brendis frowned in bewilderment, "Oh, its a type of mushroom or toadstool, except its a different shape" Ariana clarified, "Can we eat it?" Brendan smiled eagerly, " _Absolutely not!_ These types of fungus are known to be extremely poisonous! Why, just a single nibble off the edge would be enough to kill you!" Claude exclaimed in horror, "He's right, I've seen similar 'glowing fungus' growing in some select trees deep in the forest: we Celts use them as rat poison" Evrard chimed in. "Still though, its real pretty to look at" Gale smiled, "First a beautiful lake and island, then countless flowers, pretty little humming birds: beautiful magical titans, and now glowing mushrooms: what a paradise this is" Lucile smiled in a daydream-like wonderment. " ...Yeah I guess?" Bryson scratched his head.

After twenty more minutes of gliding softly through the water, guided by the glow of the fungi, the cave tunnel opened out into a large seemingly endless cavern, where every tiny little sound could be heard echoing all around: and up ahead, the glow of the fungi had given way to... daylight? "Hang on, are we still inside the mountain? That _can't_ be sunlight, surely" West thought aloud. The cavern was filled with a thick hazy mist that carried the scent of earth and water, and up above through the gloom, a distant series of lights could been seen, trying to part the darkness in a soft sun-like glow; "Not unless the sun split itself into hundreds of little suns" Josefa replied offhand, "What on earth are those lights? And where'd this mist come from?" Breck thought aloud. **"Another guardian spirit?"** Elysia asked offhand, **"Indeed, and its a big one too"** Javorin nodded; reaching out to the spirit, he asked politely if they could reach their destination; obliging, the spirit parted its mists: revealing the cavern in full...

Everyone's train of thought stopped dead in their tracks as they gazed at the sight before them: the cavern was virtually endless as it towered many hundreds of meters above them, all the way up to a narrow opening through which a slither of the blue sky could be seen. But all over the roof and walls of the vast mountain interior were hundreds and hundreds of giant white crystals: as long and stout as Maria's giant trees, some were as pure as freshly fallen snow, while others were off-white with various other colours blended therein; but all of them were shining brightly, catching the sunlight through the opening, and reflecting it down into the centre of the cavern, where the city of Omnes Scientiam stood. Like a cut jewel in a crown, the city seemed to glisten in gold and silver, it's shining walls reflected the sunlight from the crystals above, lighting up the whole inside of the mountain as if it were outside, directly under the clear sky. The city was comprised of a giant tiered pyramid that rose hundreds of meters up into the open space of the cavern, crescent in shape as it hugged the walls with hundreds of crystals flanking it on both sides: its glistening white tiers were lined with gigantic arched windows that glowed from the inside, and at the very top seated upon a colossal knoll-like hill was a giant white tree that seemed to shimmer with starlight amid its leaves. The mist concealed the bottom half of the structure where the water met the first tier, but it was still a breathtaking sight never the less: and as the boat drew ever closer, a feeling of relief and victory swept over the group as they gazed up at the city, and smiled in overwhelming joy. "The city of lost memories..." Belle breathed in awe, before she punched the air with a cry of elation, hugging Rowan and Ariana around the neck, "WE DID IT! WE'RE FINALLY HERE!". At that, all the other children cheered in joy and excitement, hugging their parents as they took in the view; at the back of his mind, Tyto allowed a small measure of triumph to let him smile, as he remembered his grandfather and all the stories he told of this place: gazing up at the shining city, he felt he had done him proud this day, as well as the rest of his family as they joined in with their children's elation.

" **...Thank you for letting them have this Jarus"** Javorin smiled fondly as he watched Ariana get tossed up in the air by her brothers: **"The city and the knowledge within its great halls are never to be hoarded; to be enlightened and find wisdom is the right of all beings, the cities gates are never closed to anyone"** Jarus glanced over at his brother, **"So decrees the Queen of Omnes Scientiam", "So do we get any hints as to who her majesty is?"** Hecate smiled, **"I'm still not giving anything away"** Jarus chuckled. As the fish titans guided the boat through the mists, the city dropped in an out of sight before a long broad jetty appeared up ahead. It was much more ornate than the one on the island: carved out of snow white marble with the effigies of fish and water lining the sides, at the very end it had two large swans gazing over the water with a spherical glass lantern hanging from their beaks. The fish titans carefully moved the boat into place, bringing it to a steady stop: Gustav, Tyto, Falken, and Eraman then placed the gangplank over the gap between the deck and the jetty, and everyone disembarked; the titans flew up and changed back into their original forms, gazing down into the water and bidding the fish titans farewell as they left the boat, and retreated down into the indigo blue darkness of the water. "I take it you didn't find Rhiannon too imposing?" the Keeper smiled, "Oh no not at all: and I just realized _you_ have a twisted sense of humour" Pascal deadpanned sarcastically up at the blindfolded titan, who couldn't help but chuckle, "Just keeping you on your toes: there may not be a risk of being eaten in this land, but you still have to keep your head on a swivel; being accidentally stepped on is a prospect I'd like to try and avoid if you please" **"You and me both"** Javorin sighed in exasperation as he watched his charges follow Jarus, falling into step alongside him and the others.

As the mists completely rolled back to reveal the path ahead, the shining city came back into view, and it seemed even more grand and beautiful up close: at the end of the jetty there was a vast white wall towering some eighty meters above the water; it was the first tier of the city, and it seemed to stretch on forever, from one side of the mountain interior to the other, with a beautiful ornate gate some thirty meters high. Made of white marble and alabaster stone, the gate's outer frame was comprised of a myriad of effigies, reliefs and statues, all depicting various people, plants and animals in intertwining poses, all linked together; the detail of the carvings was so fine and precise that all the figures looked like they could be real, and move at any given moment. "Oh, that is _exquisite_..." Derek stared up at the gateway, utterly entranced by its beauty: "Ignore him, he's an architect by trade: likes to look at pretty buildings all day" Pascal deadpanned: "Oh really? Then I think you'll enjoy the city's architectural variety" the Keeper smiled; "Really?!" Derek beamed, perking up like a hungry dog that had just spotted a string of sausages: " _Oh great_ , now we'll never hear the end of it from him" Miriam groaned dryly as she hung onto her grandnieces for support, while Fox and Shyla tried to stifle their giggles. "I think taking enjoyment in ones pursuits can be quite fulfilling: you'd be surprised how much you can do when you're doing the thing you love the most" Lucile chimed in. "And what is it you love to do, Lucile?" the Keeper asked curiously, "Oh, I've always had a 'thing' for wool: spinning it, dying it and eventually knitting it; don't know why, there's just something about that lovely fluffiness that feels good when it slips through your fingers" she smiled nostalgically. "It's true, she does know how to make the best sweaters and what-not: me though? I kinda like making jams and fruit wines; especially if its Shadow's fruit. He always grows the best tasting fruits and vegetables" Freya smiled up at said titan, who merely smiled in gratitude, "He always did have a 'knack' for growing things," The Keeper smiled over at Shadow: "Encouraging them to their full potential, and bringing out the best in them...But then, he's like with many people he meets: he just has that special 'something' that resonates deep down within, and draws out the best in everyone" the Keeper smiled thoughtfully. "...Yeah..." Ariana couldn't help but smile as she pondered back over the years she and Shadow had been together, and could relate to what the Keeper was talking about. Shadow was special indeed, he had an air about him that put people at ease, and made it easy from them to be open with him: and she was certain it had something to do with those beautiful warm blue eyes of his.

After they walked through the gate, the humans found themselves at the foot of a giant ornate staircase that ascended over a hundred meters up, flanked on both sides by lofty walls that had yet more effigies and carvings adorning them all the way up to the top: but what really struck the humans was the fact the stairs were absolutely _huge!_ Built to accommodate a titan's feet rather than a human's, just getting up _one stair_ alone would mean having to climb up on both hands and knees. There were a separate set of human-sized staircases that ran parallel to either side of the main one, right alongside the titan-sized marble railings. But still, walking or climbing up all those stairs was a daunting proposition: even for the fittest among the group; and especially for the elder Willum siblings who could already feel their bones aching just by looking at the damned thing. "...Whoa, grandfather never said anything about this place being built for titans" Tyto scratched his head as he gazed wide-eyed at the giant stairs. "Uh, Boar buddy? Do you mind?" Clay gestured to the old folks: the tusked titan obliged with a friendly grunt, and crouched down on his haunches to let them remount him, "Well, I dunno about you guys but I'm taking the express route" Pascal stated as he shot his lines up at the decorated walls and flew off up, accidentally smashing some of the carved effigies with his ODM gear's grappling hooks: "PASCAL!-" Ariana exclaimed in a panic, but he hadn't heard her as he continued on up over the stairs: she watched as the remains of a bird and woman fell to the stairs, smashing into more pieces as they hit the floor: "Oh not to worry, that will fix itself" the Keeper waved off unconcernedly; confused, Ariana and the others glanced back up at the damage, only to see a white aura encase the broken alabaster stone, and within a few seconds the stone seemed to 'grow' back into place, reforming into the carvings exactly as they were before, while down on the stairs the broken pieces rapidly evaporated into nothingness. "-Whoa!" Ariana blinked in surprise, "Whoa indeed..." Miriam breathed, "That little magic trick must save a fortune in repairs" "We try to be as self-sufficient as possible in this place: hiring sculptures and plasterers for repair-work is all well and good, but quality work like _this_ is notoriously hard to come by; and now that humanity is at the brink of extinction, it is now even _rarer_ " the Keeper sighed offhand as he watched the other children, Bryson and West take off on their ODM gear up the staircase, **"A restoration spell?"** Hecate raised an eyebrow, **"That would certainly explain why this place isn't decaying the way ordinary stone is supposed to" "Indeed, and you'll notice the lack of dust and cobwebs too: thanks mostly to the repelling charms we put in place to keep the dust sprites and spiders at bay"** Jarus smiled as led the way, with the rest of the group seated in the god-titans hands, gazing up at the walls as their titanic friends carried them up the giants stairs.

After the relatively short climb up (relatively short for a fifteen-meter class titan), the god-titans and their charges reached the top, with the ODM gear users waiting patiently: the further up they climbed, the more Javorin and the others began to feel the potency of the magics in this place; all kinds of spells and charms keeping the city safe and in good shape, like an insect preserved in amber; unblemished, untarnished, and seemingly new.

As they entered through another beautifully opulent doorway, the humans found themselves taking in yet another marvellous sight: a colossal grand atrium, and like the staircase it too had been built to accommodate titans rather than humans, as it was so big it could practically fit several city blocks within its near-boundless space. It was comprised of yet more white marble and alabaster stone, with yet more beautiful carvings, reliefs and effigies lining the walls and columns that held up the roof. The entire floor was one huge colourful mosaic depicting all kinds of animals and plants in great detail, and high overhead some fifty meters up, the entire roof was one giant glass dome made up of hexagonal panes that let in the light from all the crystals on the cavern ceiling hundreds of meters above. While everyone else was impressed by the atrium's size and architectural beauty, Derek was silently flipping out in sheer elation, as he gazed starry-eyed up at the glass roof with a ridiculous idiotic smile spread across his face, virtually frozen in place as he was at a complete loss for words. "Ah, you made it, and just in time to welcome our guests too" the Keeper smiled: glancing up, the humans noticed he hadn't been speaking to them. **"Is that-..."** Javorin frowned in bemusement, as the god-titan's aura seemed quite familiar.

Following the Keeper's gaze across the vast space to the opposite side of the indoor courtyard, there was another beautifully ornate set of double doors, in which another titan stood. As they entered the atrium, everyone blinked in amazement, as this titan was by far the _strangest_ they'd seen yet. She stood up to fifteen meters tall, but that was only the top half of her body and tail, as the rest of her was comprised of a huge serpentine form over thirty five meters long: but unlike the other snake titans they'd seen on the island, this one possessed a lot of avian features, as she had an enormous pair of colourful wings on her back, gradiating from aqua into green, to yellow and then into pinkish-red, with an impressive crest of pale green and yellow trailing hackles instead of hair, and a pair of flank plumes on each shoulder, made up of yellow, pink and purple hackles. As she smoothly slithered into the atrium like water over rock, everyone saw that instead of being covered in reptilian scales, her whole body was lined with tiny teal green feathers and a ridge of pink, purple and blue iridescent plume-like feathers running down her serpentine back: except for a row of cream-coloured scutes that went from her neck, over her chest and abdomen, all the way down to her beautifully plumed tail. She had a series of complex markings going from her face down to the upper-most part of her tail, expect they gradiated from purple, to magenta into golden yellow: and in one hand she carried a crystal staff that was made up of every colour imaginable.

With a welcoming smile, the avian-serpentine titan bowed respectively to the humans as she stopped in front of their titans, before gazing at Javorin with her dazzling magenta and gold eyes. **"Javorin, long time no see,"** she smiled with a sweet exotic voice; **"Quetzathena?"** Javorin smiled in pleasant surprise: **"By All-father, you're here too?" "Technically I never left: the Bifrost within Yggdrasil is still my responsibility, regardless of this peculiar curse; and seeing as the arts fall under my divine jurisdiction, this place has become a home away from home"** she smiled sweetly at him, before gazing over at Herne and Hecate, **"And Hecate, Herne, how wonderful to see you both looking so well; you in particular Hecate, your new corporal form rather suits you" "So I've been told,"** Hecate smirked nonchalantly as she glanced the goddess up and down, **"You certainly look,** _ **more you**_ **"**. **"I feel it represents my true self quite nicely"** she stated with a slight air of pride, **"Well? You always did know how to express your true inner beauty: who'd have thought it'd show through your curse too?"** Herne shrugged with a cheeky smile, **"Flattering as always Herne: you look classically hansom yourself" "Classically hansom? Heh, that's a new one"** Herne couldn't help but chuckle. **"So, who're all your new friends?"** she gazed down at the humans seated in their hands,before noticing Elysia, **"And a Tempus Goddess? Here on the ground? My my, today is just full of surprises" "Indeed,"** Jarus smiled as he addressed the humans: "Everyone, may I introduce Iris: she's one of the librarian's and teachers here in the city: if there is anything in particular you need to find, please do not hesitate to ask her, or her familiars for assistance" the Keeper announced.

"Familiars?" Carla frowned in bemusement as she hung onto Angel's hackles: Clay suddenly heard something moving around on the floor, peering down the side of Boar's head to see what it was, he nearly jumped out of his skin with a surprised yelp when he saw a huge heavily-bodied snake peering up at the tusked titan. Over ten meters long with a robust head and round eyes, it had a bright greenish-gold colouration with a diamond/saddle pattern running down its flanks: but unlike regular snakes, this one had a set of emerald green wings about a third of the way down its body, with a ridge of golden feathers running down its back all the way to its plumed tail, which was a mix of green, gold and orange. It's head too was adorned with a set of plumes and a crest that decorated its jaws and neck, giving it a very regal look: the creature sniffed Boar up and down with its forked tongue for a moment, before slithering off to join its mistress at her side; seemingly satisfied with the new arrival.

"-HOLY SHIT! What is that thing?!" Pascal panicked as he back-peddled away from the serpent, retreating behind Midnight's towering form, "Whoa! There's more of them?!" West gasped as more and more of the winged creatures appeared from out behind the columns along the walls: all of them varying in colouration and sizes, and seemingly curious as they slithered closer to the god-titans ankles. "These are Iris's familiars, the knowledge seekers: they roam the city as its keepers and guardian's; ensuring nothing is stolen or put out of place" the Keeper explained as one of the snakes slithered over both his feet before flapping its wings and taking off out of the atrium. "Wouldn't a guard dog simply be better?!" Miriam grumbled as she hairy-eyeballed some of the creatures that were gazing up at her. "Oh we did try once, but the one we had in mind is still in service to his current place of residence: and the fact he had three heads wouldn't have made house-training easy" the Keeper sighed dryly at the memory of said creature; **"Cerberus?! You wanted to have** _ **Cerberus**_ **guarding this place?!"** Hecate exclaimed in astonishment, **"It** _ **wasn't**_ **my idea,** _ **believe me.**_ **You can thank the humans that resided here for that short-sighted idea, before I put them to rights"** Jarus stated matter-of-factly: prompting a few raised eyebrows from Javorin, Herne and Hecate: **"Why in All-father's name would** _ **anyone**_ **want to use that raging brute for anything? Besides turning a small country into flaming ruins"** Javorin exclaimed in dismay, **"Like I said before, there's** _ **a lot**_ **that needs explaining; now come, the queen is waiting for us"** "Three heads? What?" Ashlyn knitted her brows together, wondering if she'd heard him right: "Never mind" the Keeper waved off: getting back to the subject at hand, "They're perfectly harmless with a calm temperament: and they have no venom; but if they catch you stealing or breaking anything, they will strike you down hard and fast, and without hesitation"

"Hands off the breakables and valuables, got it" Hazel nodded as she retreated into Boars mane, only to gasp in alarm as she saw the two biggest winged serpents slither into the atrium: at over fifty meters long with a set of truly impressive wings, one was black as a raven with iridescent colours shimmering in its scales and feathers, while the other was as white and radiant as a pearl, with iridescent colours shimmering amid its plumage and scales too; both had an impressive set of crests atop their heads, with feathered ridges running down their backs to their plumed tails. Both gazed down at the humans curiously, before flanking their mistress and submissively lowering their heads as she affectionately scratched them both behind their crests . "Ah this is Quetz," the Keeper pointed to the white serpent, "And this is Coatl" he gestured to the black one, "Their the city's 'guard dogs', so to speak: any army that would seek to march upon the city would have to go through them first; between Quetz's icy breath and Coatl's white hot flames, there're not many who can claim the honour of surviving a fight with them" "Yeah no shit," Rowan gazed at the giant serpents in awe. "I'd have thought security wouldn't be too much of an issue for you guys: I mean, the whole city's situated inside a mountain, inside a magical land that's only got one way in, that can only be found via a magical map, that can only be read with a special 'key'. Don't you think things are pretty tight as they are?" Poppy thought aloud: "One can never be too careful: especially when you house the total sum of all of humanity's knowledge and wisdom under one roof..." the Keeper replied. **"Shall we?"** Quetzathena gestured for them to follow her, **"We have the whole city to show them" "Indeed"** Jarus nodded, "Anyway. Let us proceed, we have much to show you all" he turned and walked towards the double doors with the other god-titan's following close behind, and with the dozens of winged serpents trailing after them. "Oh this is going to be great!" Claude beamed, "Amen to that!" Derek concurred in giddy excitement as they ran ahead like overexcited school boys.

The next few hours passed by in a wondrous daze as everyone was given a grand tour of the city: steadily climbing up through the various levels to the top, the Keeper and Iris led them through grand opulent libraries that could hold entire towns and villages, archives the size of Mitras packed with countless documents, scrolls, books and artefacts relating to times and events long since past; even the museums were a whole new experience for the humans, as they had nothing even remotely similar back home. What a concept. Whole buildings filled with countless wonders and treasures from all over the outside world and across ages past: everything from finely taxidermied animals and other specimens of the natural world, to artefacts from other human cultures (which was a culture shock to say the least: who knew there could be so many other 'verities' of humans and societies?); specimens and examples of the sciences, proving and documenting the secret workings of the world and beyond: functioning models of technologies and engineering years if not decades ahead of the walled world's time, and countless paintings, sculptures, literature, textiles, crafts and all other dazzling, awe-inspiring and perplexing examples of the arts and all their close branches. Even the study of magic and the mystic arts had a whole level all to itself, with the history of this strange and enigmatic 'science' displayed in full. The buildings which housed all these boundless wonders were purposely built to reflect every cultural heritage of the 'human race'. Some styles of architecture were very similar to what everyone knew back home, others were quite different to the point they were considered 'quirky': and some were so foreign, unfamiliar, and built using such extraordinary skills and techniques, that they practically defied all logic; putting the culture of the walled world into stark perspective.

But the city was not just confined to one whole super-sized building containing tens of smaller buildings, or just examples and specimens sitting idly behind glass cases and sitting on bookshelves: around the outside of each tier between the buildings and the walls was a space a few city blocks wide, and packed therein were finely landscaped gardens that spanned from one side of the mountainous cavern to the other, each housing countless specimens of plants from all over the world. Built for the sake of aesthetics and housing more artefacts, more architectural marvels sat amid the artificial landscapes like jewels in a green crown. On the natural history level, there were dozens of 'aquariums': giant glass boxes that housed all kinds of fishes and creatures that thrived in the water, both salty and fresh; elsewhere on the same level, there were 'terrariums', more glass boxes, but these ones housed all kinds of insects and other strange alien creatures that had never been seen by human eyes for well over an age.

But what caught everyone's attention the most, was how everything from the buildings to the stairways to the exhibits were all titan-sized, with tens of hundreds of suspended paths, bridges and walkways for humans to safely traverse without having to ever step foot on the ground. Even the biggest libraries housed titan-sized books the size of small cottages. Was this place built by magical titans? It would certainly make sense considering the sheer scale of the whole place, but the fact there were so many structures that took human's and their size into account confirmed that indeed, humans and magical titans _did_ share a close relationship at one point in the past; and it would seem it was not just limited to the Celts.

As they carried their charges in their hands or let them stand upon their shoulders, the gods couldn't help smile: it was both amazing and humbling to see their aura's swell with awe, and a nice feeling of being overwhelmed, and yet still wanting to know more; drinking it all in with the infinite curiosity of a child. Javorin struggled to hold back the tears that threatened to spill from his eyes: being here now in this incredible place, it was such a stark contrast to the day before last; to think they were at deaths door, nearly consumed by fire, titan hunger and grief. And now, they were wondering through the halls of humanity's greatest achievement: practically a whole other world that seemed so far away from the one they knew. Deep down, he silently thanked his father and the ancient ones for allowing them the opportunity to make the journey, and reached out to those who were not fortunate enough to still be with them; 'Bestla, Skadi, Ran, Eren, Armin, Mikasa: wherever you all are, I hope you can be at peace; your families are alive, and their going to be okay'.

Finally, as they reached the top of the final flight of titan-sized stairs, the gods noticed how they had now left the main building, and were now outside upon a colossal balcony, gazing down at the city through its many domed roofs and grand towering windows. High above, the cavernous ceiling was less than a hundred meters away, its many white crystals jutting out of the rock in every direction in huge long spires that looked like giant church towers. The narrow opening through which the sky could be seen was more noticeable: up here, everyone saw how the giant white crystals caught the sunlight, and refracted it down onto the gardens, providing the plants with ample sunlight to grow and thrive. "Holy Jeez, we're finally at the top? Don't get me wrong that was some tour, but we'd need like _fourteen_ gas refills just to get up here" West exclaimed as he took a moment to check his ODM's tanks, fortunately he had an hour's worth of gas left: "There are a number of shortcuts to get around much quicker, but those can be explored later. We're finally here..." he turned and gazed up at the very top of the city.

The final level was a giant knoll-like hill that reached some couple of hundred feet above the crescent wall that held it in place, and perched on the top surrounded by a ring of huge standing stones was another giant tree: more or less the same as Yggdrasil but smaller, about a hundred meters or so tall; and unlike Yggdrasil, this tree was all white. From its roots to its bark and to its leaves, the whole organism sparkled like diamonds in the sun, while amid its leaves were millions of tiny star-like lights, dimly glowing amongst the branches and twigs, and twinkling as such, as if a whole section of the night sky had fallen to the earth, and this tree had caught it. "...Whoa. That's no tree you'll ever find in Maria" Hawk commented offhand, "Indeed: this is the tree of knowledge, the one source of all wisdom in the known realms; one bite of its fruit will fill your mind with all the knowledge of the universe. But consequently, such a infinite amount of information will cause your brain to be completely overwhelmed, and you will die thereafter" the Keeper explained earnestly, "Seriously? That kinda sucks" Belle gazed up at him in amazement, "Seriously: it is not in my nature to fool, lie, or make light of anything dire. And when I say the fruits on this tree are _never_ to be eaten, _I mean it_. Also, no branch or root is to be chopped off, nor any leaf is to be picked while it remains upon the tree; understand? ...This is a _sacred place_ that has stood unchanged since the beginning of the world, and we will ensure it continues to remain so until the earth breaths its final breath" he warned. "Fair enough" Tyto nodded; everyone else voiced their agreements also. "So I take it this is where the Queen resides?" Freya thought aloud: "Her majesty is the keeper of the tree, as well as the founder and ruler of this city, she has presided over this land for countless millennia, and will do so for many more to come; of all of us, she was the first to see the world come into being, and will be the last to witness its passing into the end of all things. From this place of enlightenment, she sees and rules all" the Keeper stated with reverence . **"Very poetic, now quit with the suspense, who is it that so keen to meet us?"** Hecate demanded.

"Can you not guess?"

Hearing the soft feminine voice, everyone gazed up at the tall flight of stairs leading to the hill, as they watched another titan descended down to the balcony. She was fifteen meters tall, and bathed in pure unblemished white: skin as smooth and flawless as virgin snow, giving off a radiant aura with white markings that glowed like starlight and moonlight. Her face was fair and beautiful with eyes like shimmering pearls, and she had dense white wispy 'clouds' exuding from her all-white hair that seemed to float all around her, like water plants in a slow-flowing river: it fell down her back and pooled around her legs in a thick mist that trailed behind her like a bridal train, radiant and glowing as it sparked in the refracted sunlight. In one hand she carried a simple rod made of white crystal, topped with a shining white light that had a rainbow aura around it: and all around her were tens of large white butterflies hovering in and out of her misty hair. Her whole presence lit up the balcony in a soft white light, with a strange feeling of calm and peace settling over the place: and as they locked eyes on her, the humans were all totally taken aback by the sheer depth and radiance of her beauty; so pure, so ethereal, it was as if they'd all strayed into a dream.

As they placed their passengers back on the ground, the god-titans happily stepped forward as they recognized her right away. **"Aureia..."** Javorin smiled fondly as he held out his arms to pull her into a gentle hug, to which she happily obliged: **"Javorin, my beloved sister's son; welcome home,"** she greeted in a soft gentle voice, before glancing over at an equally delighted Hecate and Herne, who both stepped froward to hug her too: **"Do not think I have forgotten you my darling niece and nephew: it is good to see both again after so long an age" "You too Aureia"** Herne smiled happily: **"You look damn good for an ancient one, no surprises there"** Hecate grinned offhand, **"You look quite good yourself"** Aureia replied happily as she let them go, gazing over at Elysia, who on the one hand was happy for her cousins at seeing them so happy, but at the same time, feeling like she was sticking out like a sore thumb: **"You must be Elysia. Come, it's alright: let me get better look at you..."** she beckoned her over, Elysia nervously stepped forward, unsure what to expect or say: but as Aureia gently lay her hands on her shoulders and pulled her in for a hug, the weather goddess was taken aback: **"I am so glad you could make it. You have come so far, and grown so much: truly, you have done well" "Um? ...Thank you?"** Elysia anxiously replied, **"There is no need to feel afraid"** Aureia gazed down at her tenderly in a mother-like way, **"We are all equal, there is no difference between one god and the next..."** she assured her as she stood back up and turned to address the humans. "Everyone, my I present Queen Aurora: ruler of the city of Omnes Scientiam, and our aunt" the Keeper presented in a formal tone. "YOUR AUNT?!" Pascal, West and the kids exclaimed, to which everyone else cuffed them over the back of their heads: "Is that any way to behave in front of royalty?!" Freya scolded her children: "-I'm so sorry your highness, they didn't mean to speak out of turn" she quickly apologized, "It's quite alright: we prefer to keep our formality's a little more relaxed here, I don't want people thinking they have to flaunt themselves just to save face" she assured her. Everyone did a double take, wondering if they heard what they really heard, "Whoa, what was _that?!_ " Rowan held his head in alarm, "I heard you talk, but it was like it was coming from inside my head!" Gale suddenly realized: "That's called telepathy, or 'mind tongue' as you all like to call it" the Keeper explained, "That's mind tongue?! Holy crap _that's amazing!_ " Belle exclaimed in excitement, "That's how you guys talk to one another?! _My oh my god_ that's amazing!" she gazed up at Shadow, who nodded with a smile: "But how come _we_ can hear you, and not Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel?" Lucius asked curiously, "Such is her power: able to resonate across all minds, and allow her thoughts to be heard by all" the Keeper explained.

"And as such, I convey to you all my sincerest thanks and gratitude, for bringing my nephews and nieces home" Aureia smiled down at the humans, her voice ringing softly like a crystal bell through their minds: "Oh, 'twas nothing your majesty: and I may I say on behalf of all of us here: we _sincerely thank you_ for allowing us to lay our eyes upon your beautiful and awe-inspiring city" Claude bowed low and as courteously as possible, looking a little silly, but he didn't care; he was savouring every minute of it: "Indeed, we're truly thankful for your generosity and hospitality" Tyto added in equal reverence, "What we've all seen here, in this land, and in this city... I don't think there are any words that can sum up the depth and breadth, of what we have discovered here today"

"...Ah yes" the queen nodded, "Though you have been told stories of this place, this is the first time any human has come here for over an age" "I think it's fair to say, this is the first time _anyone_ of this walled world has ever come here: besides Tyto's predecessors" Bryson pointed out, trying not to come off as too forward: "Ah yes, the walls..." she gazed southwards, as if able to see right through the mountain, and out across the lake to wall Maria: "I do not recall such a structure straddling the southern boarder of my kingdom so ubiquitously: the world has changed much since before our entombment," "Then, you must also be aware of the titans: _that is why_ the walls were built in the first place; and it would seem Wall Maria is protecting your boarders as we speak" Bryson gazed up at her. Glancing down at the humans, the queen kneeled down to meet their eye-level, and stated: "It is true, your people's wall keeps the southern boarder safe. And even without it, the Hidden land would still remain unseen by those who reside beyond the mountains: but the titans concern me _greatly_ ; though they can never reach us here in this kingdom, they swarm the land beyond, chasing after those who flee to the second wall beyond"

"You know about wall Rose?" Bryson raised an eyebrow, "Forgive me if this sounds a tad obvious: but how can that be possible if you've been here these past five years? Even with titans like Stormwing venturing out to watch the world from the skies, there'd only be so much information you'd be able to gather at any one time" he observed; "...I can see why your counsel is most valued among your company: you know how to 'read between the lines', so to speak" she smiled down at him, before her expression turned serious: "It is true we have been observing the coming and goings of this 'walled world' for the past five years: if only to understand the nature of this new age, and how mankind has changed. But our ability to gather information has been limited by our 'predicament'"

"The curse" Tyto nodded, "Shadow explained to us that you and all your kin were 'very different' at one point, long before you were sealed away in those tombs..." he stepped forward, and anxiously asked: "...If I may ask, majesty: just-, _what were you_ , exactly? Only, I get the impression that while you were not always titans, you were not exactly 'human' either...". An uneasy silence fell over the group as the queen gazed down at Tyto impassively: Ariana and her brothers gazed at their father in surprise, wondering where on earth he came up with such a question, while everyone else merely stood there in a mix of anxiousness and confusion, waiting to see how the queen would react.

Standing as still as a statue, trying not to let her fear show: Elysia's heart was racing as she began to grow uncomfortably scared; **"He knows?!"** she swallowed fretfully, **"Of course he knows brat: they may not be oracles but they're not stupid"** Hecate folded her arms, **"Wait a minute,** _ **you knew**_ **that they knew?!"** she exclaimed in a panic, glancing over at the black and white goddess: **"Kid, this day was coming right from the get-go; we knew one day we'd have to come clean about who we really are, it was just a question of making sure they were ready and not going to take it the wrong way"** Herne sighed in exasperation, **"** _ **But what if they do take it the wrong way?!**_ **After all that bullshit the wall cult put them through, you'd seriously expect them to believe in** _ **any**_ **divine being, let alone a god?!"** Elysia argued, **"** _ **And why the hell didn't you tell me about this sooner?!**_ **" "Because we knew this is how you'd react? You may be a goddess but you're still a kid, brat: you got** _ **a lot to learn**_ **about how to handle these kinds of situations"** Hecate shot her a sarcastic look. **"I've not been comfortable about this either Elysia: but we can't lie by omission to them: not any more; not after everything we've been through together"** Javorin sighed, **"...Besides, with** _ **you**_ **in their presence we don't have much of a choice"** he glanced over at Jarus, **"It is true I can only speak the truth: if they approached me about the subject I'd have no choice but to tell them; we're damned if we do and damned if we don't"** the blindfolded god shrugged casually **"...Besides, I've already foreseen this, and I know how they will react to it"**. Elysia froze, her mind racing with fear: the fact Jarus was so calm and stoic about his premonition only confounded her anxiety even more. **"Elysia..."** Aureia gently reached out to her, almost immediately Elysia felt her thoughts calm down and her fear ease away as she looked into those shining white eyes of her's, **"...Do you trust in your friends? … After everything you've all been through, together: do you have reason to doubt them now?"**

Passing a deep sigh as she thought back to the day before last, and the years that came before it: Elysia nervously admitted: **"...What I am-...what I am** _ **to them**_ **, the bird titan Angel, is totally different to what I used to be. Before I met Carla, I was a gust wind in the air, and I existed as such for as long as I can remember. I never stopped for anything or anyone, never took an interest in the people I passed by, and I never cared about anything going on in the world. I saw countless things the humans did on the ground below, some of them were incredible and amazing, but others were harrowing and unspeakable too. In all that time, it never even occurred to me to ask** _ **why?**_ **To not even go down and just take a look, to wonder why the humans did what they did... All that-...** _ **All those years**_ **: I could've done** _ **so much more**_ **than just drive the winds of the world, but I chose to look away, and I have no excuses ...I'd rather be Angel the bird titan, than Elysia the Tempus goddess, who could've been a friend to humanity, but chose not to because she didn't think she could anything else but a breath of wind"**

" **So you'd rather live a lie out of penance for your naivety, than to have to tell them the truth?"** Jarus surmised, **"Naivety is not a crime: and neither is growing up: all gods and goddess have to find their own path in life, even if it takes them thousands of years. We've all come the same way: you are no different to the countless other gods that came before you" "Elysia, if Carla is really your best friend, she'll understand; don't worry"** Javorin smiled, **"...How will she take it?..."** Elysia looked up at Jarus nervously, **"...Why don't you let Aureia explain, and find out"** he smiled in understanding.

Gazing back over at Aureia, Elysia didn't feel comfortable with this: she didn't like it when it came to situations like these, but what choice did she have? She knew she couldn't deny Carla anything, let alone lie to her face about something she knew not to be true. Playing the role of Angel the bird titan may have been a lie, but it was one that was simple for both of them to live by: titans were the only beings of power the humans of this age recognized and acknowledged, even if they weren't gods they still ruled over the humans from beyond the walls; it was straightforward, far less complicated than having explain the ins and outs of what a god was, and what role they served in the world. A divine being of vast unimaginable power, incomprehensible to the human mind, being able to do anything they want on a whim: there was a reason the gods chose to keep their identities a secret from the humans, least one of them, or _all_ of them might get ideas and start asking the gods to abuse their powers for their own personal gain. Anything from demanding a whole mountain of gold, to total dominion over the world and their fellow man: it wouldn't be the first time humans had given into their vices upon discovering they were friends with a god, and it was not inconceivable for some to give into their weaknesses despite living the life of a good, kind and honest person; greed, power, pride, lust, anger, vanity: these were the poisons of humanity that the gods always had to contend with back in the day, and it didn't help that _anyone_ could be capable of turning into someone else, when faced with the prospect of wielding the means to reshape their lives and their destiny's.

Living as a bird titan: being a mysterious titan/creature hybrid that could fly, control the weather, turn invisible, and heal any injuries with her tears, was a far better prospect than having to be a goddess, and living with all that it implied. Including the inevitable question of 'if your so powerful and almighty why didn't you stop the titans from invading Shiganshina?'

Elysia began to cry: _she didn't want this_ , she didn't want to have to explain why; she didn't know how? As her glowing ice blue tears rolled down her cheeks, she managed to keep her composure, but as Carla glanced at her with worry, she knew she'd have to say something. **"...Elysia?..."** Hecate grabbed her attention, **"...This may be** _ **your**_ **first time doing this? But it isn't ours, and it sure as hell won't be our last,"** she glanced over at her with an honest look of reassurance; that took Elysia totally by surprise, Hecate had _never_ been nice to her like this before, and listened as she continued **"...You don't have to say anything right now, just watch and learn, okay? And have a little faith in your friends okay? It's one thing for humans to have faith in gods; but it's quite another for gods to put their faith in humans..."** Hecate glanced over at Javorin with a smile: **"...That's why you convinced me to take a chance on the brats when we first met them, isn't it?" "It's not impossible for humans to understand power and responsibility: they may not always get it right, but there is grace in their failings; something that's easy for us to forget about them..."** Javorin replied, before readdressing Elysia, **"Whatever happens, just remember that we're here for you, and each other okay? Family sticks together no matter what, and as far as I'm concerned, you're part of** _ **my**_ **family Elysia. You, and** _ **everyone**_ **here"**

Elysia nodded, sniffled a little, and took a deep breath as she glanced over at Aureia with a discreet nod: letting her know she was ready. With a motherly smile, Aureia gazed back down at the humans, and in a serious tone she replied to Tyto's question: "...What we were before and what we are now, is a secret we have kept hidden since we first awakened: in light of what has happened these past five years, I have no qualms with confiding the truth in you all; but once I have finished explaining, I will pose a question. One I want you all think about very carefully: because once you give me your final answer, you cannot go back... And I cannot promise that you be the same as you are now..."

* * *

 **Sorry for taking so damn long uploading this chapter, but I've had one set-back after another. At the start of January I was all set to resume the story after taking Christmas off, when I came down with the mother of all colds, that drained the muse right out of me for nigh on 2 weeks, and then just when I managed to get back int my groove, my laptop uped and died on me and I had to get a new one, but not before having to go to a pro and salvaging the hard-drive which only had ALL MY FRICKIN' WORK ON! but fortunetly everything was intact, including this chapter. so I get writing again on the new lappy, but not week into nearly completing the chapter, something goes wrong and I lost over 30 pages of work! GHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! But acctually, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise, because after looing back over what I initially wrote, I realized just how far off course I'd went, and how unrealistic it was in terms of the plot and story as a whole: soafter rereading my notes I got back on track, and thankfully, I managed to set it right :) So, yeah it's been one of those months, but hey, it all came right in the end. :)**

 **A/N: BTW, this was not an easy chapter to write, as there was so much to cram in (that's half the reason I went so off track writing it in the first place); there's a lot to the hidden land and the city of Omnes Scientiam, the basics of which have been discribed in this chapter, but new stuff will be unveiled here and there as the story progresses. This chapter is important as it marks a turning point in the story, and the next few chapters are going to be important in terms of where our heros go from here.**

 **Also, If the dialogue between the gods seemed a little odd, that was deliberate: Jarus is a god who can see across time (ie. he can look into the past, presnt and furture: there are limitations to this power, but that will be explored in the next chapter), so when Javorin and co first met him, they knew what was likely to play out, in terms of how the humans intro to the city and other gods was likely to go, and the fact Tyto asked them what were they really (before and after being cursed) was sort of the 'confirmation' the gods needed to tell them about their true identies. This revilation won't be touched on directly, but elements of it will apppear throughout the story in flash-back and memory form. I just thought I add this explination in case anyone was confused as to what was going on: don't worry, it's not poor writing on my part ^^' It'll all become cler as the story progresses, don't worry. :)**

 **So, hope you enjoyed this chapter, it was a bitch to write but it turned out good in the end; hope you come back for more next time, because things are gonna start getting interesting from here on out. ;)**

 **Please R &R before clicking off, and cheers dears!**


	15. Chpt 14: Unexpected Developments

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Chapter 14: Unexpected Developments

One week later:

"A little to the left! ..." Ariana shouted up into the tree,

High overhead, one of the bird titans knocked some loose twigs from out of the canopy with its tail feathers. A small shower of twigs and leaves came falling down, and Ariana gathered them up to add to the pile of firewood she'd collected; "That's great! Thanks for your help!" she called up to the titan, who thanked her with a happy chirp and playful nod before flying off up into Yggdrasil's canopy. Bundling up the wood, Ariana started the relatively short walk back to her new home, following the narrow trail as it wound its way through the dense undergrowth; gazing up through the canopy, she still couldn't get over just how big the great tree really was, as its branches seemed to go on forever in all directions.

Despite the ethereal and somewhat over-sized nature of Yggdrasil island, and it's many various titan residents, settling into life on the island had proven to be a relatively simple affair for the human survivors, and their four titanic friends. After spending the first and second days exploring the island's town and inspecting all the buildings, the group decided to pick their own places to live in: all within close proximity of one another so that if anyone needed help or there was an emergency, one or the others wouldn't have far to go. They chose a 'street' (or a set of intertwining trees rather) not too far from the island's only water supply, a small yet sizeable lake that was fed by a massive system of underground springs, some of which were volcanic: pumping out boiling hot water into one large pool at the base of Yggdrasil, where it flowed into the cold-water lake, cooling it down to a comfortable lukewarm temperature that was suitable for bathing and washing, as well as being safe to drink.

The lake was situated near the densest concentration of ground-based buildings, which must have served as the island community's 'town centre' at one point, as there were a large number of buildings here that were various shops, market stalls, craftsmen's workshops, artisan's studios, a few tailor's, eateries and Inns, a few blacksmith's forges, a library, a church of some kind, a hospital complete with surgical theatres and an apothecary; and a particularly big circular building overlooking the town square that turned out to be some kind of town hall. Or a courthouse?, it was certainly laid out like a courthouse, as it was filled with both ground and elevated seating galleries that went right around the circumference of the interior: it had tables, a dock, a witness stand, and even a judge's bench that stood quite high off the ground. But the funny thing was, there was no police station anywhere on the island, or at least, any building that had iron bars and shackles, and looked like it could keep people from escaping: so why the need for a courthouse, if crime wasn't an issue the people here had to deal with? It was one of the many mysteries that had the survivors scratching their heads, and no doubt more would come to light in the fullness of time.

But in the meantime, the survivors spent the rest of the week cleaning out their new homes and 'feathering the nests' with all the comforts and necessities of home.

On the third day, Tyto and Bryson went to relocate that first cottage they came across near the base of Yggdrasil, to see if there was anything of usefulness: and after letting themselves in, they discovered they had hit pay-dirt: everything from rugs, curtains, towels and table cloths, to kitchen utensils, pots and pans, dishes, plates and jugs, furniture; and even an old grandfather clock had been sitting around for goodness-knows how long, caked in a layer of grey dust and cobwebs. Just about everything one could need to fully furnish a house into a home, was all here: everything had been packed into wooden boxes and crates, or covered in dust sheets; it was just as Bryson had surmised, the way everything had been carefully put away and organized, it was as if the original owners had intended to return one day, or leave maybe? In any case, everything they found would be put to good use.

But it wasn't just that one cottage that had all it's contents packed and stashed away: when they checked out many of the other houses and cottages, the group found that all the other original owners had packed their belongings away too; what happened here that forced them to take everything they own, pack them up as if they were moving house, and then just leave and not come back for them? All kinds of theories had been circulating amongst the group all week, and with every new building they scavenged, new wonders and mysteries would be thrown up and pondered over.

For everyone, the town and it's abandoned contents was a great convenience, and for Pascal and West in particular, the scavenger hunt had only served to sate their former 'compulsions', and the two former thieves delighted themselves all week in finding new buildings the others had missed, or hadn't located yet, and covertly helping themselves to the more 'valuable' contents. As she passed by a large bush, Ariana heard Pascal tittering like a schoolboy, and as she stopped to watch through the patchy leaves: she saw the red-headed rouge and West emerge from a small house carrying an ornate-looking chest between them, and running off back to their place. However, as with all scavenging, a prize seldom goes unnoticed by others looking to snatch an easy meal, and no sooner had the former thieves left, Josefa and Jaye slipped out of the undergrowth near the front door and dashed into the house, re-emerging a minute later carrying a huge brass cauldron together: "Idiots" Jaye sniggered, "Don't they learn anything?" Josefa chuckled as they ran off back the way they came: no doubt to present it to their father as 'just something we found' (as was their usual story). Ariana couldn't help but smile as she carried on her way: there was no decorum when it came to hunting and scavenging, and once something is up for grabs, it was every hunter for themselves.

After a few more minutes of navigating the undergrowth, Ariana soon found herself back at the trees that were part of her new neighbourhood: the trees in question were two giants that towered some forty meters above ground, and had their trunks intertwining in a tight spiral: (no doubt they had been deliberately manipulated to grow like that, though how exactly was a real head-scratcher), their closely-knit crowns formed a large wedge in which the biggest of the tree-houses, a large boat (called a 'ship', according to Shadow) with a mansion-like house built onto the main deck, sat overlooking the island's town centre. Surrounding it on all sides, the enormous branches extended outwards from the crowns, forking off into smaller yet still equally robust branches here and there, forming sturdy supports and anchor points for the other tree-houses to stand upon (though why anyone would want to live in a boat up in a tree was anyone's guess; the islands former residents certainly had some strange preferences).

Perched on the largest branches were four other buildings, all spacious and big (equivalent to large town houses): their architectural designs were basic with some ornate features here and there, and they were all interconnected via a network of staircases that spiralled up and down the branches, plus suspended and stilted walkways that all centred around the boat's decks as the central hub. In the large tree-house to the boat's starboard bow, Bryson, Breck and Claude had decided to make their new home there, as it boasted several large rooms which would make an excellent laboratory and doctor's surgery. In the tree-house further along from them, perched securely in the fork of the branch, the Fitzsimmons and their adopted brood had moved in: between them Bren and Mabel had taken turns in fixing up the house while also caring for the babies, with Lawrence and Drake lending a helping hand; their house also had several large rooms and bedrooms, perfect for a growing family. At the opposite end of the boat perched between another forking branch, Pascal and West had chosen the grandest tree-house: this was the more ornate of the lot, and did indeed look quite lofty with its enormous balconies and stilted courtyard gardens; a little too fancy for everyone else's taste, but for two former thieves with daydreams of living in grandeur, it suited them just fine. At the very top of the two trees, where the largest branch reached up high and stood tall over the roof of the boat-tree-house, the smallest of the tree-houses sat snug and cosy amid the canopy in a triple fork: more of an ornate cottage than a house, it served Carla well as her new home, and there was space on the neighbouring branches for Angel to build herself a new nest.

And in the big boat-tree-house, the four Celtic families had set up their new homestead: with plenty of room for the kids and additional room for supplies and other essentials, their new home served as the centre-point for the others living on the branches to come and get whatever supplies they needed, thus saving them a journey down the spiralling trunks. At the bottom of the trees, nestled in between two of the largest roots, the Willums had set up home in one of the island's three Inn's: it was a large property with everything intact, it included a bar, a dinning room and kitchen, a cellar filled with long-forgotten bottles of wines, spirits and casks of ale, beer and mead; it had twenty guest bedrooms, two parlours, and sizeable living quarters that could accommodate the whole family twice over. For everyone it seemed like the obvious choice for them, but for the Willums there was no other choice: the Black Stallion in Shiganshina had been in the family for over six generations, and living in an Inn was all they had ever known (even if there were no customers to serve anymore), plus the fact it was on the ground meant the elder Willums didn't have to worry about their creaking joints while walking up the huge spiralling trunks.

Not too far away on the ground, just by edge of the town centre, Gustav had discovered one of the abandoned smithy's: a large building that housed several forges, and even had an old machine shop next door. Having worked as an ODM gear builder for many a year, he was quite familiar with some of the strange mechanical things that resided in there. However, the old smithy had seen better days, for it was overgrown by vines and creepers, and some of the tools were quite worn and rusted: but that didn't deter Gustav from making it his new home away from home, and before long Bren, Bemadette and her brothers were helping him to clear out the weeds and making it ready to light the forges and begin work. There were some essential repairs that needed a blacksmith's attention: such as needing new hinges and doorknobs on some of the doors, repairing dented utensils, and other numerous things that were going to keep the trio busy for the foreseeable future.

Walking up the giant roots and onto one of the spiralling trunks, Ariana followed the trail all the way up to the underside of the crowns, where a stilted pathway took her up to the side of the boat-tree-house where the front door was located: with her hands full, she knocked on the door with her foot, and within a few seconds Ashlyn answered: "Ah good your back, your mum was starting to wonder where you'd got to" she let her come in. "It took a while, the undergrowth is so dense in places you can hardly see your feet," Ariana replied as she took the wood through to the kitchen, and dumped it in the giant wicker basket where all the firewood was kept: "Where is mum anyway?" she frowned as she wiped the dirt and flaked bark off her hands: "Oh, she and Miss Rosemary found some stuff in that tailor's yesterday, the one down by the bakers? Said they were gonna go back and look for stuff to make new clothes" Ashlyn replied as she reached for a cup, and poured herself some water from the pump by the sink: "... I still can't believe all these tree-houses have running water" Ariana thought aloud as she stared at the pump: "Claude says its a system called 'indoor plumbing': apparently its very popular in the interior; hell it sure beats having to go outside to take a shit, or boiling the kettle every time we need a bath" Ashlyn smiled as she took a sip, "Yeah, I just hope Gustav's repairs to the pipes and pump hold up..." Ariana gazed out the window as a squirrel scampered by, "Oh, by the way, do you know where my dad went?" "I think he's still with the other guys somewhere below? You'll have to go find him yourself, I've still got a ton of stuff to finish off here" "And Shadow? Has he come back yet?" "I think so, I saw him through the trees a while ago", Ariana paused a moment, "...Okay, Thanks Ashlyn: when mum comes back tell her I went looking for dad" she bid her cousin goodbye, and turned, heading back out the front door.

As she made her way back down to the forest floor, Ariana kept her ears attuned to the strange sounds of the exotic forest, listening for Shadow's telltale soft footsteps. But alas, he was nowhere nearby: as she reached the ground and wandered off in the direction of the town centre, the sound of her father's voice told her where he was; the sounds of Bryson, Break, Gustav, and Derek's voices could also be heard. But the tones they were using sent a pang of concern through her: they were having a heated discussion about something, and from the sound of her father's voice, it was gravely serious. Quietly tiptoeing along to where they were gathered, behind one of the shops at the edge of the treeline, Ariana stood still and listened...

"-I'm telling you it's not going to work!" Gustav vehemently stated, "You haven't lived in the interior like I have, it's as far as one can get from Maria within this walled world!"

"The attitudes of those in Sina are not like those in Maria: or, _were_...In any case Gustav's right: they're far more conservative, and not as open-minded to more 'unconventional' lines of thinking" Claude threw in, "Don't forget, many Sinian's don't even know what a titan looks like, hell even _I_ didn't know what a titan was until I turned eleven!"

"If it had been anything else besides titans the whole argument would be moot, but the fact _it was_ the titans that caused Shiganshina to fall is exactly the reason this isn't going to work: a whole bunch of intelligent titans showing up at the gate of Trost, proclaiming to be humanity's savours? _No one'll take it seriously!_ Everyone, especially the Scouts are gonna think its way too good to be true; they're going to think we're an invading army or something" Derek pointed out,

"Not to mention that as we speak, countless refugees will have been crammed into Wall Rose: _everyone_ in the interior is going to be dealing with the aftermath of this disaster, it won't be just the military that will be stretched to its breaking point. Going there now? It would probably just serve to make the situation worse; those who managed to escape the titans are going to be having enough to deal with. They don't need someone promising them hope, when there's a strong chance they might not live to see it" Breck added earnestly,

the whole group stood around in an uncomfortable silence for a moment, before Bryson spoke up in a more vehement tone: "...What we have discovered here, goes far beyond _anyone's_ understanding of the bigger picture: the mystery of the titans origins, why and how mankind was made to forget the outside world, the answers to why we are here inside these walls; all this and more could be sitting in that city right across the lake from us... Everything we've done these past three years, _everything_ we have been working so hard on with Shadow and his family; and all the answers to all the questions we have been asking ourselves and each other, are _all there_... We have _no right_ to deny humanity this knowledge: there is _no way_ I am just going to sit on this island, and stay here for the rest of my life knowing what I know. Not when there might finally be a way for the Scouts to beat back the titans, which have confined us to this existence for the last hundred years"

"...I agree..." Tyto concurred, "My grandfather and my kin risked their lives to find this place: they may not have fully been able to grasp the entirety of what we know now: but they _knew_ they stumbled upon something that would change _everything_ , forever. They could've stayed, but they choseto come back: back to a world where they were regarded as less than animals by the wall cult, and hunted as such. I believe now, they came back because one day mankind would need to know of the city of of Omnes Scientiam, and they would be the one's to show the way... Now? Me and my family are the last of our people: the only one's who knew of this place in our hearts and in our minds, long before the walls were ever built... To stay here and do nothing with that legacy would be an insult to their memories: to those who the Disciples killed, taking that knowledge to their graves... I don't know how: but I'm doing this, with or without you all"

"Oh don't be stupid, we _all_ want to do _something_ about this!" Gustav sighed in exasperation as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Yes, _but how?_ Look-, I've no doubt there's a way we can do it: but the question is where do we even start? We're the only one's here, and even with the Queen and the other god-titans providing us aid with their abilities, our options are still limited; not to mention we've got our own to think about. We can't just go off playing hero and abandon them" Bren pointed out.

"God-titans..." Bryson smirked, "...I'm still getting used to that idea"

"You and the rest of us, soldier" Gustav huffed as he folded his arms, "Gods or titans, I don't give a shit what they think they are, or what they're not: they're still family, and there's always room for a few more more nuts on the family tree"

"I dunno Gustav? They seemed pretty adamant about it" Bren sighed as he scratched the back of his neck, "I mean, don't you think with all the things their able to do with that magic of theirs, and the things they know, that they might be _something more_ than just intelligent magical titans?"

"Honestly? I don't know what to think? I mean, the whole 'being sure of who to trust' and all that I can understand: but leading us on all the way up to last week? Eh, I'm not saying I don't trust them anymore, I just think they need to get their priorities a little more straitened out" Evrard waved off in a not-too-overly-concerned tone.

"'Get their priorities a little more straitened out?' Evrard, they told us up front they were _gods!_ You don't make a claim like that and expect everyone to take it at face value! The wall cult have been preaching for the last hundred years that the walls are goddesses and were placed here by some 'divine architect'; you think after having to listen to _them_ preaching that horse-shit, that I'm just going to believe her majesty?" Bryson argued, before passing an exhausted sigh and adding: "...Look, I still consider Shadow a really good friend, him and the rest his 'extended' family: and yes, the things they're able to do with those powers of theirs are incredible and impressive: I'm not questioning _that_ side of it; but gods? ...I'm sorry, but that's too much of a stretch, even for me"

"Well? Whoever or whatever they were before we met them: I'm glad we know them now, and have them in our lives; because Maria only knows these past three years have been anything but dull" Bren smiled, "And let's not forget, if it wasn't for them, we'd all be dead"

"Yeah, no shit..." Gustav nodded with a small smirk: ..."But this 'endeavour' the Queen has asked us to think about getting involved in...Trying to restore humanity to the world? That's a tall order, even for us"

"Tall order or not, we've got to try anyway: and while I have no doubt it can be done, I just don't believe _now_ is the right time; let the dust settle first, let everyone in the walls have a chance to pick themselves up and recover. Going there now? I just can't see it being feasible" Breck thought aloud.

As the 'heretics and traitors' continued to discuss the topic and debate it at length, Ariana quietly slipped away, still listening out for Shadow... She really needed to speak with him.

At the edge of the town centre, invisibly watching the group from the shadows of the trees: Javorin and Jarus discreetly listened in, pondering on their conversation: **"Well what did you expect? I would've warned you they wouldn't believe us, but then, you _have_ foreseen that too haven't you?"** Javorin sighed dryly: **"True, I had expected this: but then, as gods we are obliged to be honest in all our dealings with the humans; at least, as honest as our divine duties will allow under the circumstances. Hypocritical I know, but what can we do? Needs must, and our needs require total honesty and cooperation if our long term goal is to have any hope of becoming a reality: better they hear the truth from us now, then by other means that would lead them to believe we have something to hide"**

" **We're gods Jarus,** _ **we always have something to hide**_ **, and for good reason,"** Javorin glanced at him sarcastically, before huffing in annoyance **, "** _ **Oh great**_ **, now I'm beginning to sound like Hecate"**. Jarus only chuckled, **"You're getting yourself worked up over nothing brother" "It's not** _ **that**_ **..."** Javorin frowned, Jarus was quiet for a moment, before simply replying: **"...I know... And it's as I've already explained; _i_** _ **t's not that simple**_ **. With Aureia involved we have no choice but to keeping looking up at the bigger picture: and I'm sorry to say, we can only see so far"**

" **...I know..."** Javorin sighed in irritation as he ran his hand through his long mane-like hair, **"It's just-,** _ **I know**_ **the unknown destiny of the world is the will of the Ancient ones, but that doesn't mean I have to like abiding by it" "Neither do I Javorin, but we're here now, and we have a job to do: regardless of what the humans believe us to be, or not to be"** Jarus stated as straightened up, **"And right now we need to find a way of thinning out the titan population: that chaos manna their aura's discharge has already impaired the balance of the world's magical energies, the only reason the balance of life and death hasn't been affected yet is because of Yggdrasil,"** he gazed up at said tree: " **As long as the great tree continues to noirish the world's natural manna with its own, we still have a chance to prevent any further damage from being done"**

" **So what can you tell me** _ **'might'**_ **happen?"** Javorin folded his arms, **"Only that something is going happen in the near future, something that will force them to choose, and to follow through with great determination and conviction"** Jarus replied, directing his gaze over to the group: Javorin looked back at him in surprise, **"So they are going to help? I mean, I didn't doubt they would, but how?"** **"That, I'm afraid, I have not been able to see: even under the shade of Yggdrasil the chaos manna clouds my sight: Aureia's too, to a greater or lesser degree".** Javorin stared at him in surprise: **"... Aureia's not able to see all the way across the veil of time and space?" "Sometimes, it's random and near-impossible to predict; that's why, we had such trouble trying to determine what was going on, the day Shiganshina fell" "...If Aureia's not able to utilize her full power, then it's much worse than I originally thought"** Javorin realized in fretful worry, **"I know..."** Jarus nodded, **"But in any case they will help us, though** _ **how**_ **exactly remains to be seen... And even if I'm able to see what will come to pass: I'm afraid I won't be able to tell"** he added in a regretful tone, **"Why not?"** Javorin frowned, **"It's as you say: we have good reason for hiding the truth at times, and sometimes some truths can only be learned the hard way; that is the nature of this world after all. And sometimes, that nature avails itself in some truly harrowing ways"**

"I _can_ smell you you know?, I know your both standing there..." Ariana frowned as she folded her arms, tapping one foot impatiently as she gazed up at the empty space where she knew they were standing. **"Oh dear, looks like we've been found out"** Jarus smiled as he turned himself visible again "Hello Ariana" he smiled down at the girl: "Hey Keeper, is Shadow free?" She asked offhand, "Indeed, he's all yours", **"I'll catch up with you later: you know where to find me"** he waved as he quietly walked off into the forest, **"Oh sure, I'll just drop by the temple and leave you an offering"** Javorin frowned sarcastically, **"Wine would be nice (if I had a stomach to enjoy it with)"** Jarus grinned as he disappeared into the thick greenery. Javorin made himself visible and kneeled down to meet Ariana: "What was that all about?" she asked offhand, seeing the exasperated look on his face, "Are you okay big guy?", :Ah I'm fine, just big brother stuff giving me grief is all: he spelt out, offering his hand for her to climb into, "Yeah, I know the feeling: I got _three_ to keep in line remember?" Ariana sighed as she climbed up into his palm: he then stood back up and wandered into the forest.

The two friends were quiet for a long moment, before Ariana decided to doggedly speak her mind: "...So I take it you overheard dad's conversation with the other heretics and traitors?", :Yep: he spelt, "And _you do realize_ what you guys told us last week is still a big pill to swallow, right?" she gazed up at him with a sceptical look, :I know, and for that I'm sorry. But I've already explained _why_ we had to conceal our true identities all these years:, "It's not that, _I get all that_ : its the whole reason we didn't tell anyone else about you guys," Ariana stood up in his palm to meet his gaze: "I just-, don't know what to think? You, a god? Or god-titan? Whatever you are, I'm sorry but part of me just doesn't buy it"

Javorin stopped, and with an understanding look in his eyes, asked, :Okay, but why not? If I may ask:, thinking about it for a brief moment, Ariana then replied, "Well? For one thing the wall cult have been saying the walls are goddesses for years, but _everyone knows_ their just big-ass walls that have always been there; there's nothing mystical or divine about them. Look, don't get me wrong, you are capable of doing _incredible things_ ; things most people wouldn't be able to wrap their minds around: but that's _not_ conclusive proof that you and the rest of your family are gods"

:It's a fair point: he shrugged causally, :So what would qualify as conclusive proof to you?:, "...I don't know?," Ariana ran her fingers through her bangs as she racked her brain trying to think, "Change the world for the better somehow? Make all the regular titans disappear from the earth? And get rid of all the evil people in the world while your at it?", :I wish: he spelt out with a small smile, "Yeah, that's what I thought..." Ariana sighed in disappointment, before changing the subject slightly, "...Listen, everyone's been thinking about your 'revelation': and I was speaking with Dale, Lucy and Lucius about it the other day, and they happened upon a theory about it; which I said I'd ask you about", :Okay: he nodded, "...Well? Back before you guys wound up in those tombs: did everyone believe you to be gods _because_ of your powers? I mean, was the name 'god' simply a word used to describe a being of great power; a power that went beyond everyone's understanding? Or, what?"

Javorin had to give Dale and the Cooper twin's credit, they certainly knew how to think outside the box, :In a way yes and in a way no: he half gestured with a wave of his hand, :Yes, because we are capable of doing things humans cannot understand, and no, because we do things that humans would consider counter-intuitive by their standard of logic:, "Such as?", :...Well? The powers we possess are varied and enigmatic in nature, but they are only a small part of what we are; our longevity, and the wisdom we accumulate over the course of our long-lived lives is another thing that humans had come to believe make us gods. But most of all, is our ability to 'sense' and 'reach' our minds and spirits beyond our own physical forms, to be able to 'connect' with other living and inanimate things: essentially being 'omnipotent'. This particular aspect of our natural abilities as gods is what enables us to recognize how everything and everyone in this world is connected; and that we understand how everything works, _because_ of those infinite connections. We gods are _constantly_ aware of those things, and know that they're integral to how the world works and survives the way it does; that's why, we have a systems of laws we place upon ourselves, so we don't abuse our powers and risk causing harm unintentionally:

"Okay, but where does the 'counter-intuitive by the standard of human logic' fit in?" Ariana asked curiously, :The first thing you have to understand about humans, is that their not us; gods and humans are two entirely separate entities, for a number of different reasons: but the biggest difference is the fact that humans are not omnipotent. Humans do not have the same level of conscious awareness that we do: for instance, you're standing here in my hand and you're looking up at me, and that's exactly what you're senses are telling you you're face-to-face with; you can see my face, hear by breathing, smell my scent, and feel the creeks and strains of the muscles in my arm through your feet. But for me, I sense not only your exterior form; I can sense your heart beating and the blood flowing through your veins, the electrical pulses of your brain, spine and nerves all throughout your body, your organs working in near-perfect syzygy, turning food into energy and defending the body from infection and disease, all this and so much more, all at once all at the same time. For me and my kin its nothing, but for a human it would be overwhelming to comprehend... Humans only pick up a tiny percentage of what we sense, and the fact they live for only _a tiny fraction_ of our lifespans, means they can only accumulate so much knowledge over the course of their lifetimes; ergo, there is much they do not understand of the world, and even themselves:

"I guess that's true? But you can't say we're all ignorant about everything, I mean _some of us_ are respectful to the world and everything in it" Ariana pointed out, :True, and while a percentage are more capable than the rest, by and large humans are only aware of the world that encompasses their ability to sense, navigate and comprehend it. Case in point...: he knelled down and pointed to the base of a nearby tree, Ariana wasn't sure what he was pointing to at first, until she spotted a worm wriggling across an exposed patch of soil, and a beetle scuttling up the side of the tree's root, :Despite the fact they both share the same environment, that beetle and that worm both have a very different understanding of what the world is. For the worm, who has no eyes and is able to burrow and wriggle down into the soil, his entire world is comprised of what he feels and hears; the earth and everything in it is what _he_ understands to be true, because that is what he is suited to sense and perceive. Where as the beetle, who has both eyes and wings, see's a very different place; to him the world is vast and endless because he is able to get from one place to another fast, and because he can see everything the worm cannot...: he stood back up, and spelt out, :If both the beetle and the worm were able to talk to one another, how would one be able to convince the other of what is real? The beetle understands what light and dark is, because he has eyes to see it with, but for the worm there is no such thing as 'light' or 'darkness', there is only the surface or the underground, because that is what he can feel; and vice versa, how can the worm comprehend what 'flight' is when he has no wings of his own? How can he understand the concept of getting from one place to another in a short span of time, when to him, _his_ understanding of the passage of time is diffident to that of the beetle's? All because of how their bodies and senses are shaped, and what they perceive as such... So the question is; _what is real?_ What is the world to you, when you can only see it from _your perspective_? What would happen if you try to convince a god of your reality?:

"... They'd end up fighting over it, because neither one is able to understand the other... " Ariana realized, slightly in awe at the realization; Javorin nodded as he elaborated, :When humans come across something that will enable them to do more than what they are physically or mentally capable of, they 'internalize' it; they incorporate it into their skill-set and use it to adapt and evolve, whether it be a form of technology, a type or magic, or even a piece of rhetorical knowledge. Some would use it to their own devices, while other would seek to use it for the betterment of others; either way, if such knowledge is shared amongst a particular group and everyone else is left out, that group would have a distinct advantage over the rest. Their perception of the world would be changed; perhaps not in a big or obvious way, but one that would be different from everyone else's:

"So if that group's perspective of the world is changed, and they can't see eye-to-eye with anyone else: how would you get everyone to see each other's point of view?" Ariana pressed him, :The answer is not easy or straightforward, but the best place to start is by talking; humans diverged into a number of different 'cultures' over time, depending on geography and the environment in which they inhabited: but at their core they are all still human, with the same thought-processes, emotions and feelings. And I've learned over the years that learning to love comes so much more naturally than hatred; when pain is all you have ever known, that will be the first response to anything or anyone you encounter, good or bad; and by inflicting pain you only make the situation worse. But by being open and honest with yourself, and others, there's a better chance of something good coming from it. It's not easy, it doesn't come without complications or set-backs, and I'm sorry to say it doesn't always work; different people will always have a different understanding of the world; but that's not a bad thing, it is merely a part of the nature of human nature, and it is something we gods learned to live alongside too:

"So how did you get us to see _your_ point of view?", :Truth be told? It was always complicated; when humans encounter something they don't understand, their first reaction is to be scared, but when they come to understand that something is more powerful than themselves, they will react either by trying to subdue it, or trying to appease it. Like humans, we gods are all different too; some of us didn't get along with humans, and vice versa. But others, like myself, tried to understand them, and vice versa. Over time we learned to live alongside each other, to help, to learn and to adapt in unison; but the more we grew comfortable with each other the more complacent we became, and over time it gave birth to a number of different complications. Many humans came to believe that we needed recognition of our feats and endeavours, or appeasement to stave off our anger or jealousy; and so they started to worship us. Others came to the conclusion that because we liked them, anything they did was automatically justified no matter how morally ambiguous it might be, some even taking advantage of our abilities for their own desires; but it went both ways too, and some gods had no problem in using humans to their own advantages. This of course led to conflict, and so a set of laws were established to maintain peace between us; any human or god found breaking those laws would be held accountable and punished... And that was that way it stayed for many an age; right up until our entombment:

"And everyone was okay with it? Even you?", :Are you okay with the Military Police, and how they maintain law and order within this walled world? Or even the king and Royal government, and how they rule this society? The point is, no system of law or governance is ever perfect, and both humans and gods could get it wrong at times. But as long as we learned from our mistakes; both us _and_ the humans, it all helped to make the world just that little bit better. For humans who live in the here and now, it's something that was relevant to every human of every age; but for us gods, who can live for _countless_ human lifetimes, it was an endeavour we saw change in ways we couldn't predict, or even comprehend at times. Kingdoms, nations and empires rose and fell, societies and cultures changed in all kinds of ways; some for the better, some for the worse, and all the while all we tried to do is ensure you remembered what was important:

"... And, what is important? ..." Ariana hesitated: Javorin merely smiled, and replied, :That this world is all that we all have, god or human there is no real difference when you get down to the heart of it, we are all the same no matter our differences on the outside; at our cores we still feel the same things, the same loves, the same sorrows, happiness, sadness, anger, joy, hope, disparity. Many would believe we are as far from each other as one could imagine, that our powers and immortality put us far above humanity, when in fact, it can put us at a disadvantage:

"Disadvantage?" Ariana blinked in surprise; Javorin felt his heart sink in his chest, and it showed in his sorrowful gaze as he explained, :...Having power doesn't mean you can do anything you want, it simply means you are burdened with a great responsibility you can never be rid of; being immortal doesn't mean you live forever, it just means that everyone around you dies. And being wise with the knowledge of a hundred thousand lifetimes doesn't mean you'll find happiness, it simply means that you understand why evil exists in the world, and _why_ it can never be totally expelled... There's a reason why there's the saying 'ignorance is bliss'; having everything is _not_ everything. To live a simple life, to be able to live for yourself and those you care about? Many are not able to achieve such a dream, and it is a dream we gods are seldom ever afforded, if not for a single human lifetime; because _our duty_ is to the world, and to ensure its survival not matter what... For many an age humanity understood that of us, and for a time even endeavoured to help ensure the balance of the world remained in equilibrium; we would see a return to that time, when that understanding between humans and gods was at its best. Of course it can never be exactly the way it was back then, nor would we want it to; but it _would_ be an opportunity for humanity to start anew, to rediscover all that has been lost, and be reminded of how things can be better:

Feeling a tad overwhelmed, Ariana let her gaze drift off into space as she tried to wrap her mind around everything he just explained: "...So? Technically, you guys didn't consider yourselves gods?", :Technically? we never really called ourselves anything to begin with. When humanity came along they called us 'gods', and we just sort of went along with it really?: he shrugged, Ariana paused dubiously for moment, before asking, "... So, you didn't mind the fact people worshipped you?", :That's another oddity of human nature we could never seem to fathom. Humans will believe whatever they want to believe, even if its not true or doesn't make any sense, logic or reason; human belief is a complicated and fickle thing, and when taken advantage of it can be used to _terrible_ effect. It doesn't matter how good or selfless your intentions might be, taking advantage of someone's belief is an abuse of their vulnerability. We _never_ encouraged any humans to worship us, but then, we didn't exactly stop them either; we gods believe that 'faith' is an expression of trust in one's character and ability, _not_ a dependence upon our power to solve all the problems of the world. It was something we were _always_ careful to explain and clarify with the utmost diligence and tact; but there were _always_ those that would seek to twist our teachings to suit their own needs, or a larger agenda. In any case, we learned that it's useless to argue with fools, because after a time the spectators wouldn't be able to tell the difference:

"That must've sucked", :Indubitably: Javorin nodded. "...So? … You don't mind us calling you titans?" Ariana asked hesitantly, to which the god-titan chuckled and replied, :Ariana, you can call us _whatever_ you want, we don't mind, really:, "That's a relief..." She smiled, before suddenly realizing, "-But wait a sec, if this whole 'god' thing wasn't a big deal for you guys in the first place, what was the point of telling us this?", :Because we're your friends, and you had a right to know. After everything we've been through together these last five years, I knew that revelation would come sooner or later. I just preferred you heard it from us, than learn about it from somewhere else and get the wrong idea... That and, we didn't want you to think that just because we're gods, that we can do anything you ask of us; but then, _you_ already knew that. So all in all? I guess you can think of this more as a formality for the sake of clarification; it may seem trivial to you and the others, but it's a big deal for us, okay?:

"Okay" Ariana nodded anxiously, "That's-, _a lot_ to relay to Dale and the twins, can I leave that with you?", Javorin laughed as he spelt out, :I've already left it with Claude, he's filled up his entire journal with everything I just told you, and more: " _That's_ where you've been these last few days? Mum thinks you've been shirking your chores", :Me? Deliberately avoiding your mother? _do you mind!_ : he glared down at her with mock look of displeasure, "Look I'm just saying, she's been on a scavenger-spree ever since she and the old ladies found those tailors in the town: at the rate she's going nuts making us new stuff to wear, I'm gonna be up to my eyeballs in new clothes for the next _five years_!" she let out an exasperated sigh as she flopped down in his palm, "That, _and_ she's worried about me giving an answer to the Queen's 'request'". Javorin stopped, and with an impassive expression, asked, :... And? Have you at least been thinking about it?:, Ariana deadpanned up at him, "Seriously? As if you guys need to ask _me_ of all people, _of course I'll help!_ " she let out a frustrated sigh as she dragged both hands down her face, "It's just-, well you heard the heretics and traitors, this is _way bigger_ than any of us! I'm not saying it won't work and that we can't make it work? I just-, _don't see how_. Restoring humanity to the world? That's _huge_ , even for you guys... And listen, don't tell mum I said yes okay? I'll break that to her in person when the time's right" :Okay: he nodded, "Hey Shadow?..." Ariana sat back up, crossed her legs, and smiled up at him, "... Thanks for having faith in us; even if I don't completely get the whole 'god-titan' thing, I just want you to know, I don't consider it a joke or anything like that; if it's a big deal for you and your family then it'll be a big deal for us, okay?", he paused a moment, and smiled back, :Thank you, Ariana:. The two best friends talked some more as they strode away deeper into the forest, their chuckles and laughter echoing through the trees: making the tree and animal titans smile with content as they watched them wander by from the shade of the canopy.

* * *

On the western edge of the forest, near the cliff-sides that dropped down to the great lake, Elysia sat perched on one of Yggdrasil's giant root's, gazing out towards the western mountains: this last week had gone by in a bit of a daze, between helping the humans to settle into their new homes, and building herself a new nest next to Carla's own place, she'd hardly had time to contemplate the aftermath of the god's revelation to the humans, confiding in them their true identity's; of all the possible outcomes that could have transpired, she hadn't expected everyone to take it as well as they did. For the most part the revelation had been met with a healthy dose of scepticism, sociological curiosity, with the definition of the name 'god' being debated at length by some: but for the most part, the humans had taken it well.

Which left Elysia feeling perplexed, as she didn't know how to feel about it: she'd been expecting disbelief, anger, a sense of betrayal, and sheer outrage from her friends; dealing with the fact they didn't take it seriously had thrown her for a loop, and now she didn't know what to do. On the one hand she felt a little relieved if not quite stupid for assuming Carla (of all people) would take it badly, and on the other, she wondered where things would go from here, and what this all meant for them in the long term. She was so lost in her puzzled thoughts that she nearly jumped out of her skin when Carla greeted her, her feathers puffed out in alarm, nearly knocking the poor woman off the giant root: but fortunately she regained her balance and laughed as the bird titan frantically tried to stroke her plumage back into place with the bends of her wings, "I'm sorry Angel. know I shouldn't laugh, but that's just so funny!" Carla couldn't help but chuckle as she sat herself down on the root next to her best friend, and gazed out over the sapphire blue waters: watching the clouds sail by over Yggdrasil's vast canopy.

"... It's so beautiful here... " Carla thought aloud with a small smile, to which Angel nodded with a forced smile :Oh yes, it's a shame we'll have to leave in three day's time: she spelt out with one wing, "...About that..." Carla sighed with a heavy heart, "...I've decided I'm going to stay, I'm not going to wall Rose Angel". Elysia nearly gawked down at the woman, :What? But why? What about Grisha? Its been over a week, he must be thinking your dead by now!:, "I know, and you have _no idea_ how hard its been for me to come to this decision..." Carla replied, as tears rolled down her cheeks. Elysia froze: reading her aura, she realized Carla was being serious, and not without good reason; lowering herself down to be nearer to her level, she remained silent as she listened to her explain, : "...Last week was-, _life-changing_ to say the least: and not because you told us you were gods..." she reached for the dove pendant beneath her blouse, and gazed down at it as she stroked her thumb over the wings, "...When the keeper showed us around the city, and we saw all those incredible things: I was so _enchanted_ by it all, I never even _dreamed_ humanity could be so diverse and varied at one point. That there was so many different kinds of people and places beyond the walls... But then, when we reached the top of the city and met Queen Aurora... And then, _everything_ changed... When she asked us if we would join the god-titans in their endeavour to restore humanity, I realised I had no right to refuse her; I have-... _No right_ to deny humanity this opportunity to rediscover its heritage; to finally find a way to beat back the titans, and retake the world that was once our own..." she wiped her tears away, keeping her composure: "... My son Eren will _never_ have the opportunity to see the outside world: but if I can help others to go see it for themselves, to let them know what _true freedom_ is, and that they needn't live in fear of the titans; then at least _some part_ of him will live on in that endeavour, and his death will not be meaningless"

Elysia gazed at her in surprise: her aura was beating with a different thrum now, one that was laced with the pain of loosing her children, and at the same time stirring with a strength she'd never seen in her before; a strength that longed to lash out at the object of her grief and anger, and at the same time, to tenderly reach out to those in need and pull them out of whatever darkness enveloped them. Elysia mentally smacked herself up the back of her head: how on earth did she not see this change in her? And how could she be so selfish as to be lost in her own emotions, and not be there for her best friend in her time of need? She was still grieving the loss of Eren and Mikasa; and her aura showed it. Although she was strong on the outside and holding her composure together well, on the inside she was still processing everything that happened that day, and she was still in a state of flux. Determined to not let her down, Elysia replied, :How can I help?:

Carla gazed up at her, as she awkwardly tried to explain, :Listen, what we said last week, about us being gods and all that? It doesn't matter now. Just know that I'm here for you, and I'll follow you wherever you go; I don't care what you think I am anymore, and I know I can't keep worrying about it, so don't worry okay?:

A moment of silence passed before Carla smiled up at her, and stroked her cheek with a deep sigh, "It's okay sweetie, you don't have to worry about it..."; she got back up on her feet, and regarded her with a serious look for a moment, "But listen: I don't know what's going to happen, or what we're going to do to help restore humanity to the world; but whatever happens I'm not going to back down. It's probably going to get difficult at times, and I don't know what we're going to have to contend with to see it come to fruition. But one day, we will go to wall Rose: I'm going to find Grisha and I'm going to tell him everything, you, me, the heretics and traitors, the god-titans, Omnes Scientiam, _everything._ I know he's not going to like me for it, and I'm prepared to cross that bridge when I come to it: but after deciding to do this, _I owe him that_ at least _._ And for now he's safe where he is in the interior... And anyway, how can things possibly go back to the way they were before? After everything that's happened: _everything I now know_ ; how can I go back to just being 'normal'?"

:I guess?: Angel nodded with a concerned warble, :Are you sure about this? I mean, we can fly to wall Rose and bring him back here if you want?:. Carla gazed up at her in mild surprise from a moment, before a small smile crossed her lips: "Thank you, but I don't think it would be a good idea: the logistics of getting in, locating Grisha and then getting out would be too complicated; plus, I don't know how on earth he'll react? To you? to me? To the both of us together? ...I know I'm breaking his heart by doing this, and I'll only cause more grief by 'coming back from the dead', regardless of how much time passes... It's selfish of me I know, but it's probably for the best that I let him think I'm dead: let him grieve, and find a way to move on with his life; either way, we're needed here, and he'll be needed in the interior, helping the refugees" she gazed out across the lake impassively, but her tone betrayed her heartache"...I don't like this decision Angel, and I didn't come to it lightly: but it's for the best". Unfolding her other wing, Elysia pulled Carla in for a hug, cooing warmly as she bent down to give her a nose-boop: Carla couldn't help but smile as she nuzzled her on the nose; "...Eren would've loved you, Angel..." she sighed as she felt another wave of tears come, :I loved him too, Carla: the bird titan spelt out as she shed her own tears.

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere on the island:

"This is incredible..." Dale beamed up at the three titan-goddess, " _You ladies_ are amazing!"

" **Well you weren't kidding about him being a flatterer"** Nyiera smirked as shifted on her perch, **"At least** _ **he's**_ **the most well-heeled of the three, the two other are still a work-in-progress"** Hecate gestured to Rowan and Ash, who were staring up at the strange sky in jaw-dropped astonishment.

The place they were hanging out it was not like anywhere else on the island: deciding they needed a change of scenery and a much-needed break from all the scavenging and house-work, Hecate had gathered her sisters and the three Grey Owl brothers, and took them to the hot-spring next to the great tree, where a giant opening in the base of Yggdrasil's trunk led to the inside of the colossal timber; and the brothers had been surprised to say the least. Instead of a gigantic hollow truck/tree cave, there was an endless night sky that went on forever: but the stars here were different, more brighter, and shining with coronas of all different colours, with strange static clouds that glowed in all manner of colours as they stretched from one end of the sky to the other. The ground was comprised of a network of roots that had pools of dark still water between each one, forming a giant mosaic that seemed to stretch on forever, mirroring the sky, and making it look like it reached all the way down to the depths of the earth. On the 'horizon' there were strange dark structures that formed the base of Yggdrasil's trunk: worn away by time and shaped by countless wood-boring insects and dripping water, it looked more like a cave filled with stalagmites and stalactites, that seemed to shimmer with flecks of blue, green and plink lights. It was a staggeringly beautiful place, and one that had the humans completely taken under its spell.

" **Oh I wouldn't say that,"** Hecate's third sister smiled cheekily, **"I think Javorin made the right call in having these three look after you" "Look after me?"** Hecate fumed, **"Oh calm your fangs down sissy,** _ **you know**_ **I'm only jesting!"** she waved off with a smug smile, **"And how many times have I told you** _ **not**_ **to call me that Silenda!"** she glared daggers at her, **"I'll call you whatever I damn-well please: I'm your little sister remember?** _ **It's my job...**_ **"** the younger goddess smugly grinned as she steady scuttled along the roots on her massive spider legs.

Silenda was one of the other night roamers that had made her home on the island: in the extensive cave systems that ran beneath Yggdrasil, all the way down to beneath the lake and to depths unknown. Like Nyiera she wasn't entirely humanoid; but instead of being a bird titan, she was a spider titan. Estimated to be a nineteen meter class if she was entirely humanoid, instead, Silenda possessed an elongated torso, from which three pairs of long slender black legs extended, each tipped with two sharp claws on each foot, and a long set of black arms ending in an elongated pair of hands that were armed with ten razor-sharp sickle-like claws. Her abdomen didn't look so much like that of a spider's, and more like that of a woman's lower half with both legs amputated off, with the spinnerets on the underside between the 'stumps'. Her entire body was white as snow, with her torso and abdomen covered in the same markings as her sisters: unusually, she was the only god-titan that had no markings on her head or neck, thus her face resembled flawless porcelain, framed by her raven black hair that had a rich deep violet sheen to it, and dazzling amethyst eyes that had tints of lapis blue with rich lilac lips; truly, she was as beautiful as her sisters, despite her monstrous arachnid form. She had chosen to live under the pseudonym Crystal, because like Boar, she too had the power to call forth any crystal or gemstone deep from within the earth: and had decorated the entrance to her cave as such with a variable garden of multicoloured rocks and crystals.

As she carefully loomed over the three brothers, her long black bangs fell away from her face, revealing the other two pairs of eyes on the sides of her forehead. **"Besides, it's nice to have someone else besides you and Nyiera not scared of me because of the way I look: not that that's ever really been a problem here, the nature gods have all been very understanding of my 'circumstances'. But still, it's a relief to know the humans won't be living in fear of me any time soon"** she smiled as she bent down on her legs, and let the boys climb up to sit on the back of her shoulders, using her long hair to hold on tight as she straightened up, **"After all the shit they've been through? It's going to take a lot more than a 'spider titan' to rattle them"** Hecate stated matter-of-factly, **"That's another thing I still don't understand:** _ **why**_ **, are we letting them think we're titans again?"** Nyiera deadpanned, **"Because the concept of gods who live and breath as fellow humans and animals is long-since dead, and apparently the only 'goddesses' the humans know now are the 'walls'. It's just for convenience's sake: don't put too much stock into it"** Silenda waved off, **"You** _ **do realize**_ **though this is going to throw up more than a few 'complications' when they head back to the city and discover our 'pre-titan history'? We weren't always giants, and we don't exactly have a straight-forward track record, remember?"** Nyiera pointed out vehemently, **"Neither do the humans: they'll find _that_ out the hard way too when they start researching their own history..." ** Hecate turned to face her older sister: **"Look, we don't know how this is going to go down:** _ **nothing like this has ever happened before**_ **, and we** _ **don't know**_ **how the humans are going to take it; all we can do is warn them that the truth won't be all peaches and cream, and deal with the consequences as they come"**

" **Come now my sister's daughters, it won't be** _ **that**_ **bad, surely?"** another voice echoed through their minds, as the resident goddess of the tree made herself known. She was a fifteen meter humanoid god-titan, and was Yggdrasil's keeper and protector, Asteria, Aureia's twin sister: but to the humans, she was known as Starlight. Like her sibling, Asteria's 'hair' was more comprised of cloud and mist than actual hair, but instead of being pure white, her's was deep indigo with wisps of violet and ultramarine blue, with countless stars and colourful clouds swirling about. Her skin glowed a pale golden hue, and her markings radiated in all kinds of colours, while her eyes looked like rainbows as they glistened with every colour imaginable. **"...The one thing humans have proven time and again is that they can be adaptable where necessary: truth only serves to strengthen their resolve, not tear it down in despair. Even** _ **you**_ **can appreciate their strengths Hecate"**

" **All I'm saying, is that the humans of this era believe the enemy of mankind is the titans, and that** _ **everyone**_ **is all in the same boat fighting for the same reason. They're not exactly going to be very receptive to the idea that there were times in their history when they were the worst of enemies: that** _ **whole countries**_ **committed unspeakable atrocities for a number of reasons...Being a 'rouge intelligent titan' for the sake of breaking down the status quo of their fears and ignorance?** _ **That,**_ **I'm prepared to do. The history lessons? T** _ **hat's**_ **Javorin's and Jarus's divine jurisdiction..."** Hecate folded her arms as she glanced over at Asteria. **"Well? We shall have to wait and see won't we? Who knows? The humans might just surprise you (yet again)"** Asteria smirked, to which Hecate deadpanned at her.

"Hey Starlight, how goes the uh, 'portal watching'?" Ash craned his head right back to gaze up at the nine portals hanging in the sky: each one looked like a cut that had been made with a giant knife, and the 'flesh' of the sky pulled apart to open them up. Each one was a window into a different realm: some looked to be some kind of ethereal paradise, rich in life and inviting, while others looked gloomy and desolate, filled with fire, dark fog and endless black skies; while one or two simply looked like they were shrouded in pale mists, with the silhouettes of landscapes periodically drifting in and out of view. It was a very weird sight, and one that held as much curiosity as it did dread for the humans. "Same as always Ash, quiet, peaceful, and undisturbed: just the way its supposed to be" Asteria smiled telepathically, "Uhuhuhuh!- I don't think I'm ever gonna get used to that!" Rowan shuddered as he shook his head like a dog trying to get rid of its fleas; he didn't like how the titan-goddess's voice echoed through his head, like water sloshing against the inside his skull. For the humans, the titan-goddess's telepathy and that of her sister's went both ways, it either felt weird and nothing more, or it was a minor irritation, like an itch that couldn't be scratched. "I dunno, I think her voice sounds nice: like little bells made out of crystal glass" Dale smiled, "Or like a nightingale" Ash chipped in, "Whatever, it just feels too _weird_ , no offence your stariness" Rowan tipped his head to the titan-goddess.

"It's alright, it's a strange sensation for any human to experience" she waved off: "So, my sister gave you permission to enter the gateway to Yggdrasil's nine realms, hm?" she gazed down at the humans with a welcoming smile, **"I cleared it with Aureia four days ago, she said their okay... Though personally, I elected to escort them, and somehow my sisters decided to lend me a hand"** Hecate shrugged casually, **"Three night roamers to watch over three human children? A little excessive don't you think?"** Asteria blinked in surprise, **"Not with** _ **these three**_ **, believe me"** Hecate frowned, **"** _ **That**_ **, I can concur with"** Nyiera deadpanned as she shot Rowan a disapproving glair, **"Oh tish-tosh, he didn't mean to pull your feathers out, it was an accident"** Silenda waved off. **"There are accident's, and then there are** _ **'accidents'**_ **where these three are concerned"** Nyiera frowned, using her clawed fingers to make inverted commas. **"Well it sound's like life with the humans is anything but dull"** Asteria chuckled, **"It has it's moments"** Hecate shrugged nonchalantly, **"I'm just amazed you put up with them for five years and didn't eat a single one: well, except for those 'other' humans. Those 'Disciples'; now there's a bunch of blasphemers looking for good smiting if ever there were some"** Nyiera scowled as she eyes glowed like embers, **"As the goddess of justice, vengeance and retribution, I'm surprised** _ **you**_ **didn't pick up on them when you ventured outside the Hidden land"** Silenda threw in. **"If it wasn't for that** _ **damned chaos manna**_ **everywhere I'd have got to work on them right away!** _ **Trust me, I'd have been happy to do the overtime**_ **"** she growled in a low threatening voice: **"Oh cool your wings Ny', you'll probably run into them sooner or later"** Hecate patted her on the shoulder: almost instantly, the larger goddesses temperament cooled right down, and her eyes stopped glowing.

"Is that what this place is called?" Dale gazed up at the portals, "Huh, I know Queen Aurora said this was a scared place, but she never said anything about this being a-, _whole-other-different_ sort of place" "My sister can be a tad cryptic at times" Asteria smiled, "Yeah, that seems to be a 'thing' with you god-titans" Ash commented dryly, "Not too big on being upfront eh?" "What good would life be without a few surprises?" she gestured up to the sky; "Uh yeah, there are surprises and then there are 'surprises' with you guys" Rowan deadpanned. Asteria blinked in surprise, to which Hecate only chuckled: "What?" the raven-haired boy gazed up at her sceptically. "Oh nothing, just a joke between goddesses" Asteria waved off with a chuckle, "Uh huh?" Rowan gave her a dry look. **"Well? It's been fun, but I've got to be getting back to my cave: the new webs won't spin themselves you know"** Silenda turned to head back to the opening in the tree, **"Can I drop your little friends off anywhere?"** , **"Just the tree house will probably be fine"** Hecate replied as she and Nyiera followed her out, **"Leaving so soon?"** Asteria asked offhand, **"We live on the same island 'auntie', you know where to find us,"** Hecate smirked, **"But what about the new arrivals?"** she asked offhand, **"They've been here nearly a week, that hardly counts as new"** Nyiera deadpanned, **"No, I'm referring to the ones standing before the great stone doors"**

The three sisters stopped and looked at her in bemusement, **"What're you talking about?"** Hecate frowned: **"See for yourselves..."** Asteria pointed to one of the pools of water at her feet: as the surface rippled, an image appeared in the reflection; it was the mountain in which the great stone doors were situated. Dozens upon dozens of faces appeared, many looking happy and relieved, while others were scared and concerned: "Whoa, what's that?" Ash gasped in amazement as he and his brother's stared down at the strange anomaly, "That, would be our new arrivals" Asteria smiled, "New arrivals?" Rowan frowned in confusion, "You're expecting company?" Dale asked offhand, **"Wait a minute-,** _ **someone else**_ **besides us knows about this place?!"** Hecate exclaimed, **"It would appear so"** Asteria glanced at her with a knowing look, **"You better go and see who it is..."** she turned to the brothers: "Would you three be so kind as to return home, and inform the others that we will be expecting guests shortly..." she waved her hand over the water, and the image changed again: this time the reflection showed the two spiralling trees that where the boat-tree-house was situated; in one gentle move, Silenda scooped the three brothers off her back, and before any of them could ask what she was up to, the spider titan dropped them into the water, and they disappeared from sight amid the bubbles. Once the water settled and stilled, the reflection showed the brothers near the trees, soaking wet and nearly freaking out over how they were suddenly back home. The reflection then faded from sight, leaving the four goddesses alone inside Yggdrasil: but the three sisters didn't stop to ask questions as they took off outside. **"Did Jarus foresee this?!"** Hecate huffed, **"You'll have to take that up with him"** Asteria replied.

Moving swiftly at break-neck speed through the forest, the three sisters soon reached the western edge of the island, where Javorin, Elysia, Carla and Ariana had already become aware that something was up: **"Hecate? What's up? The guardian spirit that protects the mountain tunnel's getting kinda twitchy, look"** Elysia pointed her wing towards the thick fog bank that hung over the entrance to the mountain tunnel: like a slowly rolling swell the fog moved up and down, back and forth like waves on a stormy sea. **"I know, someone's at the stone doors"** Hecate replied, **"What?"** Javorin gazed over at her in surprise, **"Asteria just informed us: said we'd better go check it out"** Nyiera frowned as she spread her wings in readiness to take off, **"Brat, take them back home and let the other's know what's happening: we got this"** Hecate glanced over at Elysia, who didn't stop for anything as she scooped Ariana and Carla up with her wing and threw them onto her back: taking off into the forest as she headed for tree-houses. **"What'd you reckon it might be?"** Nyiera thought aloud as she keep her eyes on the restless misty spirit, **"Whoever it is knew where to find the stone circle, and** _ **how**_ **to use it: get your game faces on, this could get dicey..."** Hecate frowned as she changed into her raven form and took off across the lake: Nyiera followed suit as her giant powerful wings created a downdraught that was powerful enough to blast the surface of the lake into spray; while Javorin followed in his hawk form, with Silenda by his side; turning herself into a spider and jumping onto Javorin's back. The flight across the lake was fast and short: barely several minutes at the most for the birds, who rode Nyiera's freezing cold updraughts while Silenda held onto Javorin's back with very little difficulty. As they skimmed over the guardian spirit, the waterfall came fast into view: Hecate summoned her power to part the falls, and like a goshawk flying through the fork of a tree branch, Nyiera folded her wings back and shot through the mouth of the cave, landing with a booming thud that shook the whole cavern. As the other's landed and resumed their titan forms, Nyiera got down on her clawed hands, and manoeuvred herself so she faced the mouth of the tunnel, **"Anyone or anything gets past us, you know what to do"** Hecate patted her on the shoulder, **"Don't I always?"** she smirked, **"Seriously though, be careful"**.

Approaching the tunnel, Javorin took the lead with Hecate and Silenda following close behind: once they were completely inside the tunnel, the sisters called upon their power over the darkness, and with their eyes glowing bright purple, dissolved into the blackness like ink droplets in water, snagging up Javorin like a gust a wind would a pile of leaves, and together all three moved through the tunnel at an unbelievable speed. The Night Roamers control over darkness was something that never failed to impress Javorin: the way they could mould shadows and use the darkness of night as a conduit to move from one place to another in the blink of an eye, virtually anything was possible on a whim; like fish in water they moved with effortless grace, and like the predators they were, they were silent, efficient, and deadly. As they approached the stone doors, the three deities rematerialized: since Hecate and Silenda could see through the pitch black as if it were nothing, Javorin had to take a moment to adjust his mind's eye to the ambient energies of the mountain. Using all the natural auras in the rock as reference points to calculate where he was standing in the tunnel: and through his elemental power over the earth, he could 'see' through the doors, and get a feel for what was there... And what was there, had him perplexed.

" **...Do you feel that Silenda?"** he frowned in confusion, **"Yeah, but the question is: is it an army? Or what?"** She worried, **"What do you two see?"** Hecate demanded, " _ **A lot of people**_ **, like, upwards of four hundred, maybe more? And something, or** _ **somethings**_ **that are pretty big: can't tell what though, the door's protection spell won't let me see clearly. So what do you two reckon?"** Silenda frowned. Thinking for a moment, Javorin then replied: **"You two hang back, if anything happens you'll be in your element and can hold the upper hand: I'll go out first"** **"Okay, just watch out"** Hecate nodded as she and Silenda melted back into the darkness. Javorin mentally readied himself for whatever was about to happen, and summoning his power to recall the door's protective magics, opened the passageway.

Sunlight streamed into the tunnel, lighting up the carved rock and forcing the two sisters to retreat right back down the passageway to where the light could not reach them: as his eyes adjusted to the brightness, Javorin stared down at the sight before him, and nearly did a double take...

Standing before the doors where hundreds of people, and what looked to be sixty or so deer and bird titans. Looking more like some nomadic tribe than an invading army: some of the titans were carrying sacks, large bags, camping equipment, bows and quivers and hunting spears on their backs, some even had injured people on stretchers; while the rest of the caravan where dressed in garbs very similar to what Tyto, Evrard, Falken, Eraman and their kids wore when out hunting. Others were dressed head to toe in green's and browns, in a style that the more die-hard hunters and woodsmen of Maria would typically wear. Scanning his glistening blues over their faces, Javorin could see they were tired and exhausted, as if they'd been travelling for days if not weeks: some had minor cuts and bruises, while others, such as those on the stretchers, had more serious wounds; the titans too gazed at him pleadingly, as if they had suffered as much as their human friends.

For the longest moment no one moved or spoke, as the entire caravan gazed up at Javorin in awe and wonder, while the god himself was completely taken aback; behind him, several meters down the tunnel, Hecate and Silenda could see what was going on, and were just as amazed and perplexed. Finally, the silence was broken as one of the strangers nervously stepped forward: he was an older gentleman with a stout robust frame, a fiery blaze of ginger red hair that trailed down his back in a loose ponytail, and a bushy spruce moustache and long beard that was pleated ornately, almost resembling a trio of squirrel tails. Clearing his throat as he tried to maintain his composure, he could've passed for a town crier as he boomed: "Oh noble and mighty guardian of the mountain! I am Ratatosk of the Red Squirrel clan! Please, may I ask, have we arrived at the gateway to the city of lost memories? And have we at last found the Hidden lands foretold to us by Uwile of the Grey Owl clan?"

" **...What?"** was all Javorin could say,

Both Hecate and Silenda gawked at each other **"WHAT?!"**

* * *

Meanwhile, back on the island:

" _You're sure_ she didn't mention any specifics?" Evrard demanded as counted the arrows in his quiver, "You deaf or something? He said she said we're expecting guests! And that's it!" Freya scolded him as she got her own bow ready, and handed Ash, Rowan and Dale their own bows and quivers, "Although personally she could've given a hint or something"

"Uh? What are we readying the bows and arrows for? For all we know they might be friendly" Lucile pointed out as Gustav helped her over to the staircase, "As far as we know we're the only people alive that know the existence of the stone circles and what they're for: we _can't_ take the chance whoever's on the other side of that door might have ulterior motives" Bryson stated as he finished buckling up his ODM gear, "KIDS! Are you geared up yet?!" he called up the stairs, "Nearly done!" Poppy called down: "So what's the plan Tyto?". The Grey Owl elder strode into the room with his bow and quiver in hand, "Whoever it is, if the titans see fit to bring them to the island, then we'll talk: see what they want and why they came here. I'll go down with the 'welcoming' party while the rest of you remain on standby in the canopy; if anything looks _even remotely_ off, don't take any chances" "Right on dad" Ash nodded.

"That won't be necessary" the Keeper called up. Gazing out the windows of the boat-tree-house, everyone saw the blindfolded titan standing at the foot of the spiralling trees with a large red crystal staff in hand: it's top almost resembling a Shepard's crook with an ornate twisted spiral: "Our new arrivals are not hostile, if anything their no fit shape to fight" he added. Leaping out the window and shooting his lines into the branches above, Bryson flew down until he was level with the god-titan's blind-folded eyes, "So who prey-tell are they? Or are you not 'at liberty' to disclose that?" he frowned. "Well? I had foreseen this for a while now, but decided against informing you all, on account I thought it would make a nice surprise" he smiled before turning serious, "But essentially, the weapons will not be required, though you might want to keep the ODM gear on". "So they're coming to the island?" Bryson assumed, "But of course: anyone seeking sanctuary is welcome here in this land; and from what Shadow is relaying to me, these people are in dire need of help".

Bryson's train of thought came to a screeching halt as his mind quickly began thinking in the other direction. Flying back up to the boat-tree-house, he could see by the looks on everyone's faces that they'd heard the same as he did: "So we're in no danger?" West clarified, "No, I think we'll be okay: and besides, if whoever it is does try anything: they'll be pretty hard pressed to try and retreat from _this_ place" the former Scout replied, "That's true" Pascal sighed as he folded his arms, "So what's the revised plan dad?" Ariana asked as she put her bow and quiver down on the kitchen table. Quickly rethinking his original plan, Tyto simply shrugged, "We'll go down and see who it is"

While everyone else made their way out the door and down the spiralling trees, the ODM gear users flew out into the canopy, heading to the western side of the island, where the Keeper was already waiting for the new arrivals ('How the hell did he get here so quick?!' Hazel thought offhand). "Where're the boats?" Clay asked offhand as he landed on the cliff edge: "There are too many for the barges to carry, so Midnight is improvising" the Keeper replied, "With her iceberg boat?" West presumed, "Not quite..." the Keeper pointed out towards the gateway mountain. The guardian spirit had dissipated its fog, and as the mists cleared everyone saw Midnight walking over the surface of the lake, freezing it underfoot with every stride she took, creating a wide ice path over thirty meters across: piquing the fish titan's interest as they came to the surface to see what the black and white titan-goddess was doing. "Whoa, I didn't know she could do that?" Fox blinked in amazement, "You ought to hang out with us more, That's not all she can do" Rowan smirked. "Whoa guys, look at that!" Ariana pointed to the ice path, as a steady flow of people, deer and bird titans made their way over the ice, following Midnight as she led them to the north-western side of the island. Everyone gawked as the crowd slowly grew and grew, filing out of the mouth of the tunnel between the parted waterfall that had been frozen for everyone's convenience; at the very rear of the line, Shadow and Crystal steadily followed while Stormwing flew out of the cave, shattering the frozen waterfall and releasing the water, letting it fall over the mouth of the tunnel once again.

"Oh my god..." Gale gasped, "How many people is that?!", "That's gotta be what-, three, _four hundred_ people at least?" Hawk observed as he scanned his eyes over the crowd: "And they got their own titans?!" Belle exclaimed. "Keeper, who're all these people?" Clay exclaimed in astonishment, "You'll find out soon enough, in the meantime however, you might want to return to the others, and inform Breck his expertise will be required: also, tell Freya and the others to ready some provisions. I've got a feeling you'll all be kept busy for the rest..." the Keeper replied as he headed back into the forest and vanished into the shaded greenery, followed by many of the other god-titans that had been watching with keen interest.

After reaching the island and using one of the giant roots of the great tree to reach the forest, the first of the caravan made their way up to where Tyto and the rest of the group were waiting for them: following Midnight as she continued to lead the way. After they managed to peel their eyes away from the awesome sight of the colossal tree, the strangers tentatively approached them with a look of cautious optimism in their eyes; many of the group were anxious too, as they didn't know what to expect. Taking the lead, Tyto stepped forward as five large men approached: looking him up and down, one of them noticed the hunting knife strapped to his leg, and nearly gasped; regaining his composure, he suddenly blurted out "Who are you that would stand before me? Den-ath-dore? An-preemare-wylf-my?..."

Tyto froze: he hadn't heard _that_ greeting in so many years that he almost didn't recognize it, but all at once, memories of his grandfather and the rest of his clan came back to the fore of his mind, as he remembered the correct reply: "...Myan-cal, inley-nynyon: he who has walked the hidden paths of the green places, and slept in the shade of the father-tree..." he spoke nervously, hoping beyond all hope that these people were what he thought they were...

The strangers all smiled and sighed with relief, finally letting their anxieties go as they relaxed and loosened up: "Oh thank Gia, you had us worried there for a minute!" one of the five gentlemen chuckled: "Please forgive me, only-, I saw your knife and I thought-, well-" "Oh no no, it's okay," Tyto smiled as he got out his hunting knife and held it up for them to see: the gentlemen all gazed at in awe, as they instantly recognized the symbol-rune: "Otus-amnea-premore" one of them gasped, "You're from the Grey Owl clan?" another exclaimed, "Indeed. Uh-, sorry, where're my manners: I'm Tyto, this is my wife Freya, my sons Ash, Rowan, Dale, and my daughter Ariana; and these are my clan brothers Evrard, Falken and Eraman, and their children, Clay, Hazel, Josefa, Jaye, Ashlyn and Hawk" he gestured to his family and the rest of the group, "And this is the 'rest of the clan' so to speak: dear friends one and all, who we would trust our lives with"

"Uh dad? Who're these people?" Ariana pointed to the five gentlemen, "And how do you know them?" Ash raised an eyebrow, "Oh, my apologises," one of the gentlemen smiled as he gestured to himself and the other four men, "I'm Ratatosk of the Red Squirrel clan: this is Warren of the Rabbit clan, Dakota of the Rook clan, Tarka of the Otter clan, and Bowen of the Deer clan", another several gentlemen stepped forward to make themselves known: "And this is Arthur Dumar, Gunner Samson, Remy Beckby, Ryder Bowman, Brooke Fletcher, Wyatt Archer, and Dirk Brannar, the respective heads of their families" "I know those names" Tyto blinked in astonishment, "Are you-, _Rangers?_ " "Born and bred in the heart of Maria" Ryder smirked, "As green as the green-men come" Remy concurred. "Celts?!" Josefa and Jaye both gawked, "Real Celts?!" Clay exclaimed: "What're Rangers?" Shyla thought aloud.

"Okay enough with the chit-chat!" Brendis huffed as he and his brothers climbed up onto a high branch to get everyone's attention, "-Who the hell are you people and what're you doing trespassing on our island?!" "Yeah! If you don't explain yourselves we'll feed you to the titans!" Brendan added matter-of-factly: "You two get down from there right now!-" Bemadette fumed as she grabbed them by the ankles and yanked them down into a mossy patch on the ground: "Don't be so rude! Now shut your cake-holes or I'll let Miriam do worse than ground you both!" she reprimanded as she stood them up and grabbed them both by the ear: the brothers both let out a long string of curses in protest, which no one paid any attention to as the introductions got back on track. "I apologize for their lack of manners, they're still learning the finer points of basic decorum" Tyto sighed as he shot the boys a reprimanding gaze. "Ah don't worry about it: my eldest was just the same when he was their age" Bowen waved off, "Um? Sorry, not wishing to be rude or anything: but to reiterate Ash's question: how do you chaps know one another?" Claude interjected. Ratatosk was about to reply when suddenly the crowd began to lurch forward, "Hey what's taking so long?!" a voice shouted up some several meters behind them, "Come on guys we can't stand around all day!" another shouted out.

"We're hungry here!"

"Henry needs a fresh dressing and I'm all out of bandages!"

"What the hell's taking so long?!"

"Are they gonna help us or not?!"

Turning back to Tyto with an apologetic look, Ratatosk quickly said "Listen, I _promise_ we'll explain everything _,_ but right now we need help; _please_ , we've all travelled a long way to get here, and we have nowhere else to go...Will you help us, brother?"

"... You needn't ask, brother" Tyto smiled as he patted him on the shoulder.

The next six or so hours went by at a swift and busy pace, as everyone helped to greet the new arrivals to the island, and help them out whatever way they could. As the crowd poured onto the island, Breck assessed every injured person and organized them in the order of severity, with the worst-off being seen to first, and the least worst having to wait their turn: with Claude providing a second pair of hands. Freya, Miriam, Lucile, Carla, Mabel, Bren, Derek, West and Pascal gathered what supplies the could afford to share, and handed them out to those who needed them, while the kids helped out wherever they were needed, and Tyto, Evrard, Falken, Eraman, Bryson and Gustav helped the leaders get everyone organized.

The titans chipped in too, lending their strength and magics where needed: Shadow grew a number of large fruit trees and vegetables for those who'd forgone their rations, least their loved ones might starve, as well as grow medicinal plants for Rosemary to make various emergency medicines: Midnight used her elemental power to draw water from the island's lake to refill empty water bottles and carriers, and help those who were more caked in mud and dirt to wash themselves off. Crystal used her silk to make numerous make-shift blankets for those who had risked exposure to the elements, as well as fresh dressings and bandages for the injured: Angel and most of the other bird titans plucked out copious amounts of their feathers for make-shift bedding, so no one would have to sleep on the ground; and Boar helped the new deer and bird titans unload their cargo, so as to take the strain off their legs and backs. Although they didn't require any food or water they were still just as tired as the humans, and so many of the island god-titan's assisted in helping them to the hot-spring, where they could sit in the water around the springs perimeter (out of range of the boiling hot water in the centre) and soak their aching joints. Many of the humans joined them too, and found great relief as they let the warm water ease their stiff and sore joints: this worked well for Breck as he soon had fewer patients to deal with. For his part, the Keeper saved his formal introductions in favour of helping the human leaders to organize their respective clans and family's.

Over the course of the rest of the day, the chaos steadily began to shape into order, and when the worst of the emergency's had been dealt with and remedied, the group began helping the new arrivals to find new homes in the abandoned town. It was a little confusing at first, as a number of close family's wanted to stay within close proximity of one another, while others wanted to choose their homes based on various other reasons: it was testing for some, and a good deal of bartering and negotiating had to be done with others acting as neutral third parties; but little by little, the whole situation seemed to flow into its own steady pace as the various families found empty houses, and tried to make them as habitable as possible for the night; between Crystal's soft blankets and the bird titans fluffy feathers, no one would be getting a restless sleep tonight. After ensuring everyone got enough to eat, with a little surplus to spare in case anyone wanted to come back for seconds, Shadow had just about finished up his work, followed by the Keeper, Midnight, Boar, and Angel, who looked rather scruffy with numerous bald spots all over her plumage (not that that mattered since her feathers grew back in a matter of seconds).

With the new arrivals settling in, the respective heads of the Celtic clans and Ranger families gathered at Tyto's home, joined by everyone else as they were keen to hear the details of how they came to be here. They talked well into the evening, first over tea, and eventually over dinner: and as the men recounted each of their stores; a very eerily familiar pattern began to emerge...

"And so, when we checked the alignment of the pattern again, I found that sequence _also_ fitted in with the main design; essentially, it was map" Tarka finished his story, placing a rolled up piece of hide on the table, and unrolled it to reveal a Semitam: it was not like Tyto's, as the map was obviously of a different region of Maria, but it had exactly the same art style and layout of text. The other Celt chieftains also placed their Semitam's on the table, along with their hunting knives, which all had different rune-symbols on each of the blades. Staring down at the maps in a daze, no one knew what to think of it at first: it was more or less as it had been for them, and it was weirdly spooky. Tyto propped his head on his elbow, as he passed a deep sigh; "...I don't know what to say? ...I mean-, I more or less surmised that this knowledge had to have been passed down to us through the ages when we too discovered the nature of our Semitam; but _why_ , in all that time, didn't _anyone_ ever explain that it was the god-titans themselves that held the key to finding this place?"

"Well? This is what we don't understand either" Warren shrugged, "You'd think in all that time _someone somewhere_ would've mentioned the fact that those tombs contained the gods of ancient times, never mind the fact they'd been cursed to assume the forms of humanity's worst natural enemy"

"Wait a sec-, you guys _knew_ about the tombs? And what was inside them?" Derek exclaimed in slight alarm. "Well? Not what was inside per se: but my clan have known of them since my great-grandfather's great-grandfather's time" "So these tombs were _everywhere_ all over Maria? And they all contained various god-titan's?" Tyto blinked in surprise: the gentlemen simply gazed at him as if he'd taken leave of his senses for moment, "...I'm-, rather surprised you didn't know about them in general: never mind the fact there were four right beneath your own nose less than a few miles from Shiganshina" Tarka thought aloud, "Yeah tell me about it" Evrard huffed dryly as he leaned back in his chair.

"So let me get this straight..." Gustav rubbed the side of his left temple, "These 'god-titans' that have taken up residence with all of you and your clans, awoke from their slumber five years ago, decked out in the same markings as ours, and with the same carvings on each of their tombs: all of which pieced together to form each individual Semitam, and which was unlocked by the rune-symbols on your hunting knives, correct?" "Pretty much" Ratatosk shrugged, "And how did you figure out it was their blood that 'awakened' the Semitam's power?" Claude asked eagerly, "It was different for each of us: but by and large it was mostly through accident and happenstance that we opened the Semitam's map" Dakota explained, "To be honest, none of us here knew each other had their own map, it wasn't until we met up on the hidden road to the stone circle that we discovered we'd all happened upon the exact same thing; suffice to say, it was really weird", "Weird is an understatement," Bryson frowned, "The timing too is very odd: each of you decided to come at nearly the exact same time? We've been here for nearly a week now, why not come sooner if the Hidden Land is really that dear and sacred to you?". The five clan leaders glanced at one another hesitantly, before Bowen admitted: "To be honest? None of us had any pressing reasons to want to abandon our homes in the Marian forest, and risk a journey that could result in us getting caught by the wall cult; also, we all discovered the Semitam's true power at different times. We of the Deer clan unlocked ours over two years ago, Ratatosk's clan? A year before ours, Tarka's clan unlocked theirs only a few months back, and Dakota and Warren's unlocked theirs just last year. Trust me, as tempting as it was to want to take the journey to the land our forebear's discovered nearly a century ago, I just didn't feel comfortable uprooting our entire clan, and run the risk of getting hunted down if someone picked up our trail", "The general consensus was pretty much the same with each of our clans too, as much as we wanted to come sooner: it just wasn't worth the risk; not unless something changed and we had no other choice but to go" Ratatosk sighed.

"So what changed?" Breck asked as he listened intently. The gentlemen hesitated a moment, before Dakota swallowed in fretful dread, "...The titans...", Ratatosk placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, as he explained: "... It was nearly a week ago now: one of our clan disguised as regular folk, went to the village in our valley to trade furs and leathers for supplies; a messenger from the military arrived on horseback with news that Shiganshina had fallen to the titans, that both gates had been breached, and that everyone was to evacuate to wall Rose immediately. Some believed him, and rushed home to gather their families and leave, but the majority of the people thought he was joking somehow: when the news was relaid to us, we sent one of our 'bird-titans' and a scout to fly to Shiganshina to see if it was true; they barely cleared the mountains east of the district when they spotted them advancing up the central valley: picking off every human that wasn't able to escape them... From what I heard, it was-, _awful_... We packed up everything we could carry and left the valley that very night: heading deep into the forest where we knew they'd have difficultly finding us, and over the next week we basically zig-zagged all over the south-eastern region, avoiding the beasts by travelling at night and following the hidden trails up through the Green Fells. But the further we travelled to the stone circle the more titans we encountered: we ran into the other clans just before we reached the hidden road, and they'd all been having the same trouble as we had".

Bowen decided throw in his account: "Pretty much every major town and village was told of the breach that same night, and none of us wasted any time in getting out: our 'god-titans' kept us hidden with their magics, but it was wasn't foolproof, and it was still very dangerous; we had to use our arrows to blind the beasts if they spotted us, and use our hunting spears to sever their ankles and heels, crippling them just long enough to outrun them... Nobody died thank goodness, but-, well? We had a couple of close calls", "I know," Breck sighed as he offered him a sympathetic gaze, "Your nephew was one of the first I treated: he was _damn lucky_ not to loose his entire leg", "That was another thing I couldn't believe: _titans actually eat people?!_ And they do it for fun?! Why the hell didn't we know this sooner?!" Dakota exclaimed in horror. "Well when you've been living out in the back and beyond for decades on end, you kinda fall out of touch with certain things" Freya sighed as she folded her arms and leaned back in her chair.

"Considering how many titans we passed by outside Shiganshina, you're _all_ damn lucky to make it here in one piece" Bryson threw in as he ruffled his hair. "Shiganshina?" Ratatosk frowned in confusion, "You were near Shiganshina when the breach occurred?", "Where was your camp?" Tarka asked eagerly. Tyto hesitated a moment, before explaining frankly: "...There was no camp: we live in the city. Shiganshina is-... _was_ , our home". The gentlemen all gasped in astonishment: "You were there? _Actually there_ when it happened?!" Dakota exclaimed, "Four clans living in the heart of a city?! _How on earth_ can you be so reckless as to live in full view of those that would seek to hunt us all down!" Warren scolded, "The issue of hiding in plain sight was never a problem, because we didn't have the numbers to worry about..." Tyto stated. The gentlemen all stilled as they stared at him in confusion, before Tyto then explained: "...My wife, my daughter and myself are all that are left of the Grey Owls: Ash, Rowan and Dale are the last surviving Crows, Evrard and his son and daughter are the last of the Red Boars (Freya is his sister so she too was a Red Boar before marrying me), Falken and his children are the last Black Hawks, and Eraman and the twins are the last remaining Ravens. Each of us, are all that's left of the southern clans"; another uncomfortable silence hung in the air, before Dakota blurted out, "... Your all that's left? But-, _how?_ "

"The Disciples..." Evrard frowned bitterly, allowing Tyto to explain: "One night years ago, all five of our clans were attacked simultaneously by the Disciples: we four hunters and our wives were the only ones out in the forest that night, and so we survived the massacre: but one survivor from the Crow clan found us, with Ash and his brother's in his arms; he gave them to us, and sacrificed himself to ensure the Disciples wouldn't pick up our trail. We ran deep into the forest, unable to return home and with nothing but the clothes on our backs: a few days later we ran into Gustav near Shiganshina, and he figured out we were Celts right away; we explained everything that happened, and he offered to give us a home and a means to earn money to sustain ourselves, if we worked for him and his family at their Inn" "And we'd been there ever since" Freya smiled ruefully as she gazed over at Carla, "Carla here lived one door up from us, and we soon got along like a house on fire" she patted her on the shoulder, to which Carla patted her hand with a small smile, "Bryson and Claude owned a bookshop at the bottom of the street we lived on: they both hail from Sina, and Bryson was once one of the Scouting legion" Tyto explained as he went around the table, "Bryson's brother, Breck, worked at the hospital as a doctor. Miriam, Lucile and Rosemary ran the the Black Stallion Inn with their granddaughters/grand nieces, Gale, Poppy and Belle: Mabel and her husband Bren, and his brother Derek moved in with them as part of their employment, and Fox, Shyla, Bemadette and her brothers they took in as their wards. Gustav ran the forge next door with Bren as his assistant and Bemadette as his apprentice: and the Cooper twins we knew through my part-time employment to their father"

"It was a culture shock to say the least, and one not all of us were able to adapt to right away: but over time we made it work" Falken smiled, "Each and every one of these people are our dear friends: friends that took a great risk in concealing our true identities, and friends I would gladly lay my life down for; so if anyone here has any 'prejudices' against the fact there're neither Celts or Rangers? I suggest you take it up with _me…._ " Tyto stated in a tone that told everyone he wasn't to be taken lightly. Gazing at him in surprise, Warren sighed in regret before admitting, "... Forgive me Tyto, I meant no offence by my outburst", "All four clans hiding in plain sight, concealed by regular folk? And it worked for all these years?" Ratatosk blinked in surprise: "Well it wasn't easy: we had to take certain precautions, but by and large we somehow got away with it: not to mention Miriam and her family were very 'understanding' of our circumstances" Tyto shot the old woman a smile, to which she merely grinned smugly, "Ah save your sweet nothings: if it'd been me and my lot? I know _we'd_ want someone to help us out; what goes around comes around, and if shit's all you hand out? Shit's all you'll get. The same goes for generosity too" she stated matter-of-factly.

"So dare I ask, but how did all of you meet your 'god-titans'?" Bowen smiled: "Well? I guess it's kinda my fault... " Ariana sheepishly smiled as she scratched the back of her neck.

As the young Grey Owl recounted her story of the night she first met Shadow: out in the forest, some distance from the edge of the arboreal town, the gods had convened in a discreet meeting of their own; with Jarus, Asteria, Javorin, Hecate, Herne, Elysia, and many of the island's deities meeting up with the nature gods that accompanied the new arrivals. As he sat in a clearing with all the other gods seated in a circle, Jarus listened as one of the Deer clan's god-titan's told his version of events: **"...It was very bad, no sooner had we retreated from the valley we could smell blood on the wind, and feel the spirits growing restless in their haunts. From there we remained in the shadows of the trees, using our concealment spells to keep the clan hidden from the monster's eyes"**

" **When the beasts started swarming the forests, we had to cross the open plains just north of Vert Town: we came across several towns and villages that had been attacked, and though we all looked hard, we couldn't find any survivors. All in all, we don't know how many of the humans were able to get out in time?"** Another deer titan-goddess threw in ruefully. **"My human companions and I must have flown the length and breadth of Maria twice over looking for stragglers to rescue, but we found none. These abominations, these,** _ **titans**_ **: the magics that created them, they put out some kind of residue, some kind 'chaos manna'; the likes of which I have not seen for so many ages"** an older bird god-titan threw in, his feathers ruffling in agitation. **"That chaos manna clouded our spiritual sight and obscured the titans aura from our gaze: we couldn't even see ahead to warn the clan if any were in the way: nor see if any other humans were still alive. We had no choice but to scout the old-fashioned way, purely relying on physical sight alone"** another bird god-titan added. **"At times we had to fight them off, and more than once our clans came close to death: these titans possess the power to heal any wound fast, you can't even kill them by cutting off their heads because they grow back in less than two minutes!"** another bird god-titan exclaimed angrily, **"And none of our conventional magics could destroy them: it turns out, the only way to kill a titan is by physically slicing or stabbing the nape of the neck, but some of them are over ten to fifteen meters tall and can move really fast: it's virtually impossible to kill them, even for us!"** another deer god-titan interjected. **"Essentially..."** one of the older bird titan-goddesses sighed bitterly: **"We are** _ **all**_ **outcasts, with no home and no way of knowing if any of our brothers and sisters are still out there; the titans have taken Maria and it's green wilds, and even now they defile our forests, rivers and plains with their chaos manna and their mindless hunger for human flesh"** she frowned in ire, **"They do not even consume for the sake of survival: they merely eat for the sake of it, and nothing else! I don't know what manner of dark magics are responsible for these abominations, but** _ **I will not stand**_ **for these beasts to exist within this world, so long as** _ **I**_ **still breath and command the winds!"** , many of the other gods cheered in agreement.

When the crowd finally settle down, Jarus took the opportunity to say his piece: **"This issue concerning the titan's chaos manna has not been over-looked: for we too wish to amend this imbalance that possess a serious threat to the well-being of the earth"**. **"Really? So what do you plan to do?"** one of the deer god-titan's asked eagerly: the senior gods merely glanced at one another, and with morose looks written upon their faces, Jarus reluctantly replied: **"...We're not sure yet: this plan is in it's embryonic stage, and we've yet to discover a viable means of engaging the titans in a way that will not result in heavy casualties"**. **"Heavy casualties? … So you mean, your humans are going to help you with this endeavour?"** one of the other bird god-titan's exclaimed in surprise: **"The humans that have been in my charge for the last few years are more than capable of stepping up to the challenge. One of them was once a member of the Scouting Legion; he used to kill the titans on regular basis, so his expertise is invaluable; one used to make ODM gear for the military and could easily build a unit blindfolded if need be. Plus, we have a doctor, a scientist, an engineer, an architect, four of the most experienced hunters Maria has to offer, and their children are not far behind them in terms of skill and capability, and a back-up team who know how to work well in a crisis... Despite what's happened and the loss of their loved ones: I believe they have what it takes to help us see this plan through"**

" **As the god of the hunt I can personally vouch for them too"** Herne threw in, **"They took on the titans in Shiganshina and actually managed to hold them at bay for a time: trust me, our lil' friends know how to handle themselves"**

" **And as the 'god's mightiest', I can say they certainly have the stones to pull this off (somehow)... But It's as Jarus said: we need a starting point to get this off the ground; whether any of you or your humans wish to join us is entirely down to them,** _ **and you**_ **"** Hecate stated as she folded her arms: **"This endeavour will not be quick nor easy: though my sight is clouded by the titan's chaos manner, I** _ **can**_ **see this will take years if not** _ **decades**_ **to bring to fruition: and there is a good likelihood not all the humans will live to see it... If any of your clans are to join us, then it must be by their own choice, and by** _ **their own willingness**_ **to want to aid us. I do not say these words lightly, for the commitment to this endeavour is not to be underestimated... Whatever you choose to do, will be** _ **entirely**_ **down to you** _ **and**_ **those in your charge... But for now, rest and regain your strength; for you are all welcome to stay a long as you like"** Jarus announced.

The nature gods all glanced at one another as they pondered his words, before one replied: **"We will take your proposition under consideration, and talk with our clans about it. But only when we believe the time is right: not before, understand?", "You have my word none of us will broach this subject with any of them"** Jarus bowed politely. The gods all got up, and after bowing to the older gods, quietly left the circle, **"Thank you my lord: you are a most magnanimous host"** one of the senior nature gods stated in a courteous tone, **"And we of Yggdrasil island, do thank you for gracing us with your presence..."** Jarus replied.

After the nature gods were well out of range, he turned to Asteria: her beautiful poker face gave nothing away: **"...What do you think?"** he asked, **"I think you are eager to get this plan of ours in motion: despite the fact you have not yet foreseen how it will come to pass; that's not like you, Jarus"** she glanced at him in mild concern, to which Jarus let out a anxious sigh: **"Forgive me if I appear 'eager' Asteria, but you mistake my enthusiasm for concern: we knew the chaos manna blocks our spiritual sight, but to obscure it to the point that** _ **nothing**_ **can be seen, even through physical sight? It's** **much worse than I thought. Even with Yggdrasil's abundance of spiritual energies to provide a buffer between us and the titans, it's still not enough for even Aureia's all-seeing gaze to penetrate the fog of all that chaos manna.** _ **We had no idea**_ **, not an inkling that some of the other Celtic clans had survived the initial titan attack, and with nature gods who'd been living amongst them for the past five years since their awakening... Now, we must acknowledge the possibility that there are others out there in Maria who may have survived, and are trying to reach this place even as we speak... And we have** _ **no way**_ **of locating them, or** _ **them**_ **having any way of finding us, unless they reach the stone circle first"**

" **I apologize Jarus,"** Asteria placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, **"And you are right: even if we use Yggdrasil's magics, there's no way of knowing for sure if any of the Celts, Rangers or nature gods are still alive"** she sighed in regret, **"What if I go to the spirit realm to ask my mother for help? As the queen of all spirits she must know a way of being able to help us?"** Javorin suggested, **"While I have no doubt my sister will aid us as best she can in this endeavour: there's no way to tell if the chaos manna hasn't already leached into the spirit world, and started corrupting the spirits manna"** Asteria pointed out: **"That's a possibility I'd already thought about too: but** _ **I am**_ **the prince of all spirits,** _ **and**_ **I'm physically bound to the mortal plain; whatever happens in the spirit world won't affect me the way it would most other gods who try to cross over"** Javorin offered, **"With one or two acceptations:** _ **you're**_ **not the only god who knows how to traverse the spirit realm: I've taken down more than my fair share of demons who've tried to hide from me in spirit-form"** Hecate stated matter-of-factly. **"If you are both to request Lilith's help, then your safest opportunity would be during the next full moon: at the gateway to Yggdrasil's nine realms; where the ambient magics of the earth and cosmos flow into alignment through the great tree"** Asteria suggested. **"The next full moon is less than three weeks away: think you guys can wait it out 'till then?"** Herne asked offhand, **"Wait? We're hardly going to have time sitting around twiddling our thumbs Shorty: we've got** _ **four hundred and seventy**_ **new neighbours to help settle in"** Hecate frowned, **"Four hundred and seventy five by Claude's headcount: four hundred and seven humans and sixty eight titans in all"** Elysia corrected, **"Whatever, the point is the plan can go on the back-burner for now... Now if you'll excuse me, I've gotta go do my rounds..."** Hecate excused herself, summoning her power to melt into the darkness, and move through the forest like a shadow without a master. **"She does know there are protection spells in place for keeping evil entities at bay from the borders of this land?"** Jarus pondered aloud: **"It's her code for 'going to eavesdrop on the humans': speaking of which, I better go make sure she doesn't get too engrossed... Catch you guys later,"** Herne waved good-bye as he got up and galloped off back to the town: turning into an owl, and flying up through the dense canopy. **"Carla will probably be waiting for me too, 'night guys"** Elysia smiled as she took off up through the canopy, following Herne as he disappeared into the night.

Though his eyes were blindfolded, Javorin could see the vexation written all over his brother's face: laying a reassuring hand on his shoulder, he leaned in closer and openly admitted: **"...I've not seen you this tense in a long time Jarus, and of all the earth-bound gods, I know that if** _ **your**_ **worried, then** _ **we all**_ **have reason to be worried:** _ **please**_ **, tell me what's wrong?"**

Jarus let out a nervous laugh, as he frankly admitted: **"...You know? I've always wondered what it's like for the humans: knowing 'time' simply by the ticking hands of a clock, and the cycles of the sun, moon and stars. Not being able to see through the veil of the cosmic tapestry, and see all that was, is, and ever could be. I thought it must be such a strange yet simple perspective, to have one's mind exist only in the here and now, to have only memories to recall the past, and only imagine what the future might bring... Now? I think I can appreciate what it truly means to be 'powerless': to not actually 'know' what's going to happen next; I have to confess, if feels both scary, and fascinating in a surreal way..."** he gazed at Javorin with an unreadable gaze: **"... Javorin, I'd be lying if I told you I wasn't worried: that my ability to foretell the future is compromised in a way I cannot predict, makes me a liability; tell me brother, how are** _ **you**_ **able to endure it? That fear of not knowing what's coming next?** _ **I want to move past it**_ **, but I don't know how?"**

Scooting in front of him so they sat face to face, Javorin looked his brother in the eye, and told him confidently: **"If I had a gold piece for every time one of my followers asked me that question: I'd have my own holy city by now..."** he smiled, before turning serious: **"The truth is Jarus, there is no real way around it. It's something that's haunts** _ **every**_ **living being in the this world, and its the humans that feel it more than any other,** _ **because**_ **they're aware of their own mortality... But to you? I'd say don't concentrate on your ability to see through time alone, your one of the wisest and most knowledgable earth-bound gods there is,** _ **utilize your other strengths**_ **, and don't rely solely on that third eye of yours... No one can ever truly predict the outcome, and even I've been blind-sided by the occasional 'X-factor': we take calculated risks and gambles every day, that's part and part of staying ahead of the curve if your a human; and even for us it's no different. All we can do, is have** _ **faith**_ **in our ability to weigh up and calculate every factor at hand,** _ **trust**_ **in ourselves and our friends that it'll work, and** _ **hope**_ **that we don't fail. It may not work every time, but as long as we're alive we'll try as many times as needed: that's all any of us can ever really do"**

" **Or think of it like this..."** Asteria interjected **, "The one time you never use that third eye of yours is to play chess: why? Because it's the one thing you know how to predict: the one thing you know so well, that you don't need to 'see' the outcome. You know how to win by your own skill, and nothing more"**

Realizing what she meant by that, Jarus couldn't help but smile, a genuine heart-felt smile: **"...Thank you: both of you..."** he stood back up, and with a wave of his hand, summoned his staff which had been sitting on the ground in the middle of the circle: levitating up into his hand like dandelion seeds on a breeze. **"Maybe? You'd like to play a game when I'm done helping the new arrivals settle in?"** Javorin smiled as he and Asteria got up: **"I'd like that, thank you,"** Jarus patted him on the shoulder **"I better go and report to Aureia about the meeting: not that** _ **she**_ **needs informing of course, not in** _ **this**_ **place: but still, I have work of my own to do"** he stated as he turned to leave: **"Such as?"** his brother asked offhand, **"Trying to create a viable form of magics for destroying the titans: after all, we've got an** _ **entire city of knowledge**_ **at hand; logic dictates there must be** _ **something**_ **sitting in the archives that might just work", "Well in that case I'll leave you to your 'dabblings'"** Javorin bid him good-night, before turning to Asteria, **"And what about you Asteria? The night is still young" "Indeed, and I have work to do: I'm the goddess of sleep and dreams, remember? And many on this island and beyond are entering my realm"**. **"Oh yes, of course,"** Javorin mentally face-palmed, **"Anything else you'd like me to address?"** ; **"Not at the present time: but then, something will inevitably come up sooner or later; after all, life with the humans is never dull"** she smiled as her 'misty hair' enveloped her entire form, and she disappeared into a giant cloud of stars and glowing mists, drifting up through the canopy, back towards Yggdrasil, leaving Javorin alone in the clearing. As he made his way back to the town, his elfish ears picked up Tyto's voice drifting down out of the tree; from the sounds of it, the heads of the new families were still deep in conversation with his humans, and from the few sentences he heard spoken, it sounded like they'd just been told of how they first met...

"Wow..." One of the Ranger's stared at the whole group in mix of amazement and bemusement, "...You guys sure don't do things by half"

"Ah heh, eh, that's one way of putting it" Bren chuckled nervously as he scratched the back of his neck: "Honestly? I stopped trying to figure out all this 'magic' stuff years ago" Pascal sighed dryly as he slouched into his chair: "In any case, _shit happens_ when you're around magical titans, or god-titan's. Or whatever the hell they are: either way, we're both officially in _way too deep_ to ever back out" he glanced over at West, who couldn't help but try to stifle his laughter: "Aw come on Pascal, it hasn't been all bad" Gale smiled as she nudged him with her elbow, "Yeah, we put you up in our place free of charge, and seeing off those criminal gangs was hardly any effort for you guys" Belle pointed out, "I guess?" he shrugged as he folded his arms, "So" he changed the subject, "We all know how we 'regular folk' and our Celtic friends got involved in this: but how do _you guys_ fit in?" he gazed over at the Rangers with a critical eye.

"At the risk of sounding dumb, what're 'Rangers' anyway?" Bemadette interjected, "Yeah, I've been sneaking up into the forest since I first learnt how to hide, and I've _never even heard_ of you guys" Ariana added.

"Ah, you can forgive your family for that: it's a common custom among many of us forest folk to not be spoken of, unless discovered by one of our own, or by a fellow Celt" Gunner smiled sheepishly. "We Rangers were the 'second people' to retreat into the wilds of the Maria after the Celts, when the Royal Government and the wall cult began to impede the rightful freedoms of the people, and dictate our lives through their false teachings and iron-handed rule" Dirk stated, "Over time the Celts befriended us: they taught us the ways of the forest, how to live off the land and live in harmony with the wild. And we have remained firm allies ever since". "Many of us work the forest through various means: woodsmen, carpenters, foresters, trappers, hunters, trackers, guides; many regular folk call us the wild men of Maria, or the green men of the woods. Those who do not wish to live by society's laws, but do not go against them by being criminals: like the Celts and the Asians we too have become outcasts, the 'unfavourable's' that refuse to heel to the government's command" Ryder explained, "Many of us live on the far-fringes of society, some act as 'runners': messengers and what-not for the Celtic clans that live so deep in the wild, that no living soul could ever find them unless they knew where to look. We go into the towns and villages disguised as regular folk to trade and the like, and to keep our Celtic brothers abreast of what's going on in the walled world"

"Sufficed to say: it caused quiet a stir a few years back, when the Disciples were sighted near Shiganshina, only to be gone in less than a year. I still can't believe you would be so bold and reckless as to take them on all by yourselves" Arthur regarded the children with a dismayed tone. "Technically? We weren't part of any of that: _that_ was all Shadow, Midnight and Boar's idea, we didn't _actually engage_ the Disciples, except for that one time" Ash clarified. "And considering the nature of _how_ they were made to 'disappear'? We decided not to ask any questions" Dale added.

"And in all that time the wall cult never looked into who or what was responsible for making their Disciples 'vanish'?" Ratatosk frowned in disbelief. The kids all glanced at one another in equal concern, before Ash explained: "... To be honest? We don't think the wall cult had _any idea_ it was happening, to begin with", Dale then explained further, "Over nine months between the years eight forty to eight forty one, the wall cult sent out one hunting party per month to conduct their 'purges'. When they acquired the property to build their sanctuary, they sent out additional purges to get rid of all the people who lived on the land. We came to the conclusion that the sanctuary was intended to serve as their new base of operations for the whole district: since they can't risk being seen, they wouldn't want anyone living close enough to get a glimpse of them. It did worry us for a time, but when Midnight started getting to work on 'taking care of them', their presence in the forest became less and less. But all the while, something about it didn't seem right"

"The wall cult sent out eight purges and all eight never returned thanks to the god-titans, then in the March of eight forty one, Midnight dispatched a team of Disciples that had been sent out into the forest as a search party, to look for all the previous ones: and that's when my theory was confirmed; well? Technically Midnight had already told me about it at the time, but we both agreed it was the most logical scenario" Lucius added: "The wall cult _wasn't aware_ their Disciples had been disappearing: I mean, why send so many purges into Maria when clearly there was a threat at hand? It made no sense. We've no doubt the Sanctuary _knew_ of this and must have written to the cult's head church in Mitras numerous times requesting help, but eight months went by, more Disciples vanished, and nothing in the form of reinforcements or additional protection was ever seen. So the only logical conclusion must be that somewhere in the wall cult's ranks, _someone_ deliberately covered the disappearances up: for what reason we don't know, but whoever it was must've had a very pressing reason to do so... I mean, eight purges and one search team vanishing off the face of the earth? The wall cult are very sensitive about appearing vulnerable: so the internal scandal this would have caused would've shaken them up something awful (if that had been the case)" Lucy continued without missing a beat. "In any case, their plans for overseeing the Shiganshina district fell through after the storm, and Midnight used her 'spooky magics' to chase the sanctuary cultists out for good" Rowan grinned in satisfaction: "They never came back after that, and the cultists in the city were careful to keep a low profile; some rumour about 'angry ghosts' coming back from the dead to claim their souls?" Ariana smirked.

"...You, thought all that up?" Ratatosk stared at the ash-blond twins in amazement, "Oh don't let those puppy eyes fool you, they're a couple of dark horse's these two" Claude playfully ruffled their hair, "And Dale's pretty much an all-out genius, half the stuff we think up only works because of him: and even then, nine out of ten times it's _his_ idea" Clay threw in.

"And speaking of ideas..." Dakota sighed as he glanced over at Tyto and the other grown-ups dubiously: "...What you said, about the god-titans proposal to restore mankind to the world: _you're all_ really going to go through with it?"

The group all hesitated a moment, glancing at one another in uncomfortable uncertainty, before Bryson stated first: "I've already explained my reason for agreeing to help, and I stand by it: once a Scout always a Scout, and my heart _still_ belongs to humanity, in one form or another", he folded his arms: "There're a lot of reasons not to go through with this plan, and _any_ of them would be the sane options: but to _not_ go through with it? And let what happened in Shiganshina happen again in wall Rose? Or Sina? With more untold humans lives being wiped out? Sorry, I'm a thief not a murderer, and I have no intention of going to my grave with all those deaths on my conscience, if this ever comes to pass again... If there's a way to stop history repeating itself, I'll take it" West frowned: Pascal glanced at him surprised, and smiled in defeat: 'Guess I'm gonna have to cover your ass huh?' he thought to himself. Carla then spoke up with a stern look of determination in her eyes, and pain laced in her voice, "... I lost my son and daughter to the titans, and I nearly died myself: after _everything_ I went through that day, that _we've_ been through, together; I do not intent to let humanity suffer the same loss twice, not when we have the will to fight. One way or another, I _refuse_ to die entrapped by my grief and pain: I'll use it to fight _all_ the titans if I have to... This isn't something I want to do, It's not something I need to do. _I'm doing it_ , and _no one_ has the right to stop me" she frowned. Everyone gazed at her in mild alarm, Freya in particular felt a pang of worry go down her spine: this wasn't like Carla at all, and made a mental note to talk to her about it later.

"Look..." Tyto decided to state his reason, "We all have our own reasons for wanting to agree to this: mostly because we have seen _and_ survived the titans first-hand, _we know what they are capable of_ , and because our loved ones were lost to them. Is it out of grief? For most of us yes, and I won't argue otherwise... But more importantly, for the first time in the history of the world, humanity has a way to rediscover its heritage: to know what we were like before we retreated behind the walls, and the history that told us how far we had come down the ages... To just sit back on this island, and do nothing with all that knowledge? When _we know_ there's a good chance it might provide a way to level the odds with the titans? ...I'm sorry, but running off into the forest and hiding is no longer an option for us... When we 'heretic's and traitors' first got together, and we discussed the things we've shared with you tonight: I think part of us all held some kind of hope that one day, maybe in our children's lifetimes, those truths would _free_ mankind from the ones who rule over our lives with little or no respect for the people: that would give humanity the opportunity to advance and grow; to throw off the fears, prejudices and ignorance that has caused us to stagnate for so long, and make us all forget who we are..." he pointed to the window, through which part of the lake could be seen: and as the full moon shone down on the still dark waters, the vague outline of wall Maria could been seen on the horizon: " ….You see that? _That's wall Maria_ just beyond the lake: the Hidden Land sits within Maria itself, the city of Omnes Scientiam has been _here_ all this time. _This place is not beyond the titans reach._ They swarm the land like a storm that won't stop, and though the magics that keep this place hidden remain intact for now, we're in no different a position to _everyone else_ inside Rose and Sina now. _We all share the same fate_ : the titans get in and that's it, _its all over_ ; that may seem like an exaggeration to all of you, given what you witness on your journey coming here, but it's a very real possibility for us, and one we don't take lightly..."

He paused a moment to take a breath and soften his tone: "...I guess? What I'm _trying_ to say is... Having Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel in our lives was a blessing we didn't realise we had: it was scary at first; for Bryson in particular," he smirked, to which the former Scout couldn't help but smile humbly: "But over time: over the years we watched them play with our kids, studied them as 'scientific curiosities', and got to know them in general: I think-, part of me wondered if maybe they'd awakened for a reason? That somehow, all this wasn't just one big fluke; that there was _a purpose_ in their being here... Well? After last week, and after today? I think we were meant to come to this place, and I think, we are meant to help humanity take back it's dignity and strength: and go reclaim the world that we once knew... I don't know what we'll have to do, and my guts tells me it's not going to be straightforward or easy. But I'm _not_ asking you to join us; after everything you and your families have been through, _no one_ has the right to make you go through something like that again: I'm simply letting you all know that _this_ is what we intend to do, with _or_ without your blessings..."

The Rangers and the Celts remained silent, as they could tell he was serious, and knew that there would be no point in arguing otherwise. They thanked the group for their hospitality and quietly left to rejoin their families: the Fitzsimmons, Willum's, Leon twins, Pascal, West and Claude all left after saying their good-nights, leaving the four Celtic family's alone in their house. As the fathers and their kids started tidying up the plates and uneaten food, Carla was halfway out the door when Freya stopped her: "Carla!-" she hesitated: her worried gaze trying to plead with her raven-haired friend to listen, "...What you said back there, are you-, really _sure_ about this? I mean, is this really what you want to do? For Eren and Mikasa's sakes?".

Carla stopped, she could see her best friend was concerned for her, and part of her couldn't help but feel bad for letting her worry so: but she'd made up her mind, and had no intention of letting it go; with a heavy heart and a forced smile, she explained as gently as she could, "... _Please_ Freya, it'll be alright, don't worry about me okay? It's just that-... _I can't_ let Eren and Mikasa's death's be in vain: and I _can't_ keep going over and over in my mind about all the different ways I could've saved them... The fact is, what happened, happened: their both dead, and I can't change that no matter how much I wish otherwise... At least, in helping humanity to be free of the titans: helping the god-titan's restore us to the world: Eren and Mikasa's memory will live on in that endeavour... And, I think Eren would've liked that; it's what he would've wanted" she smiled ruefully.

Drawing in a deep shaky breath, Freya gently held both her hands as she fretfully nodded: "...Okay...If this is what you feel you must do, then alright: but _please just promise me_ , if you _ever_ want to talk, don't hesitate to come find me... Because..." she hitched as tears ran down her cheeks: "I miss Bestla, Skadi and Ran: and it feels so empty; their not- _being here_ anymore. So please, I don't wish to impose, but I-. But Freya didn't get to finish the rest of her sentence, as Carla pulled her into a hug, and just held her softly: "...Don't ever think for one minute that you're imposing on anyone: I can't think of anyone more selfless, more noble and kinder than you; everything you've done for your family and us, I don't know where the hell you find the strength for it?" she couldn't help but smile, "...Can I confess something to you?" Freya admitted as she pulled away from her, but still held onto her hands: "...When we first arrived in Shiganshina, I didn't know what to expect; all the stories my clan's elders had ever told us about how regular folk are mistrustful and think only of themselves? I was _absolutely petrified_.. And then, just completely out of the blue you walked up to me on the street and introduced yourself with that bright smile of yours. And I was thinking, 'is this a trick of some kind?' but the more you spoke kindly, and the sincerity I heard in your voice: part of me wondered why anyone would go out of their way to be this friendly? Unless? That's exactly what it was: and our elders had been wrong... I know the reasons _why_ they said those things, it wasn't merely out of prejudice; but it wouldn't have hurt to mention, that _not all_ the world is out to get you. That there _are_ people willing to be your friend, for the sake of being your friend. And in a way you gave me courage: knowing that that was okay even though I was scared... And for that, _I am truly grateful_ Carla" she smiled as she wiped her tears away; Carla hugged her again, this time with a more honest smile, "Thank you Freya..." she replied as she turned to leave; as she stepped out onto the front porch, she nearly bumped into Angel, who'd been waiting patiently for her: "Oh, sorry Angel, have you been waiting here long?" she asked worryingly; Angel merely shrugged nonchalantly, and bent down low to let her climb up onto her back: "Well? See you in the morning: we've got a lot of work to do tomorrow" Carla thought aloud as she sat herself down amid the bird titan's feathers, "Yeah, no kidding, 'night," Freya replied, "'Night!" Carla called back as Angel took off up into the canopy, to the small tree-house ten or so meters above the boat-tree-house.

As she watched Angel fly up into the foliage, Freya heaved a heavy sigh as she turned to go back inside: only to see Tyto watching her from the hallway: "...Is she okay?" he asked offhand, but Freya knew from the look in his eyes that his mind was lingering on something else: "As 'okay' as she's going to be, for the time being I guess?" she shrugged as she approached him, "If this is how she wants to morn her children I won't stop her: grief is different for everyone, and sometimes it takes us down some unexpected roads...", "That is certainly true," Tyto sighed in lament.

A strained silence stretched between them as the same thing was playing on both their minds: they both knew it, for it was written upon their faces, and they were both reluctant to broach it. Frustrated, Freya then folded her arms as she decided to quit the procrastination and get it out in the open; "...So, we're really committing to this huh?" she sighed dryly, "We?" Tyto gazed at her in surprise: of all the things he was expecting her to say, he hadn't expected that. "Well you don't think you, the boys and the titans are going to go gallivanting off to save humanity by yourselves? Not without the rest of us to back you up" she stated, "Besides, the children are going to need _someone_ to rein them in, make sure they don't bite off more than they can chew", "The children? What the hell makes you think I'm going to allow-, she pressed her finger to his lips, silencing him as she gazed at him with her mother-hen look: the one that told him to shut up and listen "After all this time you still think _you_ have to be the one to put yourself between us and danger? That you alone must take _all_ the risks? _What the hell_ makes you think the children won't get involved somehow? There's no way we'd be able to stop them even if we tried. First the god-titans, then the ODM gear, and then they kept the regular titans at bay with nothing but their bows and arrows while Shiganshina was overrun by the damned monsters: _I don't like_ the fact my children might well have to face danger somewhere down the line with this; but it's not like all the other mothers who let their sons and daughters sign up for the military are any different. So what right do I have to stop them? When they have just as much right to fight for this world as we do..."

Gazing at her in a mix of surprise and shock, Tyto conceded defeat, and knew it was pointless to argue otherwise: the situation would be what it would be, and it was out of both their hands. With a nervous smile he gazed at her, and replied: "... Well? If we take things too far, or something goes wrong? Feel free to smack me up the back of the head", "Oh I'll do worse than smack you up side the head..." she grinned. Another silence hung in the air as a look of worry overcame her, and she anxiously asked "...Just-, don't go making any major decisions where the kids are concerned, before running it by me first okay?", "Okay..." Tyto smiled as he placed a kiss on her forehead, "But it goes both ways too you know? If there's something you don't feel comfortable with, and you have any reservations: please don't keep it to yourself alright?" "I don't intend to," she smiled as she held his hand, "Just _promise me,_ that you'll let me be there for you at the best and worst of times: like West said, we're in way to deep to back out now. If this is where our paths will lead us, then let's see it through to the end, the right way" she gazed at him pleadingly, "...I promise" he nodded, before planting a kiss on her lips, and leading her up the stairs to their bedroom.

From where she'd been watching them silently outside, Ariana smiled as she watched her parents disappear up the stairs: "...Thanks mum..." she murmured.

* * *

One week later:

The following several days had flown by in a whirlwind of activity, that seemed to slow down to a dead crawl by the end of the week: while the 'Shiganshina survivors' (as many had come to call them) had been polishing off feathering their own nests and seeing to other things, the four hundred plus new arrivals had wasted no time in establishing their own homesteads on the island. The majority of the Celts and Rangers made home in and around the arboreal town, all within short walking distance of each tree that housed a set of families. It soon became a very close-knit community, with every family pitching in to help each other make the empty shells of the houses, warm cosy dwellings worthy of being called home.

The Shiganshina survivors helped where they could, and had become both a blessing and a curiosity amid the newcomers: Claude's friendly yet quirky attitude and vast wealth of scientific knowledge made him both interesting and bewildering, with quite a number of the newcomers inquisitive about his 'long-term study' of the god-titans. Bryson was a keen talking point too; many of the newcomers had never even heard of the Scouts, let alone were aware of what they did: the idea of humans being able to fight and kill titans was as fascinating as it was unbelievable: and for the nay-sayers, it was stark yet mind-blowing sight to watch the former Scout fly through the trees on his ODM gear, as surely and swiftly as any bird, accompanied by his 'students' and fellow ODM users; unsurprisingly, this made him very popular with many of the hunters. Other members of the group soon found themselves being sought after too: the fact Breck was a doctor was a great convenience, as was Rosemary, who's knowledge of every medicinal plant imaginable soon made her the island's number one apothecary; Derek's know-how in all things to do with buildings and architecture made him popular with those looking to amend or alter their chosen dwellings, and Gustav's skills as a blacksmith and engineer meant the newcomers had a reliable smithy who could make and fix most things.

The animal titans had been settling in well too, many spent their time helping their humans to carry supplies and lift heavy loads: unsurprisingly, the island's titans took to them right away, and before long it was as if they had always been the best of friends. Between fixing up the new homes and sorting out living arrangements, the titans would help their humans to scavenge for tools and other resources amid the abandoned town; fortunately, there was plenty of stuff to go around so competition wasn't really an issue, and the fact there were no high-end valuables like gold, silver, jewels or any other luxuries lying around, ruled out any possibility for unrest or disorder.

But strangely enough, when broached on the subject of one's monetary wealth, neither the Celts or the Rangers had any real concern or desire for such a possession: having lived deep in the wilds of Maria for generations, money had no meaning in a place where the forest provided everything they needed for their survival. Of course, there was a general understanding that money played an important part in the world of the three-walled kingdom, and that trade was vital for ensuring the procurement of supplies and certain resources: as well as maintaining good relations with the the regular folk who lived in and around the forest; but ultimately, if a Ranger or Celt were to be offered a pot of gold, they'd simply walk right past it, or give it away. When winter's bitter unyielding grip was upon you, food was scarce, and you had the rotten luck to become lost in the deepest parts of the forest; monetary wealth counted for naught, and had no place in a world that didn't acknowledge such things. Not a single Celt or Ranger had a coin to their name, and none of them were concerned in the least.

With four hundred and seven mouths to feed, providing enough to eat had become a task Shadow took in his stride: in order to prevent overcrowding and quickly exhausting any one garden, Shadow had created a series of fruit and vegetable gardens at the base of each tree where a group of families resided; using the timbers enormous trunks for the smaller trees and vines to climb up, while the vast root systems sustained and nourished the vegetables in the ground, these 'communal' gardens soon proved to be a reliable source of easy-to-find food. Within less than a week there was enough fruit and vegetables to feed everyone, with enough surplus to make into jams, jellies, pickles, and even wines. The great lake yielded plenty of fish, with the fish titans often helping out by corralling shoals into the shallows, where the humans would lie in wait with make-shift nets and lines: the Otter Clan in particular proved to be quite adept at fishing, and soon became the island's best fish mongers. As for hunting game, that task fell to the hunters.

The Island titans, while happy to accommodate the humans in every other way, had only one stipulation: no creature that lived on the island was to ever be harmed and/or killed, even for the sake of food; however, hunting on the mainland was perfectly permissible, and so the hunters would regularly fly back and forth via their bird titans, to the vast mountainous land that guarded the lake and island on all sides, scouting for ideal hunting grounds and camp sites. And they were not disappointed: for a place that had been forgotten by the world for goodness-knows how long, the Hidden land was like a whole other country in its vast seeming endless topography and enigmatic features; such as the giant standing stones that seemed to be randomly scattered all over the place, many of which towered many meters high, and sported a whole range of primitive patterns and pictographs. These served as ideal navigation markers, and staring points for many of the hunters to establish trails through the grand yet mysterious forests.

To the east of the lake, both north and south of the great Eastern mountain that housed the city of Omnes Scientiam: the mountain slopes and foothills were home to the biggest alpine forests ever seen, with giant trees far greater in size and age than those that resided in Maria; integrated by old-growth pines, spruces and firs that stretched all the way down to the lake, where most of the shore was comprised of vast towering cliff-faces many meters high. The deep emerald green woods hid numerous gorges, hollows and gullies, secret rivers and coves that snaked and weaved their way down the incline, cascading into the deep sapphire waters of the lake in majestic waterfalls, tens sometimes hundreds of meters high. This was the home of the mountain titans: enormous half titan-half animal beings of gigantic and formidable proportions; bear-titans, wolf-titans, mountain-cat titans, raven-titans, eagle-titans, and even adder-titans stalked the deepest forests and the rocky grounds above the tree line. Though none of them had a taste for human flesh, and they were as intelligent and sentient as the island titans: the hunters were careful to not become complacent with any of them; a predator was still a predator, even if you weren't on the menu. Down nearer to the lake, within close proximity to the mountain king's throne, a number of humanoid titans resided in the lower forests: a little meeker than their island cousins, these god-titans were much like the tree titans, but instead of moss-covered tree-bark for skin on all four limbs, their legs were lichen-encrusted stone from the mid-thighs down, and they could assume the appearance of rocks and boulders at the drop of a hat; it often made the humans wonder, just how many of these god-titans they'd walked by, and didn't even realize it was them.

On the western side of the lake, where the tunnel into the Hidden land sat beneath what came to be known as the Gateway mountain, the slopes, foothills and valleys were covered in thick deciduous woodland: ancient oak, beech, ash, maple and horse chestnut made up the vast majority of the forests, while birch and silver birch, peppered the more open meadows, with elegant weeping willows lining the pebble beach shores of the lake. Here, many of the Hidden land's tree and deer titans resided, alongside the Elk-titans: magnificent beasts that were twice the size of the their smaller red and fallow cousins, with their impressive fourteen pointer antlers making them the undisputed warriors of the land; they could run at great speed through the densest forest without snagging a single twig or leaf, and scale the most difficult mountain terrain above the treeline, all without making a sound. There were a good number of fox titans in these woods too, alongside flower titans in the meadows, and the more elusive water-titans: humanoid titans that lived in and around the ponds, streams and lake shore, but didn't have a fish tail. They had a particular penchant for wild water lilies, and all manner of aquatic plants. More often than not it was easy enough to find their haunts: you just had to look for the prettiest ponds, streams and coves in the forest.

To the north, both the evergreen and deciduous forests semi-converged and gave way to a vast maze of wetland that stretched from east to west: here, the reeds grew in excess of over several meters above the water, and stretched for over a mile out into the more shallow waters of the lake, creating a suitable habitat for numerous bird spices and all manner of other water-dwelling creatures to thrive in. On the shoreline, the reeds converged with vast wealds of oak and willow that crated a dark and foreboding swamp-like forest, where the trees roots disappeared into the murky dark waters, and it's surface was covered in all manner of floating plant life; the perfect place for some fairytale monster or witch to hide in. This foreboding place was the home of the water snake-titans: beautiful female titans with long serpentine bodies that were adorned with emerald and golden scales, glistening amber-gold eyes, and sharp venomous fangs that could deliver a nasty bite. Though intimidating in appearance, they much preferred to keep out of the humans way, and would watch the hunters from the darkness of the forest, or from beneath the surface of the reed beds; often knocking on the bottom of their boats to let them know when they had strayed too close for their liking. Failure to move on elsewhere, usually resulted in said boats getting capsized, but fortunately, this had only happened the once, and territorial boundaries were established soon after.

The very southern end of the lake on the other hand, was totally different: with only a mile of land between the lake and wall Maria, the hilly ground was peppered with a mix of both evergreen and deciduous wood, with a vast amount of heath and low-lying scrub in between. But it was the very end of the lake that was a sight to behold: here, the earth fell down into a deep vast cavernous hole over eighty meters at its widest, where the lake cascaded down in three great white falls that thundered endlessly, creating storm-force winds that threw up spray and drizzle, keeping the top of the falls shrouded in a fine mist that often obscured the base of wall Maria. On either side of the falls were four giant standing stones: covered in hundreds of intricate lines, circles, spots and various other primitive patterns, these were the biggest of all the standing stones in the land, at just over fifty meters tall a piece. They could be seen from both the eastern and western shores of the mainland, as well as the southern end of the island: standing tall and to attention like guards at a royal palace; but strangely, the thunderous roar of the falls couldn't be heard from any direction across the lake, it wasn't until you were standing right at the edge of the abyssal hole, that the water's deafening thunder could be heard, and copious amounts of spray would hit you in the face, drenching you to the bone within minutes. Where the hole went and how deep it was, no one knew: and no one was inclined to find out; it could be the centre of the earth for all anyone knew, or some other strange world yet to be discovered; given the magical nature of this land, no one would be surprised if that were the case. This great majestic natural wonder had earned the name 'the chalice of rainbows', for when the sun shone down into the misty hole, several rainbows could be seen all at once, arching in all different directions.

The Hidden land was a place of endless majesty and natural grace, where the Celts and Rangers felt right at home: here, it was a hunters paradise as the forests were virtually overflowing with every form of game; from boar, deer and elk to every verity of game bird there was. It only took the hunters of each clan and family a few days to meet their quotas, which included enough meat to provide jerky and other forms of cured meats for the winter months, plus plenty of hides to make clothing and accessories, as well as bone, antlers and offal to be used for various other means. Not a single part of any animal was left to go to waste: a testament to the Celts and Ranger's natural resourcefulness.

On the shores of the western forest, Tyto sighed in exasperation as he scanned the treeline for the umpteenth time: "...What on earth is taking them so long?" he huffed, "Just be patient, they'll be back soon enough" Evrard assured him as he helped several other Rangers load a colossal-sized boar onto the boat, and started the gruesome task of gutting it. With the larger game proving difficult to transport for the bird titans, the newcomers had joined the Shiganshina survivors in patching up and restoring the old boats that sat on the shore of the boat yard. Though none of them were in the best shape and their masts were long-since gone: their hulls were intact enough to allow them to float, and safety take a crew and cargo; with a number of the fish-titans volunteering to act as 'wagon horses'. Two long lengths of rope would be tied up to the front of each boat on either side, and both ends were thrown over the front for the titans to grab, and use it to pull the craft along: this proved to be quiet effective, and though the fleet only numbered three boats for the time being, the fact half the newcomers were carpenters meant the repair work to the other boats in the yard was going swimmingly.

"HEEY!" Ariana called out as she wandered out of the treeline, followed by Clay, Rowan, Ash, Dale and Hazel, all carrying a large (dead) farrow deer between them; seeing that the animal's weight was a bit much for them to bare, Tyto was about to run over to help carry it, when the sight behind them made him stop and watch in relief. A tall broad Elk-titan stepped from out of the trees, leaned down, and gently picked up the deer from out of their grasp, carrying it over to the shore and carefully depositing it on the desk of the boat, alongside all the other kills of the day: "Thank you!" Evrard and the Rangers called up: the titan dipped his head in acknowledgement, and gracefully strode back into the trees, "Thanks!" the kids waved as he stepped right over them, before returning to their fathers to help hang the deer up, in preparation for the field dressing.

A little way back from the edge of the treeline, Herne stood watching his humans as they gutted the last of their kills: this was their forth hunting trip of the week, and would be their last to the mainland for quite a while, as the Grey Owls had completed their quota for the season. As the Elk titan joined him at his side, Herne couldn't help but smile in satisfaction: **"Not bad eh?"** he glanced up at the taller titan. **"A clean kill, a sharp eye and nose, and sturdy hand"** the titan smiled as his nodded in approval: **"They're Celts alright"**. **"Thanks for letting them hunt in your forest Curnunnos, I know you Fauna gods can be a bit particular about humans hunting in your territory"** Herne mentioned offhand, **"Please, no thanks necessary: if the god of the hunt gives his personal approval, who am I to contest?"** the elk-titan folded his arms, **"Besides, the wolves in the upper fells have been struggling to keep the deer in check for a few years now, it would be good to have some new hunters balance the numbers out..."** , **"Glad we can help..."** Herne sighed as he sat down on his haunches, **"...Listen"** Curnunnos changed the subject, **"About the queen's proposal: I have conferred with the other Fauna and Dryade gods in the south-western valleys, and they have agreed to stand by her"** he stated in all seriousness, **"Really? That's wonderful, we'd be most grateful for your help"** Herne smiled, **"Well it's not as if we can say no: from what you described, these 'titans' don't sound like any creature of nature I'm familiar with; the fact they eat when they don't need to and die without returning to earth, makes them an unnatural imbalance that must be corrected"** , the god frowned as he watched the kids field dress the farrow deer, **"It's not going to be easy, you know that right?"** Herne reminded him, **"The night roamers said the same thing about the eight days of darkness: but we held on through that crisis and succeeded in our mission; if we can do** _ **that**_ **, surly we can do this"** he stated confidently, **"Yeah, but the difference here is, we haven't got an army of wizards, mages and witches to back us up: we're going to have to rely on the humans, as much as they're going to be counting on us",** Herne stated. "BOAR! Time to go buddy!" Clay shouted into the trees. **"Well, time to head off home. Thanks again ol' friend; we'll give you a heads up when we come up with a plan"** the tusked god-titan waved good bye as he stood back up, **"Thank you Herne: my brother's and I will await the queen's order"** Curnunnos bowed in respect, before turning and galloping off into the dense canvas of dappled green, disappearing from sight like smoke on the wind.

The hunting god galloped down to the boat and turned into his skylark form, perching on Clay's shoulder with a welcoming chirp: with everyone aboard, Tyto gave the waiting fish titans the signal to start the journey home; pulling away from the shore, the boat glided out into the deeper water, where the fish titans could move at speed. The trip back was kept busy as everyone took the brief fifteen minute crossing to finish off field dressing the kills: once back at the jetty, the carcasses were unloaded and taken to the 'meat house', a medium-sized building a little way off from the boat yard that had been made into a makeshift butchery, where the meat would be cut up, and either salted (curtsey of Herne, who summoned a whole load of rock salt up from deep within the earth), smoked, dried, or left as is for cooking the same day. For their share, Tyto, Evrard and the kids took four deer, and with Boar's help in his titan form, carried them all the way back home, to where Freya and the rest of the family had been waiting.

"Finally! What took you guys so long? We've been waiting here all morning!" Brendis huffed as he walked up to the group with a large wicker basket in hand, followed by Gale and her sisters, plus Miriam, Rosemary, Carla and Mabel, all carrying baskets of their own: "Don't exaggerate, we've only been waiting three minutes" Belle shot him a look, "Oh, they look like they've eaten well" Rosemary smiled as Boar gently laid the deer down, and one by one proceeded to hang them up by their hind legs to the large frame that had been set up in preparation for cutting up the carcasses, "It'll be nice to have some fresh meat for supper tonight" Mabel thought aloud as Angel swooped down and landed by Carla's side, inspecting the carcasses with a curious warble; "I dunno about you guys, but I wouldn't mind some venison steak" Poppy smiled as she began to salivate at the thought of her grandmother's speciality, "Oh I think that can be arranged" Rosemary smiled, having got the hint, "Just as long as mines medium-rare" Miriam threw in. At that moment, Shadow and Midnight appeared from around the other side of the Grey Owl's 'home tree', and sat themselves down on one of the giant roots: "Hey!" Ariana smiled up at him, "You missed a great hunt this morning, look at the stag Clay bagged," she motioned to the deer Boar was busy tying up, :Impressive: Shadow spelt out, :You'll have to tell me all about it:.

" **Another good hunting trip?"** Elysia smiled, **"Kid, when you've got the god of the hunt for a spotter,** _ **every**_ **hunting trip is a good trip"** Midnight dryly replied, **"It has to be said,** _ **I do**_ **have a knack for bringing good luck"** Here grinned smugly, **"Ha ha very funny"** she shot him a dry look: **"Just ignore her, she's been bored out of her mind all morning,"** Elysia waved off, **"I'd hardly call re-planking an arboreal courtyard boring"** Javorin gave her a cheeky smile, **"** _ **Three hours**_ **we were up that damn tree, and for one of those hours** _ **I**_ **was holding up an entire three story house on my shoulders; not to mention** _ **you**_ **took your sweet time growing all those fruit trees"** she huffed as she let out a sharp "TCH!", rolling her aching arms back and forth; "Work starting to get to you babe?" Ash called up to her with a cheeky grin, **"And that's another thing: where's this 'babe' coming from all of a sudden? He's still eleven"** she glanced down at him with a look that told him: what do you think?, "Okay okay, sorry I asked" he waved off nonchalantly, "Listen, when we've finished up here, how 'bout we go swimming? You look like you could use a nice relaxing soak" he suggested, **"Now that you mention it, the hot springs** _ **do**_ **sound good"** she thought aloud. **"Sorted! This mean I don't have to listen to you whine for the rest of the day, right?"** Elysia sarcastically asked, **"Don't bet on it brat"**.

"So how did the hunt go?" Freya asked as she sharpened her carving knife on a sharpening stone: "Very good, sixteen elk, twenty deer, seven colossal boar and forty pheasants: that's the Fletchers, Samson's, Branner's and Rabbit clan stocked up for the season" Tyto replied as he grabbed a filleting knife and made the first incisions. "So no more hunting until the autumn?" Poppy asked offhand, "Nope, unless another load of 'new arrivals' show up" Falken joked as he cut off a few pieces of meat and fed them to Evernight, who greedily scoffed them down.

As she was about to speak to Belle, Ariana stopped as a scent drifted past her nose, and got her attention: sniffing the air, she could smell it was someone else, one of the other family's children; "What's up?" Belle asked in concern, "...Hang on a sec..." Ariana frowned as she followed the scent through the undergrowth, about three hundred yards from the base of the home tree, to a small grove out of sight of the others. Gazing up at the thick wall of green, she could smell someone on the other side, and the scent was pooling; in other words, the person in question was just standing still. Reaching for her hunting knife, Ariana stepped over to the bushes and frowned: "Whoever's in there, show yourself!"

A flash of bright ginger red hair announced the presence of the stranger, who revealed himself to be one of the Rangers: probably no more than ten or eleven years of age, clad all in green like the rest of his kin, and didn't quite seem to have a 'natural grace' as he nearly tripped over his own feet coming out of the bushes. "Uh, hi?" he uttered nervously as he scratched the back of his neck. Putting her knife away with an apologetic look, Ariana replied. "Hi, sorry about that: old habits". "You greet everyone with a knife?" he blinked in surprise, "No it's just-, where we used to live, there were a lot of criminal gangs that used to roam the forest, and it wasn't unusual for people to get robbed or kidnapped: you couldn't be too careful is all" she explained, "Uh, yeah I guess?..." the boy shrugged, not really taking it seriously, before getting to the point of why he was here: "Um? Listen, I don't mean to intrude or anything: but, a couple of my cousins and some of the hunters were talking about you guys, and I just wanted to know; is it true you guys really took on the titans head-to-head?"

Ariana paused, her gaze wandering off to the side as she remembered Shiganshina, and that terrible day over a fortnight ago: "I-..." she tried to speak, but found she didn't want to form those memories into words. "Hey..." Rowan came up alongside her, and gently placed his hand on her shoulder, "We don't like to talk about that day, alright?" he stated in a tone that told the boy the subject wasn't up for debate, "Rowan, it's okay I'm fine," she told him seriously: "-No, I'm sorry, it was rude of me to ask: I was just curious is all" the boy stepped away nervously as Rowan's gaze bore into him. But Ariana stepped forward to stop him, "-No wait, please it's okay, really: he just worries about me... What's your name?", "Oh uh, I'm Erkunden, but everybody calls me Red" he replied anxiously, "I'm Ariana, and this is my brother Rowan: what is it you want to know?" she asked him upfront; a little taken aback, Red tried to get his scattered thoughts in order, before reaffirming his question: "Well uh? It is true you really held off a whole pack of titans by attacking them with that 'ODM gear' of yours? 'Cuz I gotta say if you did, that must have been truly terrifying"

Both Ariana and Rowan glanced at one another in confusion, Rowan was about to object, but Ariana stopped him as she explained: "Sorry, but we didn't have our gears with us that day: Bryson was the one that fought the titans head on, we just used our arrows to keep them blinded, so everyone could get to safety", "Oh, sorry, It's just that-, well? Everyone's been talking about you guys: saying all kinds of stuff" Red sheepishly replied as he twiddled his fingers, "Such as?" Rowan frowned as he folded his arms.

"That you guys are either a bunch of idiots, or bare-faced liars..." another voice spoke up from the bushes, as four taller, more stouter red-headed lads appeared: all at least fifteen or sixteen years old, and wearing disapproving looks as they stared the siblings down; "We passed by _dozens_ of abandoned towns and villages on the way to this place, and saw all the corpses of the people the titans ate: some were military and actually fought back with their cannons and 'ODM gear', and you know what? Not a single one of them survived" one stated, "We've seen what those monsters can do, and believe me, _no one_ , not even the god-titan's can stop them" another added, "Which can only mean you _lied_ about fighting them: I don't know how you guys got out of Shiganshina, _if_ you were even there at all, but I'm pretty sure you didn't take them head on. No human in their right mind would ever be _that_ stupid" the third boy glared down as the now-incensed Rowan. "Guy comes on! How can you be rude like this?!" Red protested, "Butt out Red, go home" the forth boy shot him a reprimanding look, but the smaller boy held his ground as he was about to retaliate.

"If that's true..." Bryson interjected as he flew down from the trees on his ODM gear, "Then I must be the greatest idiot of them all". "Bryson?" Ariana blinked in surprise, "Sorry for the intrusion, but I couldn't help but overhear..." he then turned to the four lads, and regarded them with an air of disapproval: making it clear he'd heard them, and wasn't about to back down. "So you boys think it's foolish not to fight back against the titans? Clearly you're unacquainted with the Scouts" he folded his arms, "What're they?" the third boy frowned in confusion, as did the other three. Bryson didn't bother to explain as he merely replied, "They're the ones who _know_ how to kill a titan", "HA! _Bull!_ " the second boy scoffed smugly, "-Like hell you could kill a titan! You got a crippled leg, so how're you going to pull that off?"

With a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, Bryson smoothly replied "... Like so"

The forest around them exploded in a cacophony of roars and thundering footsteps as Shadow charged into the clearing like an enraged bull: the four boys and Red fell over onto their asses in a panic, while Ariana and Rowan simply remained unfazed as they watched Bryson fly up into the canopy, and began his dance of death around the fifteen meter god-titan. Watching the former Scout work his magic was always a privilege to watch, even Rowan admired Bryson's skill and swiftness of speed: the five red-heads watched in stunned silence as Shadow spun, twisted and pivoted, furiously trying to grab the human and his lines as he flew circles around him; but Bryson was too quick and too sharp on the turns for him to keep pace. This was by far one of the more dangerous exercises Shadow and Bryson would practise together, as Shadow would be using a fair portion of his strength and speed to move, and would use all kinds of random manoeuvrers to try and out-wit the former Scout: but for Bryson, it a sporting challenge he had come to take pleasure in. Fighting as he used to, but without the risk of incurring death: it would invigorate the warrior within him, and fill him with a contentment that left him rejoining in his strength and speed. As the boys watched the aerial fight, they saw how Bryson would strike at Shadow's weak-points: throwing his whole weight at every opening to make the god-titan lose his balance, until finally, one well-placed kick to the back of his right knee forced the titan to drop to the ground, and in one fast circle around his broad chest, used his cables to tie his arms up, effectively disarming him, and making him loose what balance he had left, falling over backwards onto the forest floor with a booming thud.

Bryson then gracefully sailed down, and landed on the titan's chest: "Good fight as always" he smiled, to which Shadow nodded in agreement, and relaxed his whole frame so the cables around his arms and chest could slacken, allowing the former Scout to recall his lines. He then jumped back down to the ground as Shadow sat up and folded his legs, gazing down at the boys with a distinct look that told them: oh really?. "Even if I was bereft of all my limbs and senses, I'll _still_ be able to fight the titans, _and win_ " Bryson stated as he gazed down at the boys with a no-nonsense attitude: "...How-, how the hell did you do that?!" Red blurted out as he quickly scrambled to his feet: "Three years of back-breaking training, and seven more of dumb blind luck, that's how" Bryson replied as he looked him in the eye, "The Scouts are _never_ to be taken lightly: theirs is the greatest challenge of all, and many don't live to see their first year of survive", "So basically" Rowan interjected, "The next time you idiots decide to talk shit about us? Allow me to give you a first-hand demonstration of my fists!" he cracked his knuckles. The four older lads were up on their feet in virtually no time at all, and booked it through the undergrowth back the way they came.

But just as they ran away, a small female deer-titan came bounding through the greenery, and stopped just short of Red's position: she looked terrified as she picked him up like a rag-doll, and looked him all over, as if checking to make sure he wasn't hurt. "Hey hey hey! Ginger it's okay I'm fine!" Red chuckled as he patted her on both arms: the titan stopped and worriedly gazed at him as if to say: Are you sure? "Seriously, I'm fine: Shadow and Bryson were just giving a demonstration is all" he assured her. She gazed up at the fifteen meter giant, and nearly gawked in shock: **"What the hell just happened?!"** , **"Calm down, no one got hurt and everyone's alright"** Javorin assured her, to which she glared daggers at him **"Alright?! Do you have any idea what would've happened if you weren't watching where you were going?! My poor lil' Red could've been flattened to death under your oversized feet!"** She reprimanded angrily. She was tiny for a god-titan, barely a three meter class with antlers hardly any bigger than Red's arms: she was one of the farrow deer titans, well tanned with a blaze of tawny ginger going all the way down her back and peppered with pale cream speckles, even her fair child-like face sported a distinctive set of white freckles, accompanied by golden-reddish hair. Her tattoos were comprised mainly of swirls, diamonds and zig-zags, part of which only covered her right cheek and neck. For such a small titan she wasn't lacking in tenacity or attitude, as she angrily stomped her cloven hoof at the much larger god. **"I'm sorry"** Javorin humbly replied, dipping his head as a respectful bow, **"But I can assure you Red was in no danger, I kept an eye on his aura the whole time: as the overseer of mankind, I take my charges safety very seriously"**

Watching the two god-titans stare off against each other in a telepathic conversation, Red decided to try and defuse the situation, as he gazed down at Bryson, Ariana and Rowan: "I'm very sorry about that: my brothers may be idiots but their actually okay guys once you get to know them", "Meh, I'll believe _that_ when I see it" Rowan folded his arms. "It's not the first criticism I've ever encountered, and it sure as hell won't be the last" Bryson sighed as he placed the hand-grips back in their holsters, "But don't worry, it's water under the bridge" he smiled up at Red. "How the hell are you able to move like that? I mean-, I know you just explained of course: But _geez_ , that was really something! Could _I_ learn to do that on one of those things?!" he pointed to the ODM gear, "If you're able to keep your balance and be aware of your surroundings, I don't see why not?", "Hell, even my dad got the hang of using it" Ariana smiled, "Really?! That'd be so cool!" the red-head beamed, "Uh, one problem though, we ain't got any spares?" Rowan sarcastically pointed out, "So? Gustav can easy make one if he's got all the right parts: hell, I bet he could make one out of a pile of junk"

As the humans chatted, Ginger's frustration subsided a little, and she placed Red back down on the ground: **"... Sorry about getting riled up like that. It's just-, on the way here Red had a close call with one of those titans, and I almost didn't make it in time to save him"** Ginger sighed ruefully. **"Really?"** Javorin gazed down at Red's aura, which radiated as much spunk as it did courage: **"... He doesn't scare easily does he?", "No"** she gazed up at him, **"Even in the face of death he was prepared to go down fighting: he hates the titans as much as we do... Well, they** _ **all**_ **do... He's got what it takes to be a great hunter: I just wish his brothers and the rest of his kin would take him more seriously"** , **"I'm sure they will, once he's able to prove himself"** Javorin smiled, **"...Um? What she said,"** she pointed to Ariana, **"About being able to make one of those 'ODM gears': is it really possible for your blacksmith friend to make one with just what he's got?"** , **"Gustav? Why certainly, he used to make them for a living, and is quite the skilled engineer: with that machine shop on the side of his new smithy he's got the capability to make all the essential parts; and between me and Herne, our combined powers can easily create the ultra-hard steel, iron bamboo, and ice-burst stones needed to make the device function the way it does"** Javorin explained, **"Really?"** Ginger blinked in surprise, **"Well? It was a theory Dale hit upon some time ago, and I believe it could work if we do it right: it was one of many ideas he thought of when I revealed to him the scope of our capabilities as Gods"** , **"Heh heh yeah, I know that,"** Ginger chuckled, **"The first time I ever showed Red how I could turn him invisible? He went nuts pranking his brothers night and day, letting them believe they were being haunted by an angry ghost. It was actually quite fun"** , **"Heh, You should've seen the look on Ariana's face when I turned myself into the wind, and took her flying for the first time..."** Javorin smiled in nostalgic delight, **"They never forget that first time, do they?"**

" **Hey, you guys done chin-wagging back there?"** Hecate butted in: her tone immediately telling Javorin something was up, **"... What's wrong?"** he frowned, **"Something's come up, get back here, all of you"**. **"Sorry, but duty calls"** he apologized to Ginger, **"Anything serious?"** she asked worryingly, **"Probably"** he sighed as he motioned to Bryson, Ariana and Rowan to get back to the home tree. Curious, Ginger gave Red a leg up onto her back, and followed the four as they went back the way they came.

As they came within sight of the Grey Owl's home tree, Ariana, Rowan and Bryson saw their entire family and friends, along with all the heads of the clans and families gathered around where the deer were still being butchered: Tyto was holding several parchments, and reading over their contents with a grave look in his eyes, while everyone else looked on in equal concern. "Are you sure Claude? I mean, there're no other substitutes?" Tyto frowned as he turned a page over, "I double-checked everything myself Tyto, and _believe me_ I wish there were an alternative" the amateur scientist sighed in exasperation. "Hey, what's going on?" Ariana asked as she approached the group, "We've hit a few snags with the inventory" Ash replied sullenly, "Namely the medicines" Gale added. "Apparently not everyone who arrived on the island was as fit and healthy as they first thought: turns out several members of one of the Ranger families has been struck down with consumption, and Breck doesn't have the right medication to cure it before it can spread" West explained, "Right now, all the infected patients have been confined to the hospital and everyone else has been told to stay away, Breck already cured himself with one of his elixir's, and gave Rosemary a dose for good measure, since she's helping him prepare the medicines for symptom relief. But he doesn't have all the ingredients required to make more elixir; and if we don't do something soon there's a chance it could infect all of us"

Ariana gasped in horror, "But-, how is that possible? I thought we had everything we need to make more elixir? Shadow grew _a whole garden_ full of medicinal plants next to the hospital for that very purpose". "Oh sweetie, I'm afraid in this case the plants alone won't be enough, the elixir that cures consumption _specifically_ , requires other ingredients to help it work properly" Rosemary explained, "Ingredients that, while we _can_ make with what we have on the island, are going to take time to prepare, and time is something the patients don't have: if they're to stand any chance of survival, we _must_ get the ingredients _now_ " Breck added. "Okay, so do we have any idea where to find these ingredients?" Rowan threw in. "Oh we know where they are kiddo... The problem is, we gotta go get them" Pascal sighed as he folded his arms in vexation, "Well? Where are they?" Bryson demanded. An uneasy silence hung in the air for a brief moment, before Breck explained, "...The day before the breach, Shiganshina Hospital received a new supply of drugs and other medical supplies: the hospital was short-staffed that day so I was called in to help the apothecary oversee the inventory; I remember, all the ingredients plus other necessary drugs and chemicals were part of that delivery. The crates were taken down to the basement for storage: and I remember when we left the city, glancing over at the hospital and seeing the section of the building where the basement sat, was still largely intact. Ergo, there's a good chance the crates survived the titan's rampage: all we'd have to do is go there and dig them out"

The air was thick with tension, as Ariana gazed at all the grown-up's in stunned horror, "...Go back to Shiganshina? With all those titans loose in the city? There were dozens upon dozens of them when we left, they'll be _hundreds_ of them everywhere by now!" she exclaimed. "Trust me Ariana, none of us have come to this decision lightly" Tyto sighed in defeat, "YOU ALREADY MADE UP YOUR MINDS TO GO?!" Rowan exclaimed in outrage, "When the hell did this happen?!", "When the latest patient was admitted to the hospital this morning" Breck stated regretfully. "It's Tilly, one of the Rabbit clan's kids" Dale told him, "She's only five years old Rowan, and if she doesn't get that elixir quickly, she'll be dead before all the others" Shyla threw in. Frustrated at it all, Rowan lost it, "-FUCK IT!" he snapped as he punched the side of one of the tree's giant roots, and stormed off into the undergrowth. "...Will he be okay?" Ratatosk asked worryingly, "Don't worry, he's always like that when he knows he can't do anything to change the situation: just let him blow off some steam, he'll be fine in about half an hour" Fox waved off, "... So you're really going" Ariana sighed in defeat, "Who?", "Me, a couple of the Deer clan and the Fletchers, your uncles, Claude, Derek, Gustav, Bren, Pascal, West, Breck, and Bryson obviously" Tyto replied, "When do we leave?" Bryson sighed, "Tonight, we can't afford to waste time on this: you guys head up to my place and we'll discuss a strategy to get in and out of the city, the rest of you stay put on the island" Tyto ordered, "What?! _Like hell I'm staying put!_ You're gonna need someone to keep the titans distracted if they come at you again!" Ariana exclaimed angrily, "ARIANA!-" he snapped. Ariana paused in shock, never had she heard her father use that tone with her; realizing the harshness of his outburst, Tyto took a deep breath and gazed at her pleadingly: "... Ariana: I don't want you, _any of you_ , to go back to that place and be reminded of the hell we all went through that day; once is enough... _Please_ , don't argue with me on this, you're staying here and that's final, understand?"

Ariana gazed up at him angrily as her eyes filled with tears: she wanted to shout and scream at him to let her go, to let her protect him and have his back: but seeing that heart-breaking look in his eyes, she knew he didn't like this any more than she did. Unable to argue back, she turned and ran off into the forest: "Ariana!-" her mother tried to stop her, but Shadow held up a hand as he gently stepped over the group, :Don't worry, I'll go check on her: he spelt out before following after her, being sure to maintain some distance. "...This sucks" Belle frowned as she wiped away her own tears, "We _damn well know_ what we went through that day, seeing the aftermath won't make any difference... _She_ knows that" she stated angrily, "...I know..." Tyto sighed as he hung his head in anguish, "...But it's not just the memories of that day I'm worried about: there'll be titans everywhere, and we'll only be able to carry so many arrows and spears: Bryson has no more blades so we'll be relying on the god-titan's to keep us hidden; plus, bringing too many people along will slow us down and create unnecessary problems... You're a smart girl Belle, you know this" he glanced over at her, "... Yeah I know," she sighed as she turned to leave, "But that doesn't mean I have to like it"

"...It's a shitty situation, but we got no choice" Gustav stated as he folded his arms, "What do you guys need?" Bowen asked, "The usual items, plus extra weapons: and we'll need to borrow a few of your deer-titans to help carry the load" Tyto replied, "I'll see it gets done" he nodded, "Ginger..." he glanced over at the deer-titan, "Go back to our home tree and inform your brothers and sisters; we need volunteers, plus the carrier packs". She nodded in acknowledgement, and bounded off into the forest with Red on her back. "What can we do?" Lucile asked worrying, "Stay with Rosemary and see to the patients, if we get everything we need tonight I'll have the first batch of elixir ready by tomorrow evening" Breck stated, "I need to go because I know the layout of the hospital like the back of my hand, even partially demolished I'll be able to find my way around"

"Then I guess it' settled" Falken sighed as he turned to leave, climbing up onto the giant root and walking up the spiralling trunk to his house: as the rest of the gathering started talking amongst themselves, Herne, Hecate and Elysia glanced at one another in equal concern. **"I better go and fill Jarus in on tonight's scavenger hunt"** Herne sighed as he turned to leave, **"I know this might be a dumb question. But why can't we just use our blood to cure the patients?"** Elysia asked offhand, **"Have you forgotten what happened to Ariana's eye? Our blood's potent stuff, even a few drops can cause a myriad of shit to happen: anything from being cursed to changing into some kind of unnatural creature,** _ **or worse**_ **. Javorin got off lucky when it was only her eye that changed colour. That's why, when we gave Claude and Breck those first samples of our blood for their studies, it was under the strict condition that they find a way to 'augment' them somehow: to combine them with other drugs and medicinal plants in order to yield the desired results. Remember brat, a god's blood is capable of** _ **anything**_ **, and without the proper combination of magics or science to taper its power: there's no telling what it could do once its out of our systems"** Hecate told her earnestly. **"If Breck's going to be making more elixir in the future, it might be an idea to see if there's a more safer alternative: after all, our blood's not the only part of our biology that's imbued with magical properties"** Herne threw in offhand, **"True. Talk to Jarus about it when we get back, he'll probably know something we don't"** the black and white titan-goddess replied; Herne nodded, and quietly excused himself from the group, **"...I guess you guys will be needing a spotter to fly overhead tonight?"** Elysia thought aloud, assuming she'd been picked for the mission as well, **"Yes, Nyiera will be watching our backs"** Hecate stated, Elysia was about to protest, but Hecate didn't give her the chance as she explained, **"Don't take it the wrong way brat, I don't doubt you'd be a good spotter: but you can't see in the dark the same way we night roamers can; even with all that chaos manna polluting the atmosphere, Nyiera can still see far enough that she'd be able to give us a head's-up in time. Plus, if it all goes to shit then at least we can get everyone out via our shadow paths"**

" **Shadow paths?"** Elysia raised an eyebrow, **"A little 'parlour trick' us night roamers were well known for back in the day: being able to open portals between one location and another via pitch blackness; enabling us and others to travel vast distances in a single night; if for whatever reason our concealment spells fail and the titans come at us: we can be back here within minutes"** Hecate explained, to which Elysia gasped in realization, **" … So** _ **that's**_ **how you always get around so quickly at night? I just thought you were fast on your feet: do the humans know about it?"** , **"I explained it to the brats once"** She glanced down at Ash and Dale, **"But it was one of those things we never seemed to get around to doing"** she sighed, **"Well? First time for everything right? Even after all these years I haven't gotten around to flying Carla up above the clouds"** the weather goddess smiled, **"Come to think of it? There's a lot of stuff we haven't been able to do together, because-, well, you know"** she shrugged, **"Always too many prying eyes"** Hecate smirked, before turning serious again, **"And now? Too many snap-happy jaws"** , **"...Will you be okay tonight?"** Elysia asked seriously, Hecate turned to her, and smirked, **"Come on, do you even have to ask?"**. **"Right..."** she sighed with a weak smile.

* * *

Later that day, sunset:

The rest of the day had tediously passed by in an uneasy mix of dread and uncertainty, as the 'heretics and traitors' prepared for tonight's emergency scavenger hunt: word quickly got around and many held reservations over whether it was really a good idea to leave the Hidden land, but given the nature of the emergency, no one really argued. Several of the Deer Clan and Fletchers had volunteered to help, along with several of said clan's deer-titans, who were kitted out with their custom-made carrier packs: made by the clan specifically for carrying camping and hunting equipment, they fit the god-titan's comfortably and allowed them to move with hardly any hindrance. But tonight, their main concern would be to get in and out of Shiganshina without being spotted by their mindless counterparts. Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Stormwing would be acting as look-outs and flank guards: protecting the group from the front, rear, middle and above.

As the sun began to kiss the peak of the Gateway mountain, lighting up the sky in hues of red, pink, orange and yellow, a bulbous golden moon peeked over the slopes of the great eastern mountain: and across the lake, the haunting howls and cries of the wolf-titans could be heard echoing down the slopes of the ancient alpine forest, sending a chill up the spine of any who heard them. As he double-checked the supplies for the journey ahead, Tyto felt a tug on the back of his shirt, and turned around to see Ariana standing before him. Seeing she was still upset, he knelled down and simply hugged her: since there was no use in arguing anymore, all she could do was hug him tightly, and hope and prey that he'd make back alive. "...You be careful out there okay?" She sighed, "You know I will" he smiled as he stroked her hair, "Look after your mother, and keep your brothers out of trouble, okay?", "Okay" she sniffed as he stood up: a light tap on her back made her turn around, and kneeling down beside them was Shadow: his warm smile ever comforting and assuring as he spelt out, :Don't worry, we'll take good care of them, as always:

Turning to address his sons: Ash and Dale were worried too, but held a little more confidence, while Rowan continued to simmer; arms folded and his trademark scowl in place. "Don't worry dad, we got things covered here" Ash assured him. "Wait!-" Ashlyn, Josefa and Hazel came running up to the group with their brothers trailing behind, each with a posy of flowers in hand: "Dad..." Ashlyn spoke first as she handed her flowers to her father, tears welling up in her eyes as she tried to hold her composure: "...When you get to Shiganshina, if you-... If you happen to pass by the market place, could you please give these to mum? Tell her we said hi, and that we're doing okay?"

Falken couldn't help but tear up as he accepted the flowers with a trembling hand: "Yeah... Could you tell mum we're okay here dad?" Clay sobbed as Hazel handed him her posy, "We know mum hated heights, but I think she would've liked the new place; she would've loved the view" Josefa forced a smile as she handed over her flowers too. The three fathers hugged their children, and carefully placed the flowers in one of the carrier pack's: "Don't worry: we'll make sure they get them," Falken smiled weakly as he wiped away his tears, and tried to straighten himself out. "You going to be okay?" West asked as he placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, "Ah don't worry, I'll be fine" the Blackhawk elder nodded. After all the good-byes were said and all the wishes of good luck passed along, the deer-titans stood up, and the group finally set off. High above the forest, disguised as owls perched on one of the many branches of Yggdrasil: Jarus, Aureia and Asteria watched them disembark, quietly musing over their mission, and wishing them good luck in their endeavour: whilst Evernight and the ravens sat alongside them.

The journey back to Maria took the better part of over two hours, travelling back the way they came: through the mountain tunnel and out the great stone doors, through the forested valley that lay at the base of the mountain, and up to the narrow passage that led to the stone circle in it's cavernous gorge. Shadow 'awakened' the stones power once again, enveloping the whole group in a thick shroud of fog as they stood in the middle of the circle: and finally reappearing in the forest. Glancing all around, the Rangers and other Celts nearly gasped when they saw the giant face of wall Maria looming through the canopy: even in the last faint slithers of daylight, it was truly an imposing sight; "...That's wall Maria?" one of the Celts breathed in awe, being careful to keep his voice low: "You've never seen the wall before?" Tyto blinked in surprise, "Heard of it: I know they said it was big, but my god that's _absolutely huge_ " he replied as he stared up at the wall: "I don't get it, didn't you guys see it when you came here?" Derek frowned, "Came _here_? I think we'd have remembered seeing _a gigantic wall_ along the way!" one of the Ranger's hissed in astonishment: "Anyway, why would we have come this far south? And within a stone's throw of a major city?" Bowen raised an eyebrow in confusion. The heretics and traitors glanced at one another in confusion, "... For the stone circle of course, that's the only way into the Hidden land, remember?" Evrard stated, "What?..." the other Celts and Rangers glanced back at the stones, only to nearly jump out of their skins in alarm: "W-wait a minute-, _these aren't_ the stones we used to get there!" Bowen exclaimed; "Hang on, you mean you guys used _another_ set of standing stones to travel?! One that's different from these?!"

The Celts and Rangers glanced back and forth between one another in shock, "...But-, I thought you guys knew? I just assumed you'd already been-, you know? Informed of how there was more than one?", "No, we hadn't: care to enlighten us?" Evrard frowned. "Well? There's a set of standing stones in the heart of the Vert valley, at the very-most eastern range of the southern plains: our clan have known of them since mankind retreated behind the walls, but we never knew what they were placed there for: until the god-titan's awakened, and the Semitam's created" Bowen explained, "Ordinarily, you could travel from our home valley to the stones in less than a day, but when the titans stormed Maria we had to keep evading them, and that meant we ended up going all over the place; hence, how we ran into all the other clans, along with all the Ranger families" Brook added, "All this time, there were _other_ stone circles in Maria, and we didn't even know about it?" Eraman gasped, "I'm-, so sorry: we didn't know you guys didn't know, honest!" one of the other Celts pleaded. Thinking about it, Tyto sighed and pulled his hood over his head: "...We'll discuss this later when we get back, right now, we need to go; come on..." he took point: everyone glanced at each other in bemusement, but no one said anything as they fell into place behind him, while the titans took up their positions.

" **Did you guys know anything about this?"** Herne glanced over at the deer-titans nonplussed, they all glanced at one another worryingly for a brief moment, before one anxiously explained: **"No, we didn't: but its not like any of the other clans knew; they all lived so far deep in the forest that** _ **years**_ **would go by between cross-clan communications"** , **"Besides, even if there are other stone circles in Maria: it's not like the Semitam's can show us where they all are?"** another deer-titan added, **"I'll confer with Jarus when we return, and ask to check the city's library's and archives to see if there's a map;** _ **someone**_ **put those stones in place. I'd find it very hard to believe they wouldn't keep track of where each circle was located"** Javorin replied. **"Whatever, right now you need to concentrate: I can smell the titans nearby"** Hecate frowned as her eyes glowed purple, and she summoned her power over the darkness of night to navigate through the gloom, **"Me too, I'll go on ahead"** Nyiera stated as she unfolded her giant wings, and took off up through the canopy with a powerful cold downdraught of wind, souring high into the deep azure sky.

The walk back to Shiganshina was as nerve-raking as it was eerie: countless titans lay strewn about the land, either lying down or propped up against the side of a tree or building, all motionless and still as they 'slept'; their slow heavy breathing could heard from a short distance away, as the group quietly walked along the main road leading out of the forest, and down into the central valley. There were a number of houses they passed by along the way, for Tyto and his brothers it was so strange: they'd passed by these homes countless times, always said a 'good morning', 'good afternoon', or a 'lovely day isn't it?' to the people they saw there, and they always smiled and greeted them back. Even when passing them by after dark they could always see the gentle glow of candlelight in the windows, followed by the soft chatter and laughter of the families inside. Now, the windows were dark, and no sounds could be heard from within: everywhere the silence was almost deafening, and only the hollow rushing of the wind high over the top of wall Maria could be heard moaning like a restless spirit.

Another hour went by before the inner gate appeared up ahead, by which time it was quite dark with only the full moon to light the way: there were dozens of titans here, but fortunately none barred the way as the group silently walked through the breach, and into the ruins of Shiganshina. For the other Celts, Rangers and deer-titans, it was a bit of a culture shock in a way, having never set foot into a city before: seeing the larger buildings, grander architecture and the scale of the layout, all surrounded by one huge wall that encompassed the entire city from every side; it made them realize just how little they knew of the rest of the walled world. As they travelled up the main street towards the hospital, the stench of death hung in the air, as the countless dead were now quite well decomposed: some hardly resembled humans at all, while others still retained some semblance of a face, limb or torso: rats, dogs and cats scavenged what they could, with maggots and other insects consuming the corpses from the inside out. Claude, sickened and distressed by the horrid sight, had to shut his eyes tightly and hold onto Bryson's shoulder to know here he was going, Bryson merely patted him on the hand and whispered, "You're doing alright, just hang in there okay?", "Okay" Claude hitched, fighting against his stomach to keep his last meal down: seeing the distress the smell was causing the other humans too, Javorin decided a banishing spell was in order.

 _Ave-lemantus-vere-nantrus: winds soft and light, take the stench of death from our noses, so that we may not suffer this scene of travesty_

A cool gentle breeze swept over the whole city, ascending skywards, and within seconds the smell was gone: alleviating Claude's stomach. As they headed deeper into the city, the group soon came across upon the market place: this was where the worst of the titan's attacks took place, with its narrow alleyways and streets leading into the wide open space, many of the people were trapped in several bottlenecks, making them easy targets for the giant beasts to pick off at their leisure. Dozens of destroyed stalls and carts littered the square, a good number of the surrounding buildings had been partially demolished, and everywhere were hundred of dead rotting corpses littered across the cobbled stones...

But three in particular, covered by hessian tarps next to the fountain in the middle of the square: stood out to Tyto and his brothers...

"...Would you gentlemen please excuse us a moment?" Tyto spoke quietly as he wandered over to the tarps: Evrard, Falken and Eraman went over to the deer-titan carrying their supplies, beckoned him to lower himself down so they could reach into his left-side pack, and got out their children's posies. With tears in their eyes, they approached the bodies of their wives, and without a word, gently laid the flowers down upon them: no words of grief, condolence or good bye were said; none were needed, they knew they'd been loved in life, and knew they wouldn't have wanted them to make such a fuss over them. Bestla would have scolded them for it, Skadi would have teased them over it, and Ran would've simply told them to cheer up and not to worry. From where they watched them at the entrance of the market place, Bren couldn't help but hitch a little, as tears ran down his eyes and his brother put his arm around his shoulder. Gustav was stubbornly stoic as ever, refusing to give into his grief as tears ran down his crinkled cheeks: he missed their spunk and tenacity, how he would often hear them gossiping and laughing with his sisters. Never a dull moment between any of them, thick as thieves and just as mischievous: it felt as strange as it did hollow, not hearing that laughter anymore. Claude couldn't help but shed his own tears too, for he remembered how the three women would sometimes accompany him up into the forest for one of his 'titan research trips', under the guise of collecting mushrooms and wild herbs. It always delighted him how they were interested by his knowledge of the natural world and science, how his approach to studying the titans and their powers was not like anything they'd ever seen before: he would miss those days, and remember them most fondly.

Though everyone was lamenting in their own quiet way, and visibly upset, Bryson stood firm and unwavering: gazing over the scene of death and listening to the silence of the city; for him, it served to remind him why he gave his heart up for humanity, why he was willing to lay down his life for the survival of mankind: how, deep in his heart, he felt like he'd never truly given up his wings. In the back of his mind part of him couldn't help but feel guilty for Bestla, Skadi and Ran's deaths: why didn't it occur to him to head to the market first? Find them and tell them to get back home quickly, before the stampede of terrified citizens got so bad that the inner gate was congested for over an hour. At the time it made tactical sense to get to the first breach, to take out as many titans as possible that were trying to enter the market place: thus allowing everyone a chance to get out. In hindsight it's easy to judge and criticize, but at the time he had to make a call, to make the right choice for _all_ the people in danger and not just those he cared about: and in all likelihood, _if_ he had prioritized only their survival, a lot more people would've died.

"They wouldn't have been mad at you: they'd have wanted you to hold your position at the breach" Breck thought aloud, "Huh?" Bryson snapped out of his musing, "Bestla, Skadi and Ran: they would've wanted you to get everyone out, not just them; you know that, right?" his brother gazed at him ruefully: with a small smile, Bryson put his arm around his shoulder and assured him, "...Yeah, they'd have probably smacked me upside the head if I tried to carry them out". "Pardon me, but I don't think their husbands would agree with you on that" one of the Rangers interjected, "If you really are as great a flyer as you claim to be, why didn't you save them first?" Bowen asked offhand, "Because he had a job to do," Tyto stated as he and his brothers returned to the group, "At the rate the titans were flooding into the city, there was no way the Garrison could evacuate enough people in time before the beasts caught up: Bryson was the only one capable of holding them off, just long enough for the military to get the congestion at the inner gate sorted, and get everyone moving... If he'd stayed in the market place to find them, I can assure you we'd be seeing a lot more corpses here"

"...So, you let your beloved ones die, just to let a whole hoard of strangers live?" one of the Celts exclaimed in shock. Evrard was livid as he stepped forward to give him a piece of his mind, but Falken and Eraman stopped him as Gustav glared daggers down at the younger man: "- _You take those words back right now!_ " he hissed as he got up in the young Celt's face, "You think he wanted this?! That we wanted our loved ones and best friends to die?! _Take a look around you! This_ is the hell we had to fight to survive! _This_ , is the reality of the titans! Whether you live or die isn't decided, and it's only through pure luck we survived at all! In that situation we had to make a call, and believe me when I tell you _none of us were okay with it!_ It was either some of us or _all_ of us; as much as we wish it hadn't been so...".

The Celts and Rangers glanced at one another, before one of the younger Ranger's spoke up brazenly, "... But still, _how could you make that choice?_ They were your wives, your sisters, the mothers of your children, your best friends: they were the last of your clans, and you let them die just so a bunch of people you didn't even know could live? People who would've most likely ratted you out to the wall cult for all you know?". "You're missing the point," Bryson stated, as he regarded the Ranger with a serious tone, "... Prioritizing the lives of the few over the lives of the many would've undoubtedly resulted in an all-out slaughter: at the time you cannot predict the outcome, and each choice you make affects the next choice you make: if you hesitate and begin to doubt yourself, then you're no good to anyone. _Could_ I have done more to save them? I don't know, I'll have to live with that for the rest of my life..." he sighed as he gazed out across the market place: "But understand this... This world is harsh and unforgiving: it doesn't care that you have a life, a family, a measure of freedom that is your own: just because you hide deep in the forest away from the rest of humanity, doesn't mean you're exempt from the world and its rules. _You are part it_ , no matter how much you try to put some distance between yourself and everyone else: y _ou know that_ , the titans drove you from your home, and would've eaten everyone in your family had it not been for your friends," he gazed up at the deer-titans, "As far as I'm concerned, there are no Celts Rangers or regular folk, just people: _all of us_ one and the same. The moment you start prioritizing the lives of your own, and disregard others just because they have a different heritage to you? You might as well give up and die: because that's not how we'll beat the titans, that is _not_ the attitude that will save humanity. We're _all_ human _, we all share the same fate_ , and if the titans come for us they won't discriminate between you and everyone else... If you're not prepared to accept the reality of this world, then go back to the Hidden land and live the rest of your live in quiet content: because Sina only knows, you won't be of any use to anyone if you're not prepared to make the hard choices" he stated, before turning to leave, "...The hospital's just up round the next corner, we better go" he motioned for everyone to follow. The two young hunters gazed at the former Scout in a mix of confusion of dumbfoundment, both their fathers shot them a disapproving look, and the subject was promptly dropped.

Another five minutes walk soon brought them to the hospital, which wasn't in too bad a shape as they had been expecting: "Huh, it doesn't look too bad: more superficial damaged than anything else..." Derek thought aloud as he scanned his eyes over the structure: the building was partially demolished at one end, with a few holes along the upper floors where some titans had obviously crashed their hands in through the walls in attempt to grab their victims; but the weight-baring walls were largely intact. "It's looks safe to enter: where about's is the basement located?" Derek turned to Breck "Round the back, next to the apothecary and livery" the doctor replied as he led the way around to the rear of the building, to a damaged door that opened up and fell off its hinges to reveal a flight of stairs: "The storage room's down here on the right" he pointed down into the gloom. Without needing to be asked, the deer-titans lowered themselves down for the Celts and Rangers to reach into the packs and grab their torches: once lit, they followed him down into the basement, which was comprised of a long corridor lined with several doors either side, and another flight of stairs at the end. Breck headed to the third door on the right, and after Pascal jimmied the lock, headed inside to a room full of wooden crates: "Oh thank Sina, they're all still intact" he sighed with relief. "Okay, open them up and take everything, we won't take any chances by leaving anything behind" he ordered, "Should we check the other rooms just to be sure?" West asked offhand, "Yeah, you and Pascal open up the other doors, we'll clear this room first then move onto the others"

Back outside, Bren and Claude were helping the Celts ready the empty packs, when Gustav suddenly tapped his apprentice on the shoulder: "Can you guys cover me for ten minutes? There's something I need to do", "What?" Bren glanced at him in surprise, "I just remembered, my notebook with the ODM gear mods is still in the cellar of the Black Stallion, I need to get it back" he told him, "Are you nuts?! Tyto told us not to split up!" Bren exclaimed, "I know, but the cellar survived that big-ass bolder crashing down on top of it, if I can just get down through the hole we made, I can be in and out in less than several minutes" he frantically stated. Bren was about to protest, when Midnight kneeled down and interjected with a sly smile, :Don't worry, I got you covered: she spelt out as she waved her hand over Gustav, his whole body glowed in a strange purple aura for a moment, before he completely vanished from sight, :Make it quick: she added. "Thanks lass, you're the best!" Gustav's disembodied voice smiled, before the sound of his footsteps could be heard running around the building, and disappearing out into the street. "Was that a good idea? Letting him go off on his own like that?" Bren gazed up at her worryingly, :Don't worry, Stormy's got him covered: she pointed up to the sky, to where the giant silhouette of Stormwing glided overhead, blotting out the moon and stars as she circled above the city.

As he went around the other side of the building to make sure the coast was clear, Derek froze as a trio of dormant titans blocked his way to the street: as they sat there propped up against the building, their dead glassy eyes stared down at him, making him feel like a rabbit caught in a wolf's line of sight. Deciding not to chance it, he backed away slowly around the corner, until all three were out of sight: he then quickly hotfooted his way over to Shadow, and stood between his feet as he breathed a sigh of relief. :What's got you spooked?: the god-titan gazed down at him, "Titans, over there," he pointed to the corner of the building, trying to regain his composure, :Good thing the concealment spell is still intact then?: he smirked, "Yeah, no shit" Derek sighed offhand. As he turned to head back to the group, he suddenly noticed a church through an alleyway on the opposite side of the other street, the one that ran behind the hospital; curiosity got the better of him, and an idea came to mind: "... Hey Shadow, how wide is the concealment spell's range?" he hissed, hoping the others hadn't overheard him, :Around a hundreds yards, why?: he frowned in confusion. A hundred yards: the church was barely forty yards away; deciding to go for it, he glanced back up at the god-titan, "Cover me will you? I just gotta check something out" he turned and quickly headed down the alleyway: alarmed, Shadow swiftly bent down to try and grab him, but Derek was already in the narrow passage, and the buildings were too close together for him to squeeze his hand through, "Don't worry, I'll be five minutes, tops" Derek smiled as he gave him a thumbs up: frowning at him in disapproval, Shadow simply replied, :Five minutes, don't push your luck!:

Despite his personal dislike for the Wall Cult, Derek couldn't deny their churches had caught his eye a fair few times: think of them what you will, they had a real flair for architectural ornamentation; some of their churches in the interior boasted some truly beautiful designs, and Shiganshina's church was no acceptation. Since non-cultists were forbidden from stepping foot inside the churches, now seemed as good an opportunity as any to finally have a look inside one, and see what the wall cult liked to keep hidden away from 'unclean' eyes. As he neared the end of the alleyway, he carefully peered out and looked both ways: there was a small five meter titan slumped against the side of a building with its back to him at one end of the street, and the other end was clear; deciding it was safe, he quickly tip-toed over to the church's massive double doors: one of which was open slightly, and after heaving it open, quietly slipped in...

But the sight before him instantly made him regret his impulsive decision, for piled up in the circular nave were dozens of rotting corpses: all the churches perishers plus the Pastor, dressed up in their finest and all wearing the distinctive three-chain triple medallions that sported the faces of the three goddesses. As the shock settled into unease, Derek then realized none of the bodies had been eaten or crushed, they were all intact: covering his nose to keep the stomach-churning smell from making him throw up, he warily approached for a closer look. Scattered around the bodies were numerous cups and goblets, which was strange: cultists weren't permitted to bring food and drink into the churches, especially during a sermon, yet some of the deceased were still clutching their cups in their hands. Glancing over at where the Pastor lay, he saw several wine bottles scattered around him, and a few small dark blue medicine bottles; stepping closer still to read the labels, Derek gasped in shock, as he suddenly remembered where he'd seen those medicines before, A few years back, when one day we was helping Breck to pack away his bag, and he picked up one such bottle...

 _Oh, do be careful with that, it's quite dangerous_

 _Dangerous? How? I thought medicine was supposed to be good for you?_

 _It is if you know what dosage to measure out, and if it needs diluting: too much of a good thing can be bad for you, and that drug in particular can be very fatal if you overdose on it, especially with alcohol already in your system_

That's when it suddenly clicked.

"...Suicide?..." Derek thought aloud in shock: "...These people, they all took their own lives? Rather that try to escape? ...What kind of madness possessed them to do such a thing?..." he gasped, unable to get his head around it. All these people simply gave up? The breach occurred, they saw the titans advancing on the city, and they didn't even try to run? They just believed that was it, that was the end? Gazing up as his mind reeled, Derek spotted the effigies of the three goddesses on the wall above the alter, and saw that Maria's face had been smashed right off: the white plaster remains littered the alter with half her face still intact, and a mason's hammer laying next to it.

It was then he suddenly understood _why_ : they didn't just see the wall get destroyed, they saw their goddess brought low by the very devils they believed could never get into their world, that could _never_ defeat their goddess. Such faith, belief and surety, utterly destroyed in an instant by one colossal titan: and rather than face the truth they chose the cowards way out; would living in a world without that faith to sustain them really be so much to endure? Was it so impossible to even try? To have everything you believed in completely undone, and wiped away in one moment of all-out insanity: to see past all that, and to try to find a way to carry on; did these people really think so little of themselves? So little of their own chances that it just wasn't worth living anymore?

As he passed a deep rueful sigh, Derek felt his breath hitch in his chest when he suddenly noticed the bodies of three young children, probably no more than Drake's age: from the way their family members had been holding them as they died, it was clearly they tried to get away; tried to fight back, but their parents must have forced them to drink the poisoned wine. Off to one side, he noticed another dead child: a baby, still clutched tightly in its mother's arms. Taking one's own life was tragic enough, but to force a child to die for the sake of one's spiritual beliefs? Derek scowled as he felt rage simmer up from deep within him.

This went beyond unacceptable, this went beyond _anything_ any sane person would ever do: was this what the cult had taught them? Was this madness born of the belief that only the walls would bring them eternal salvation? That they had nothing to live for, and everything to die for? Clenching his fists in ire, Derek glared down at the Pastor, and in his heart he secretly cursed the cult for bringing such evil into the world: "...I don't know who your master is," he scowled, "But I hope he chokes on his own poison one day". Taking a moment to calm his temper, Derek glanced up at the huge stained glass windows, and noticed how beautiful the moonlight was as it lit up the glass, making streaks of colour fall across the cold hard floor.

But as he turned to head back to the door, he noticed two giant tapestries hanging on the walls either side of the nave: the one on the right twitched along the bottom as a mouse scurried out from beneath, but as the tapestry swayed back and forth slightly, Derek suddenly noticed something on the wall behind it. Walking over and gently pulling the tapestry back, he found it was a small door: twisting the huge ring handle, it opened to reveal a long narrow descending stairway that was shrouded in pitch blackness. Reaching for the matchbox in his pocket, Derek lit a match and followed the passage down to an office that had a small floor window looking up into the street above. There was a desk and chair, a chest of draws with various items cluttered on top, a large cabinet used for keeping files and other important documents stashed away: in the corner at the opposite end of the room, there was a small table with a few chairs, and hanging from a hook on the wall was a spare cassock. This must've been where the Pastor retreated to between sermons, seeing to his parishes affairs and what-not; who knew Pastors had to deal with so much paperwork? It looked more like an accountant's office than a Pastor's privet quarters. Blowing out the match before it could burn his fingers and lighting a new one, Derek wandered over to the cabinet to see what was in all those papers, but as he tried to open the doors he found they were locked: noticing a bust of the goddess Sina sitting amid the clutter on the end of the chest of draws, Derek saw she was turned to one side slightly. Out of habit, he grabbed the top of her head and twisted her so she faced straight ahead.

But as the bust turned, he felt it resist slightly, as if it were screwed onto the chest of draws somehow: there was a muffled thud somewhere in the wall in front of him, and the cabinet slid forward and swung open on a huge set of hinges, revealing a secret passageway that led down another flight of dark stairs. Derek gawked at the doorway in stunned amazement, in all his years he never thought he'd ever come across a building with a secret passage built into it: what an extraordinary find. But then he snapped back to reality as he suddenly realized: "Wait a sec-, why do the wall cult have a secret room beneath one of their churches?" he thought aloud. Lighting another match, he warily descended down into the pitch black: the air smelt musty and stale, no one had been down here in a very long time, and as he reached the bottom, he felt his curiosity stoked as he looked around. The room was about twelve by twelve meters big, old and crumbling and covered in cobwebs and dust, it seemed this place had been totally forgotten: there was a large table at the far end reaching from one wall to the other, on the top was a large stack of dusty old books piled up at one side with a candle sitting in its holder nearby, while underneath was a huge black crate over ten meters long with the lock broken off. Lighting the candle, Derek started going through the books, checking out their covers and flicking through them: and what he found, left him surprised and stunned...

Many of these books were about the outside world, just like the one Armin had given Ariana: they all described a range of different things: some were about animals and plants, others depicted geography and maps, some were about different human cultures and what set them all apart, and others even described technologies and different kinds of machines humans used to build. "These must have all been confiscated..." Derek realized as he flicked through a book about sailing ships, "Taken by the cult, and hidden away down here..." he closed the book and set it back down on the table: "But if they didn't want this stuff falling into public hands, why didn't they just-

It was then he spotted a book he hadn't noticed before, one that had been hiding right behind the pile: it was in a much poorer shape than all the others, torn in half and tatty all over, its pages were worn from constant use and some of the corners had been dog-eared too many times; as he picked it up and held it, he noticed the writing wasn't printed, the cover was bound leather, and there were two envelopes tied to it with twine. It was journal, and a large one too: it looked like a good two thirds of it had been torn out as the spine was quite wide and bare, flipping it over to read what was left, the words on the first page made his train of thoughts come to a screeching halt.

Titan Mage-science and effective counter measures

"What? ..." Derek frowned as he began flicking through the journal: page after page his mind began to spiral into an uneasy state caught between confusion and astonishment, as he read through every paragraph and studied every illustration. Whoever created this journal had been highly studious in putting together, as there were countless details and footnotes written in neat little sections, and exquisitely drawn diagrams and visual descriptions. Most of it was highly scientific in its context, using long complex words he didn't understand (never mind try to pronounce), and some pages had been written in a strange language he'd never seen before: but the one theme that constantly ran throughout the book, were the titans. Every page was filled with information about the mindless creatures, some stuff he himself already knew, but the rest had him totally baffled: there were anatomical diagrams of their biology, observations about their behaviour, and all other kinds of things he didn't know (that is, if they were true). Derek was no scientist, and while this journal could well be the ramblings of some eccentrically-minded individual, his gut was telling him otherwise: everything in the book was too well laid-out and organised to be from the mind of someone who'd lost theirs; and as he reached the final page he noticed one small line which read:

May whoever finds this, be someone who embraces truth, wisdom, and forgiveness.

Stepping back a little as he tried comprehend everything, Derek's foot knocked against the side of the crate beneath the table. Bending down and opening it up, he frowned as he examined the contents. It looked like a set of eight large bamboo poles: about seven inches in diameter, each pole varied in length from eight meters to a meter long, each with a strange set of symbols carved onto the sides, at one end there were a set of four holes drilled at right angles to one another a third of the way up, while at the other end all the poles had more holes in their sides with a set of thin ropes running through them, connecting them all up to, what looked like a giant metal hoop with hinges that was designed to be folded in half, enabling it to fit in the crate; what on earth was this thing? Down one side of the crate he noticed a piece of parchment: pulling it out, Derek saw it was a how-to diagram on how set the strange thing up, and was surprised to find it was a giant set of wind chimes measuring over two meters in diameter. There was a smaller diagram at the bottom describing two other devices called 'hummers', a 'long hummer', and a 'little hummer'.

Rechecking the crate, Derek soon found them and pulled them out: one was a small white ceramic tube about a foot long with a loop in the middle of the side, with a long piece of string tied to and wrapped around it; and a strange set of weird-looking symbols painted in black running perpendicular to the loop. At one end, the tube was all but sealed off except for a narrow gap that bowed out slightly in a V shape, almost resembling a pair of vocal cords (it was the only thing that came to mind on account he once flicked through one of Breck's anatomy books), while at the other end, the tube was sealed except for a small hole in the middle. What did it do? And what was it used for? Completely stumped, Derek huffed in exasperation, only to nearly jump in surprise when the device hummed slightly: realizing it was his own breath that made the sound as it passed over the device, he gently blew into the slit, and a strange humming sound emanated out. It was no pitch or tone he'd ever heard before, almost like a low rolling thunder clap and a high-pitched whistle all in one: it made the air around him ring like a crystal bell as the cobwebs on the ceiling vibrated. This was weird, and as he inspected the other 'hummer', he found it too was made out of some kind of ceramic, and was pretty much the same design as the other, weird symbols and all: except that it was over two meters longer with the hole for the twine up the top end, rather than halfway up the side.

Standing back up and glancing back and forth between the journal and the crate, Derek wondered just what the hell he'd stumbled upon: glancing back at the journal, his attention turned to the two envelopes that were tided to it. Carefully slipping them out from beneath the twine and turning them over, he saw they were both stamped with the symbol of the wall cult: the three goddesses connected together by three lines within a shield flanked by angels, with an all-seeing eye above them. There were a set of numbers at the bottom of each one: a set of dates, October sixteenth, seven seventy eight, and October twenty third, seven seventy eight; each a week a part. Opening the earlier one, Derek pulled out a letter, and as he read over the contents, he frowned in confusion: quickly opening the other letter and reading it over, his jaw dropped as he tried to comprehend what he just read. Standing there for a moment, gazing back at the journal: his eyes began to grow wide with shock, and as his mind finally began to caught up to the enormity of this discovery, he quickly stuffed the letters back in their envelops, slipped them back under the twine, and ran back up the stairs like a shot; he _had_ to show this to the others.

"Where the hell's that idiot gone wandering off to now?" Gustav frowned as he tucked his notebook into his breast pocket: "Not to worry, Shadow's got him covered: he went off to inspect a church apparently" Claude assured him, "A church?! When the hell did _he_ get religious?" Gustav exclaimed gruffly, "Oh you know Derek, he likes to check out a nice pretty building when he sees one" West commented as he carried several small boxes out of the hospital basement and loaded them into one of the deer-titan's packs, "As long as he's not found any trouble, there's no need to worry: chances are he's probably engrossed in inspecting a gargoyle or something" Evrard threw in as he unloaded several more boxes. Suddenly, the sound of running feet and heavy breathing announced Derek's return, as he screeched to a halt in front of the scavenger party, all in a complete fluster. Immediately assuming the obvious, Tyto rushed forward to help him stand up straight as he tried the catch his breath, "Derek? What's the matter? Did a titan spot you?!" "No!-, no its okay, no titans" he waved off frantically "Holy shit kid what happened to you?!" Gustav blinked in surprise: "What's that you got there?" Eraman spotted the journal in his other hand; holding it up, Derek approached Claude and handed it to him, "... _Read it_ , just read it, and tell me it's not what I'm assuming it is" he pleaded. Confused, Claude took the journal and started reading it over: now thoroughly intrigued as to what the hell was going on, everyone put their loads down on the ground, and gathered around the architect in concern, even the god-titans could sense something serious was afoot. "Derek what happened?!" his brother demanded as he ruched out of the basement, "Okay, I was in the church taking a look around when I found this basement, which had a secret door, that lead down to a secret room full of confiscated books, and _that journal:_ plus a crate filled with these weird things called hummers and giant set of wind chimes made out of bamboo, it-" he frantically explained, too giddy and confounded to stay calm and collected, "-Look, this stuff, it's been sitting down there _a very_ long time, _someone knew_ it was down there originally, and now I just-, _god I hope I'm not overreacting!_ " "Little late for that don't you think?" Pascal smirked.

Tyto was about to ask Clause what was in the journal, when he suddenly noticed the look of intensity and astonishment in his eyes, as if he'd just seen a ghost: seeing this too, Bryson frowned in alarm as he approached his best friend and laid a hand on his shoulder: "...Claude? What's wrong?". Slowly lowing the journal, Claude gazed over at Derek, who was now doubly worried, "...Where did you say you found this?" he asked in a calm yet shaky voice, holding up the journal: "...In a secret room, below the basement under the church" Derek replied. "Claude, what's up? What's in that book?" Tyto demanded. Closing the cover, Claude adjusted his pince-nez and gazed at the Celt with a serious look etched upon his face: "...With all due respect Tyto, may I ask that we 'amend' our original plan for tonight's mission?", "Amend? how?" Breck frowned in confusion, ", By conducting a small yet significant experiment, when the sun comes up and the titans are active again". Knowing what entailed, the group were all suddenly on edge as Tyto approached Claude with a no-bullshitting-me look in his eyes, "...I've never had reason to doubt you before Claude: so _why_ , do you need to conduct this experiment?"

"...Because..." Claude sighed as he tried to gather his thoughts back in order, "...I think Derek might have stumbled upon, _exactly_ what we were looking for..."

* * *

The following day, early morning:

As the sun shone through the windows of her bedroom, Ariana gaped her mouth wide open in a yawn, stirring from her sleep back to consciousness. Suddenly remembering her father and last night's mission, she shot out of bed and barrelled down the stairs to where her mother was in the kitchen: "IS HE BACK YET?!" she frantically demanded, "Calm down, it's alright, he and the others got back over two hours ago" she smiled over at her, " _Two hours ago?!_ And you didn't wake me?!" Ariana exclaimed, "He asked me not to, he saw you sleeping up there and decided to let you lie in: besides he's not home right now, he and the others took off for the city as soon as they got back; said they needed to speak with the queen immediately about something", "What?", "I don't know, something about what Derek found in a church basement?" Freya shrugged: Ariana immediately rushed back upstairs, got dressed, and was back down and out the front door like a stoat on the heels of a rabbit, "-WAIT! At least have some breakfast before you go!" her mother called out, but to no avail.

Running all the way to the boat yard, Ariana found her brothers, cousins and the other kids waiting at the end of the jetty with Carla, Mabel, Rosemary, Miriam and Angel: "Finally! Took you long enough!" Rowan huffed, "Sorry, so what'd I miss?" Ariana panted as she wiped the sleep from her eyes: "Dad and the others got back a few hours ago, they didn't stick around though: said they had to tell the queen something important, that they'd made some kinda discovery or something? I don't know, they were in a real rush" Dale dithered as he tried to remember what happened, still blurry-eyes and tired from being woken up so early: "Does anyone know what they found?" Ariana pleaded, "Looked like a tatty old book to me" Miriam scoffed as she folded her arms, "And that idiot brother of mine had the sense of stupidity to separate from the group to go retrieve _his_ notebook!… In any case, everyone looked real pissed and were just about ready for a fight". "Look, none of us know what's going on. But the titans looked pretty intense too, Shadow looked like he was ready to punch something" Fox mentioned offhand. Ariana stilled: Shadow? Angry? The great big friendly god-titan who was all warm hugs and fluffy tender sweetness inside, wanting to _punch_ something? _That can't be good._ As she watched the humans aura's begin to resonate with worry, Elysia couldn't help but worry herself: **"...Come on guys, what the hell's up?"**

* * *

Atop the great city, in the vast garden where the tree of knowledge grew: the heretics and traitors were gathered with their titans, as Queen Aurora, the Keeper, Starlight and Iris sat before them, with Stormwing listening in. In the middle of the gathering, the black crate plus the journal and two letters lay before the god-titan's; the subject of this emergency meeting...

The night and dawn had proven busy for the group, as their original mission had taken a strange turn after Derek's discovery: and while they were successful in their original objective. Their attention was now focused on the journal, and the information that lay within its pages.

Passing a deep soft sigh, the Keeper scratched his chin in vexation: "...This undoubtedly throws up a number of important questions: not least, why did the cult not see fit to share this information with the military?", "Oh our thoughts exactly" Claude replied enthusiastically, "But there's no denying this journal, and the contents of this crate, might just be what we need to get our 'long term endeavour' up and running". "That, is undoubtedly true" the Keeper concurred: "What I don't understand is, how can they _know_ about this and just-, keep it lock it away?" West thought aloud, "And if this information was deemed 'forbidden', why didn't they just burn it and make sure it was gone for good?" Breck added; "An excellent question" Starlight softly spoke. "The answer to which, I'm sure will prove to be just as telling in the nature of their machinations. I can only surmise, they must have something great to gain, or everything to loose by keeping this hidden away". "...They figured it could help them in some way, something that might require them to go beyond the walls; a device that can keep the titans distracted, would certainly come in hand for something like that; it says so in the second letter" Gustav pointed out. "Regardless, it's not pertinent at the present time: right now, these tools and this information are in our possession, and you can be sure we will make full use of them" the Keeper stated.

"So what is our first move? How do we put this information to good use in our 'endeavour'?" Bryson asked humbly. "For the time being we prepare to make our counter-attack against the titans: they took your home from you, so we will help you claim it back. Our retaking of Maria will serve as a stepping stone on the path to freeing humanity from the rule of the titans; to aid the Scouts in their efforts to fight back, and forge an alliance that will enable both humans and god-titan's to work together, peacefully" the Queen stated in a tranquil tone: Bryson felt his heart lift in his chest: taking on the titans again? Now there was a plan he could agree with.

"Very well, what is it you want us to do?" the former Scout asked, trying to hide the smile that was threatening to tug at the corners of his mouth: "Make ready your arms, and prepare to hunt: use the information in this journal to guide you in your plans, and assemble however many you need to aid you. If there are any additional resources required, or any course of action you are unsure of, please do not hesitate to come to me for counsel: I can assure you here and now that no subject will ever be taboo, and full disclosure will be kept in the strictest of confidence, unless stated otherwise" the Queen stated earnestly.

"Taking on bears and wolves with just a spear is one thing, but taking on the titans won't be a stroll in the woods: it's going to take us time to prepare; to train everyone up and get all the necessary equipment ready" Tyto pointed out, "If we're going to do this, we're going to do it _right_ : I want to be sure everyone is ready, and that they know _exactly_ what their going to be in for". "Take whatever time you need, I won't put any unnecessary constraints on you: unless the situation dictates otherwise" the Queen stated coolly. "Very well" Tyto bowed in respect, as did the others, "Now, if there are no other issues to discuss, we'll be heading home: we've got work to be getting on with, and Breck needs to see to his patients" he stated, "Indeed; good luck" she smiled.

After gathering up the crate, journal and letters, and heading all the way back down to the ornate jetty on the water: the humans disembarked for the island, while Javorin, Herne, Hecate and Nyiera stayed behind to converse in privet; **"...Well? I know we wanted to find a way to get this whole thing started, but wow: I never expected** _ **this**_ **"** Herne folded his arms, still dumbfounded at how this whole situation had panned out. **"The fact those items were in the wall cult's possession has me greatly concerned: the reason is evident in their purpose, but to what means and to what end would they have served them? And what other secrets do they have hidden beneath their churches?"** Jarus thought aloud.

Asteria speculated: **"It's clear the humans did not completely forget the ways of sorcery and the mystic arts: but how much of that ancient world survived? And to what purpose do those old magics serve now? …. How many humans are there alive that still know how to practise them? If there really are Wizards, Witches, Alchemists and Mages still in existence, we must know where they are, and who would side with us in protecting the great equilibrium"**

" **Minor details at the present time dear sister..."** Aureia stated as she gazed over at her, **"The magics that are imbued in those chimes and hummers, are none that we have ever encountered before: clearly the humans understanding of the mystic arts have evolved in the time we've been gone"**

" **That's for damn sure"** Nyiera sighed dryly: **"It was weird, I've never seen a combination of luring charms and submission spells like** _ **that**_ **before: it's highly unorthodox, but it did work"** Hecate commented. **"Which leaves me with a sneaking suspicion that the very nature of our endeavour will be unorthodox too: after all, we may not have any Wizards, Witches, Mages or Alchemists to hand, yet ordinary humans are not totally beyond the possibilities of magical potential; I believe it may be possible to arm them with a basic arsenal of principle magics, just in case they encounter something or someone who cannot be handled with by conventional means"** Javorin stated, **"Such as?"** Nyiera glanced down at him sceptically: **"Nothing they can't get the hang of with enough practice: just a simple concealment charm in a contained form, a spirit stone, maybe even a basic illusion spell?"** Javorin suggested, both Hecate and Nyiera glanced at one another, and shrugged, **"The illusion spell, maybe: but the rest? Shouldn't be a problem.."** Hecate smiled, before addressing Aureia, **"But, getting back to the 'unorthodox' magics for a sec: if those magics were created as a direct response to the titans, then what was the scale of the original escalation? Spells and charms of that nature don't just come about randomly or on a whim, like all things in the humans world it's something new built upon an already-existing structure. That structure, mostly likely being a weapon of some kind, and one that got out of hand if those mindless things are running around all over the place"**

" **...So what was the nature of the war, and how was it fought utilizing titans?"** the queen sighed, **"...If it wasn't for the chaos manna, I could hint at the answer to that..."**

Everyone was silent for a moment, before Jarus changed directions: **"Unorthodox magics or not: our counter-attack** _ **will inevitably**_ **lead us to cross paths with the Scouts eventually, and when it comes time to cross that bridge, we can only hope fate will not pit them against us"**. **"You doubt they'll be willing to become our allies? Even if we prove that we mean them and humanity no harm?"** Javorin frowned, **"If their smart and know how to read the situation correctly, they'll listen to us at least: but forming an alliance will only be the first step in this long journey... W** _ **e've all**_ **speculated for years now, that** _ **something**_ **about how this world has turned out the way it has, was 'off' somehow. And now, we may have finally found a small clue that's pointing us in the direction of the answers we need"** Jarus replied.

" **And you think those answers lie somewhere amid the wall cult, don't you?"** Hecate folded her arms, **"It's a no-brainer that the wall cult are only interested in their own schemes, the question is, how far will they go to achieve them? If the Disciples are the power behind the fear they spread, then we're going to face an uphill struggle when the time comes for us to confront them. When that happens, I want to be sure of** _ **exactly**_ **who and what we're dealing with"** Jarus stated.

" **Okay, but for now, how do we go about breaking bread with 'the wings of freedom'?"** Hecate asked dryly. **"Oh, that can wait: in the meantime, you'll be busy training up the humans, as well as each other"** Jarus smirked, **"What?!"** Hecate frowned in alarm as she unfolded her arms, **"Well? You** _ **are**_ **the god's mightiest** _ **:**_ **ergo** **the best choice for defence against dark magics , and showing the humans how to hunt and fight night roamer style"** he smiled, **"You'll survive: and besides, what's the worse that could happen?"**

Hecate glared broodingly at him, she _knew_ those word would come back to haunt her somehow. **"Ah don't worry, I got your back"** Javorin patted her on the shoulder, **"That's** _ **if**_ **the brats aren't the death of me first"** she sneered.

* * *

Some time later, back on the island, in the Grey Owl residence:

Everyone sat around the table in silence: the journal and two envelopes sitting in the middle of the table like an elephant in the room, while the black crate sat by the front door outside. As everyone took a moment to try and comprehend all that they had just been told, Derek pulled out the letters from both their envelopes, and read the earliest one first:

"Good brother, I am writing to you in regards to the items we confiscated three days ago, from the heretics we apprehended up near Slavmead: certain lines of information have led me to believe these items could well be part of the witch-breed's arsenal, and therefore could be possessed of certain unknown properties. I have recently acquired clearance to perform a test of these properties, and will be assembling a team for the task at hand; in the meantime, the items and the journal enclosed are to be brought before the High Cardinal for final evaluation. No other persons below your standing are to lay eyes on them... I can count on your discretion to get this sorted. Regards, Brother Spencer: captain of the southern order"

He then turned to the second letter, and read aloud:

"Good brother: I know it has only been a week since my last correspondence with you, but my test of the items has been completed, and I'm sorry to say my original speculation has proven to be true. After covertly travelling beyond wall Maria into the titan's territory, we tested the items in accordance with the instructions listed in the journal, and I'm afraid to say the properties they possess are indeed, real. The results of the tests were forwarded by express messenger three days ago, and I only just got the reply back today. The High Cardinal has ruled that the journal and items, while officially classed as 'forbidden works of heresy', are to be added to the black list, and retained in secret until such a time that their use will serve us in some vital capacity. With the titan cult still a thorn in our side, and the Reiss family still standing as an 'unresolved issue': we may yet need to utilize such items as a means to bring our enemies to heel, least our the sanctity of our rule be challenged in any way. My official report will be forwarded along to Mitras in a few days, and I will need you ready to receive it in person: be sure that no one else lays eyes on it, and make sure the necessary documents are swapped out in place of the forgeries I have created. Hopefully, this will be the last we see of the witch-breed's legacy. Regards, Brother Spencer"

An uncomfortable silence hung in the air, before Ariana was the first to speak: "...So this journal, it's got everything there is to know about the titans? Even stuff we don't know?". "Everything bar the kitchen sink" West shrugged offhand, "And that's just the stuff that's left, I mean, look how thick the spine is," Derek pointed to said spine on the journal, "How much more information was there originally? And why was it torn out?"

"Look, we've already gone over all the big questions this raises, what _I_ want to know, is how effective are these 'hummers', and how the hell do they work?" Miriam demanded.

"Well? It's just as we explained: after the sun came up and the titans were active again, Pascal and West perched up in one of the giant trees with the hummers while the rest of us watched from up on the wall, above the inner gate. Of course all the titans in the area knew we were there and started trying go at us (naturally). But as soon as they started swinging the hummers round and round, they all stopped and started wandering over to them" Falken explained.

"I have to say it was most bizarre, their eyes glazed over and dilated all the way open, as if they were in a stupor or under the influence of a powerful narcotic: whatever magics those hummers are imbued with, it causes an _actual physical change_ in their biochemistry" Claude explained as he scratched his chin, "And weirder still, once they were 'hypnotized' it was as if they were totally dead to the word: hell, I could actually _land_ on their shoulders and heads and none of them even battered an eyelid" Bryson added.

"What did Shadow and the other god-titan's make of these magics?" Hazel asked, "That's just it: they had no idea what they were or what created them. After consulting the Queen and the Keeper, we found out they're a 'chimera' combination of 'luring' charms and 'submission' spells: one gets the titans attention and 'hypnotizes' them into a trance, while the other subdues their hunger, effectively rendering them harmless" Bren explained, "And the chimes pretty much did the exact same thing. We hung them up in a tree on the eastern side of the central valley while we tested the hummers over on the west: and when we got back, we found they'd attracted over _seventy titans!_ All of them hypnotized and completely out of it, so much so that Midnight and Stormwing were able to kill all of them, and not a single one reacted!" Evrard exclaimed.

"According to the journal, it's all to do with the chaos magics that created the titans in the first place, and how the hummer's and chime's 'harmonics' are able to 'stabilize' those magics temporarily" Claude explained, "I'm sorry to say, some of the journal's detailing of this process is a little beyond my understanding: but the proof's in the pudding, and _we all_ saw it for ourselves; even the Celts and Ranger's who tagged along were thoroughly impressed by the results"

Tyto was about to speak his input, when he noticed Carla sitting at the other end of the table: her head hung low with her long black hair obscuring most of her face, and her arms resting on the table as she wrung her hands tightly. This wasn't good, he'd known Carla long enough to get a feel for her mannerisms, and knew that she always had a habit of doing that when something was stressing her out. And right now, he could tell something about this had upset her deeply: "...Carla? What's wrong?"

Everyone glanced over her, and some nearly flinched when they caught a glimpse of the look in her eyes: "...What's wrong? …." she echoed in a disturbingly clam yet shaky voice, before exploding in a fit of rage: "WHAT'S WRONG?!" pounding her fists on the table, making everyone jump back as she glared up at Tyto with the most hate-filled look anyone had ever seen in her: "-For seventy years this information has been hidden from the world! For _seventy years_ humanity has been led to believe there was no other way of fighting back, that the titans rule was absolute, and there was nothing we could do to even the odds! And all this time those _cultists bastards_ had the answer; _this whole time?!_ " She stood up quickly, knocking the chair over onto the floor as she continued to seethe, "- _MY SON IS DEAD BECAUSE OF THEM!_ I HAD TO WATCH HIM DIE, BECAUSE THOSE FUCKING SOULESS LIERS COULDN'T BE ASKED TO GIVE A SHIT ABOUT THE REST OF HUMANITY! If the Scouts had had this in their possession sooner, there might have been a way to stop the attack somehow! Maybe even prevent it from happening in the first place! Now all of Maria has fallen to the titans, and _countless_ lives lost and destroyed, and for what?! TELL ME! WHAT WERE OUR LIVES WORTH TO THEM?! WHAT WAS THE VALUE OF OUR EXSISTENCE?! What do they care for us if something like this isn't worth sharing with the military? How many more corpses are they willing to step over, until they get whatever it is they want?!..." she then collapsed to her knees, emotionally drained as she broke down into a fit of sobs: holding her hands to her face, and whimpered: "... _Why?_...I don't understand: how the hell _anyone_ can be so selfish, as to put so many lives before their own? ..."

For a moment everyone stared at her nonplussed, before most dropped their gaze in mutual frustration and sympathy; it was as if Carla herself had just vented everyone's anger in one whole go, letting loose the rage, and the incredibility at the implications of this discovery. Most of the group didn't know how to reply, and there was not point anyway, since everyone was pretty much thinking the same thing. Freya was about to step around the table to comfort her friend, when Bryson walked over to her, kneeled down, and gently took her hand. "...Do you really think you're the only one, who feels like this?..." she glanced up at him, his gaze full of seriousness and grievance as he continued: "For generations, me and my brothers and sisters have been going out beyond the wall, to try and gain more ground for humanity, and to try to understand _why_ we have been imprisoned by the titans for the past hundred years. Ours was never a glorious task, nor taken lightly: thirty percent of all new recruits died within their first year of service. A terrible statistic for sure, but we signed up never the less because we believed in our hearts of hearts that we were doing _real good:_ making progress even if it was just a little at a time... For over _a hundred years_ we've been laying our lives on the line, spilling our blood and risking death on a monthly basis: and to suddenly discover that there would have been a way to push forward all along? ….". He helped her stand back up, "...I don't know why the wall cult decided to do this: to hide this information away and forget it ever existed; I don't know if we'll ever know the answer? But _I swear on my life_ , on the lives of all the fallen Scouts who came before me, and those that continue to risk their lives even now: I will _never_ forgive the cult for this" he frowned.

"You and everyone else here," Miriam scowled as she folded her arms, "I always knew those bastards were a bunch of crooks in disguise: but _my god_ , I never expected anything like _this_ from them". "...We can't just sit on this" Ariana frowned as she glanced over at her father, "There's no way we can just keep this to ourselves, and not do something to try and fight back", "I agree" Rowan concurred, "Even if we have to fight the titans by ourselves: I _refuse_ to live on this island, knowing what I now know, and not try to do something-, _anything!_ "

"Then its a good thing the Queen wants us to do something about it" Tyto replied; everyone bar the heretics and traitors blinked in astonishment: "What?" the Raven twins exclaimed. "We knew as soon as we got back the Queen and the Keeper would want to know about this: that's why we left for the city as soon as we were back on the island" he added. "We showed them the journal, the contents of the crate, plus the two letters: we even let them see our memories to prove what we all witnessed, and Shadow and the others backed us up on it too. We discussed the whole thing at length, and eventually came to the conclusion that this was way to big to just put pin in for a later date. We know these things work: so why wait?" Eraman threw in.

Everyone glanced at one another for a moment, before Ariana boldly asked, "So what do you need us to do? Tell us what you need doing, and we'll do it". Tyto heaved a heavy sigh as he felt his heart sink a little: approaching his daughter, he looked her square in the eye with a serious gaze, making it clear he wasn't entirely okay with this; Ariana knew that look by heart, and frowned as she stood up and confronted him: "...You _damn well know_ we can do this: we've been training for the military for the past _four years_ , trained by one of _the best_ Scouts alive no less! And a real pair of mavericks to boot," she frowned, to which Pascal and West couldn't help but smile: "We've known the god-titans ever since we were little, I know their nothing like the regular titans but you know what I'm getting at: we know _damn well_ what the risks and dangers are, we survived hell once, and you can be damn sure we'll survive it again!" she stated, the unflinching look in her eyes making it clear she was serious; as did all the other kids in the room.

Kneeling down to meet her level, Tyto placed both his hands on her shoulders, and told her earnestly: "...I know... I've known since the day you and Eren rescued Mikasa from those traffickers, that you're not afraid to fight, nor are you prone to loosing your cool at the first hint of fear... As your father, It is my duty and place to ensure you, your brothers and mother stay safe, and were there no limits I would do _everything_ humanly possible to make sure the world's perils could never you. But that is _not_ the reality of the world we live in: even here in this beautiful place, we will never be truly safe: not as long as the titans exist ...I'm not saying I'm okay with this: as a father who worries for his daughter, part of me will _never_ be totally okay with this: but the rest of me, couldn't be any _prouder_ , to have you for a daughter..." he smiled sincerely. Ariana gazed at him in surprise as he stood back up, and addressed the other children, "...If you're all serious about committing to this endeavour, then you're going to have to work your asses off to make sure we achieve this: I'm not going to lecture you all on how hard this is probably going to be, or the fact that there will likely be obstacles and dangers that lay ahead. I trust you all to be able to step up to this and commit to it: if you can't handle the pressure, or don't know if you have what it takes to see this through, then just step down at any time; there's no shame in admitting weakness, or the limit of your limits... But I warn you all now: I don't know what the outcome is going to be, and I don't know if we'll all live to see it or not; but the one thing I will never give up is _trying_. I may not be the bravest or the boldest, but I am alive, and I'm here: and that's a good a start as any"

"...Seriously?" Rowan smirked, "I thought you said you weren't going to lecture us old man. And besides, do you really think _any_ of us are going to let you old geezers have all the fun?" "Yeah, I mean come on: after all the hell and shit we went through trying to get out of Shiganshina, we have just as much right to fight as any of you grown-ups" Belle stated. "And let's not forget, between _all of us_ put together, there's not much we can't do" Shyla added.

"Damn right," Gustav huffed as he folded his arms with a smirk, "You brats are gonna need an ODM engineer to keep you all flying", "Not to mention you'll need a resources team to keep you all in shape" Miriam grinned, "Resources team?" Evrard echoed as he raised a dubious eyebrow; "Damn right! While you lot are busy learning how to fight regular titans, who's going to keep you clothed, feed, and well supplied? _Us!_ That's who! We kept you lot afloat while the Black Stallion was up and running, we'll keep you stocked up and ahead of the curve"

"Not to mention some 'maverick' know-how might come in handy for something or other?" West smiled, to which Pascal couldn't help huff in defeat, as a sarcastic smile crossed his lips, "... Ah what the hell; in too deep to back out anyway, right?" he glanced over at West, who merely gave him a reassuring grin, "Right"

"Hang on..." Carla interrupted, wiping the last of her tears away, "You don't seriously expect to let the children fight by themselves do you?..." she frowned, "Without supervision?" she approached Bryson: a little more sure of herself as her eyes reflecting a sense of boldness: "If you can teach the children how to use ODM gear: you can teach me too" she glanced over at Ariana and the other kids, "... Eren and Mikasa may not be here anymore, but that doesn't mean I'm no longer a mother: I survived hell too you know, and I have no intention of backing down from this endeavour: you kids are going to need someone to watch your backs, and I'll be the one to do it" she stated, much to everyone's astonishment, "Carla..." Freya blinked in astonishment, ", Are you sure about this?", "As sure as I've ever been about anything Freya" Carla replied, "Okay, but if I train you, you've got to promise to follow my instructions, deal?" Bryson stated, "Deal" she nodded as she met his gaze. Suddenly, Lucy and Lucius hugged her around the waist, taking her by surprise; "...Listen...we know we're not Eren and Mikasa...But will this be okay? For now?" Lucius sighted as he patted her on the back.

Carla gasped softly as she remembered those words: four years back during the storm, when their parents didn't come for them; as a mother she couldn't bare to see that look in their eyes, that look that told her their hearts had broken, by the two people who should've been there with the rescue party that day. And now, having that same comfort and reassurance repaid in kindness, brought a smile to her face: "...Thank you..." she gazed down at them fondly as she hugged them back, "Look," Lucy gazed up at her, "This whole watching each other's back's is going to go both ways you know, if you intend to be there for us, then we'll be there for you: deal?", "Okay, deal" Carla smiled.

"So? How're we going to do this?" Fox asked offhand, to which Tyto's expression fell flat, "...I have _no_ idea". "Well? I'm starting off by hitting the books!" Claude proudly stated, "The 'mage-science' described in this journal is a tad beyond my expertise as a scientist, and since we live only a twenty minute boat ride away from _a whole city_ of libraries, museums and archives, it would be foolish not to utilize such a vast resource: plus, there could be other things lurking in the city that might serve us well in other capacities!". "That's all well and good, but what will we do when we run out of gas for the ODM gear?" Mabel pointed out, "Eh don't worry, I got an idea or two about that" Dale smirked.

As everyone began to brainstorm and offer up different ideas, Ariana noticed something out the window: peering down through the canopy at the forest floor, the sight on the ground made her train of thought come to a stop; "Uh dad? You might want to take a look at this..." she pointed to the window. Frowning in bemusement, Tyto gazed out the window, and was taken aback by the scene below: "What the-...what're _they_ all doing here?" he thought aloud as he paced through the kitchen to the hallway, and out the front door: much to everyone's confusion.

Jogging down the long spiralling trunks to the ground, he jumped down off the giant roots, and walked over to where the Celts, Rangers and their god-titan's had gathered at the base of the tree: the gathering consisted of most of the veteran hunters with a good portion of the rookies gathered too, all from the clans and families, including the ones who were part of the scavenger party last night. "Uh, what're all you guys doing here?" Tyto asked in confusion: "We heard about what happened last night, about-, the _discovery_ , inside the wall cult church" Ratatosk replied anxiously, "Bowen and the others told us everything, even about the 'experiments' you conducted. And, how successful they were... " Warren added: "...And?" Tyto raised an eyebrow, already getting a vague idea as to where this was probably going: "...Is it really true, the wall cult _knew_ about this, and decided to hide it way from mankind?" Tarka asked anxiously; "...Yes, I'm afraid it's true" Tyto sighed regretfully as a chorus of astonished gasps went up amid the group, "They _knew_ what those thing were and what they could do: all this time they had the means to help mankind fight back against the titans, and they just did nothing?" one of the Ryder's frowned, "I know, I'm-, still trying to wrap my head around it..." Tyto replied he stroked his head, "So? Why're you all here?"

The heads of the clans and family's stepped forth boldly as one, with Ratatosk being the one to speak first: "Ever since your return earlier this morning, we've been informed as to what happened, and have been discussing it at great length". Bowen then stated, "We've been weighing up our options and have come to a unanimous agreement: we've decided to aid you and the god-titan's in your endeavour"; "... Somehow, that doesn't really surprise me..." Tyto sighed with a weak smile before turning serious, "Okay, but are you sure this is what you want to do? I only say it because I don't want any of you getting mixed up in something you're not prepared to face, or don't have the courage to see to the end"

"Trust me, after learning about this, we _want_ to do something to rectify it" Ratatosk frowned, "Besides, Bryson was right..." Bowen sighed in regret, "How we did things before, what we did to stay alive? None of that's going to work anymore. We have to start pushing back, and _fighting_ for our right to live in this world, because if we don't we'll _never_ survive". "And so, we stand with you brother: through thick and thin for better or worse, we will _fight_ to take back Maria from the titans" Dakota stated vehemently, "So? What can we do to help get things started?" Brooke smiled.

Scanning his eyes over the group, Tyto could see each and every one of them was willing and committed to this: it would probably do little good to argue otherwise at this point; sighing in defeat, Tyto straightened up and replied: "We've got a lot of work to do..."

* * *

 **Wow, I don't think I could squeeze any more serendipitous-ness into one chapter without making it an all-out Mary-sue (which I might have inadvertently done anyway, sorry about that :/). Never the less, there were some vital plot twists that were orginally planned for this chapter, and although it ended up with a lot crammed in, the next few chapters can progress in the direction I want them to go :) Next up, training!**

 **Hope you enjoyed the chapter, & don't forget to R&R before clicking off Cheers!**


	16. Chpt 15: Prep Work

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Chapter 15: Prep Work

845, October, The foothills of the Great Eastern Mountain:

"-HARD ON THE RIGHT!" Bryson barked as he flew through the forest canopy

"I KNOW! I GOT IT!" Red shouted back as he shot his lines and flew over the bushes at breakneck speed.

The young Ranger kept his eyes on the titan as he rounded the next tree, quickly shooting his lines again to dart up into the canopy, right before he could be grabbed: like a squirrel he latched onto the nearest branch and ran on all fours as high as the limb would permit him, before shooting his lines again, and swinging down and away from the titan's reach. But as the behemoth turned to pursue his quarry, Ariana, Ash and Hazel dropped down behind the giant, landing dead on his nape, and delivering the fatal blow: the titan came to a screeching halt, dropped down to his knees, and deliberately lowered himself down onto his front; thus concluding the exercise.

"Excellent!-" Bryson cheered: as did the rest of group that had been watching from the safety of the giant trees, along with their bird-titans who hooted and chirped in delight. Sailing back down to the ground, Red came up alongside Ariana, Hazel and Ash as they landed next to Shadow, who sat up and breathed a deep sigh of relief, just as Bryson jumped down to meet them. "Well done Red, you finally got the hang of that upward turn" he smiled, "I know right?! _Holy shit_ I didn't think I'd get it that time!" the young red-head practically bounced on his heels: "Considering you've only been doing the advanced training for about a month, I'm impressed you mastered that move already: it took me three months to get it right" Ariana smiled as she placed her wooden training blades back in their scabbards, and then placed hand grips back in their holsters.

"Indeed, that's not a simple move to pull off at such a low hight, you should be proud of your accomplishment..." Bryson patted him on the back, before gazing up into the trees and motioning to the rest of the group to join him, "Alright everyone, come on down!" he called up. Shooting their lines and lowering themselves down back down to the forest floor, the group of fifteen young Celts and Rangers gathered around as the former Scout addressed them: "Okay, we've all done well this morning, but I'm afraid the lesson will have to be resumed tomorrow, as I have a meeting to attend in the city, so for the rest of the day you're to disassemble and clean your gears, putting them back together in _exact_ working order, and making sure they run smoothly... Remember, these gears are your life out in the titan's territory, without them, you won't last more than a few hours on the ground or in the trees: proper care and maintenance _ensures_ your survival; and _I will_ be checking over your work upon my return" he stated in a commanding tone, to which many of the group voiced their acknowledgement: "Okay then, let's head back" he ordered.

Shadow transformed himself into his elemental form, and took off up through the dense canopy into the sky, with Bryson, Ariana, Ash and Hazel all safely within his grip: while the rest of the group flew back up into the trees to mount their bird-titan's, and take off for Yggdrasil Island. "You know, they're really coming along!" Ariana shouted over Shadow's powerful updraughts: "I don't know what's more incredible: the fact they're fast learners or that Gustav managed to build those ODM gears in less than two months!" Hazel shouted back, "In any case, they're doing just as well as the rest" Bryson smiled as he stretched out his arms, feeling as if they were wings: feeling the force of the wind as the god-titan carried them aloft over the lake, back to the island on the cool mountain winds.

Autumn had come to the Hidden Land, and with it, the turning of the seasons and the changes they brought: as the days grew shorter, the trees bore their splendid colours as they shed their leaves, lighting the canopy up as if it were on fire, while they decorated the ground in a veritable pallet of reds, oranges, yellows, buffs, browns, and even some pinks here and there. Fruits, berries and mushrooms were abundant as the cooler days brought morning mists and dew to the undergrowth, while the smaller animals were preparing for their hibernations. But while nature was readying itself for the coming winter, the human inhabitants of Yggdrasil had been quite busy of late: as had their titanic friends...

Landing near Gustav's forge, Shadow and the bird-titans assembled to let their riders/passengers dismount, before Bryson led the group over to the entrance of the smithy, where the old grouch was busy tidying up. "Back a little early aren't you?" he regarded the former Scout with a raised eyebrow, "I thought you and the brats would be gone for the day?". "Uh Gustav, it's Friday?" Ariana frowned in confusion; he looked at her weirdly for a moment, before suddenly remembering: "-Ah hell! The meeting! _of course!_ " he face-palmed. "Got any more grease for the students?" Bryson chuckled, "In the pots by the window around the corner, help yourselves" he thumbed over to the side of the building. As the group headed around the building, Red noticed Ariana, Ash and Hazel didn't follow: "Aren't you guys coming?" he asked offhand, "We already cleaned ours this morning" Ash shrugged, "If you want to make the most of your day, try getting up a few hours earlier to clean your gear" he smirked before following Bryson and the others into the smithy, "Later," "Uh-, yeah, see you guys later" the ginger-haired hunter waved good-bye, before running off to catch up with the group.

Inside the smithy, Bryson and the kids saw Bren over in the corner finishing off the final touches on a pair of hand grips, while near the centre by the large worktable, Bemadette was busy assembling a set of gas tanks, making sure they slotted into place atop a pair of scabbard boxes: "Hey guys!" she waved to them, "Hey Bem'" Hazel sighed: "How goes the work?", "Pretty good, we just about finished this unit, and the parts for the next one are ready to be put together this afternoon" Bren smiled.

Ariana was about to say something, when a couple of men entered the building behind her: "Gustav? The new crop of iron bamboo is here" one of them spoke as he picked up a pair of thick leather gloves, "Ah good, we've been waiting for that all morning," the Willum elder strode outside to where a tall well-built deer-titan stood with a huge bundle of iron bamboo tied to his back, and one other man sitting on his left shoulder: the bundle was enormous, with many of the stems reaching well over thirty meters in length. How the deer-titan was able to get it through the dense forest without snagging a single one was a real feat of manoeuvrability, and as he carefully balanced the bundle on his back, he bent forward to let his rider skilfully climb down his arm, and jump down to the ground, "Seventy five new stems as ordered" he smiled "And the new crop should be ready by the end of the month". "That'll be fine," Gustav nodded, before glancing up at the deer-titan, "Take the bundle over to the shop and tell the guys to start stripping it down for processing". The deer-titan nodded, and walked around the side of the building to where the machine shop lay parallel to the smithy: followed by his rider.

"Hey Gustav!" Another gentleman greeted him as he rode a large silver and grey deer-titan up to the smithy with a couple of large wicker baskets strapped over his back: "Boar just finished up 'summoning' the ore: this batch looks to be quality stuff," he stated as his sizeable friend helped him down, before reaching behind him and unloading the baskets, all of which contained various-sized chunks of raw unpossessed metal ore. Glancing over the shiny dark grey chunks of rock, Gustav gave a short nod of approval: "Okay, take it round the back, I'll sort through it later: you join the others and get to work on prepping the new cable reel cases" he thumbed over his shoulder, "Yes sir," the gentleman smiled as he entered the smithy, while the deer-titan smiled and nodded as he picked up the baskets and carried them around to the back of the building.

"Wow, busy much? Who're the new guys? I thought you already had enough volunteers helping you out?" Ash asked offhand as he and the others stepped outside with Gustav, as he continued to sweep the paved stone floor. "Marcus's knowledge as a gunsmith makes him skilled enough to put a decent ODM gear together. Weston worked as a farrier up near Berkenhain before he married Ratatosk's eldest niece, and Denny was a blacksmith who used to make hunting knives for the Otter Clan: they may not be up to _my_ calibre, but they learn on their feet and can do a good enough job. Between them and the other guys I got on rotation here at the shop, the iron bamboo grove, the ore mine and the ice-burst stone cave (plus Bren and Bemadette of course), we finally got enough people to be able to start making up to three ODM gears a day," Gustav replied, "After all, there's no accounting for what the titans get up to: someone goes down and their gear smashes up beyond all repair, what're we to do for a back-up?" he shrugged.

"That's true" Bryson sighed offhand, "So how're the new brats working out? Considering they took their sweet time making their minds up, I'd be amazed if their able to stick it out long enough upon facing their first titan" the old grouch smirked slyly, "Not Red, he's been training since day one" Hazel pointed out, "Along with Avocet, Jenny, Strider, Robin, Figg, Dirk, Dawn, Samuel, Tony, and the Mayburn brothers", "Not to mention some of the other kids from the clans: they were just as eager to join as Red was" Ash pointed out, "It was only his brothers, and those other three kids that finally decided to sign up for the Hunt: but I think they only joined up to save face with the rest of their families" Ariana shrugged.

"I still can't believe over a hundred and thirty people volunteered for this..." Ash thought aloud, "And the fact we were able to put together thrity ODM gears in less than three months has been nothing short of amazing". "Heh, That's my crew for ya, I work em' like dogs: and trust me, they're earning their pay for this" Gustav grinned as he propped his broom up against the wall and folded his arms. "Yeah, but even with dad and the others having to go back to Shiganshina to scavenge more units from the military depot to make up the numbers, (along with all those other items they brought back), we still haven't got enough units for everyone," Ariana sighed, "At the rate we're making progress, those units we took can be put back by next spring: remember, we're _not_ stealing from the military, we're only borrowing the equipment until we can get our own in place" Bryson reminded her, "I know that, I'm just saying it'd be easier if the machine shop had more stuff in it to help the production line speed up a little: it's been three months since we started getting everything together and training up all the volunteers, and we're _still_ only half done" Ariana pointed out. "Well it ain't like we're right on the doorstep of Industrial city kid, it's not like I got a whole _factory_ to churn out a hundred units a day!" Gustav gave her the hairy eyeball, before Ash tried to assure him, "Yeah we know, and _believe me_ you guys have done an _amazing_ job-", "-Damn straight!" Bemadette called out from within the smithy, before the redhead continued: ", But even though we got the gears _and_ the gas to replenish them, there's still the problem of the pairing blades". "Ugh!-, _don't remind me!_ " Gustav huffed as he headed back inside, "-I'll be bringing it up in the meeting! Don't worry!"

Glancing at one another, the kids just shrugged: "Well? I dunno about you guys, but I still got a few things to take care of before the meeting this afternoon, like checking in with dad and the others" Ariana offered as she climbed up into Shadow's waiting palm, and let him deposit her on his shoulder; "I best be getting along too, catch you kids later," Bryson waved good-bye, before shooting his lines and taking up off into the trees. "You guys wanna come with us?" Ariana offered, "Well it's not like we got much else to do? Hey Shadow, can you see where my brother's got to?" Hazel asked offhand: the god-titan's eyes glowed for a moment, before he spelt out, :He's with Dale and the others in the Lodge:. "Huh, they must be working on the new hunting formations" Ariana thought aloud, "Okay then, to the Lodge it is". After allowing Ash and Hazel to fly up onto his other shoulder, Shadow gently got back up and headed off in the direction of Clay's location.

As they strode through the town and out into the forest, the kids glanced down at the streets below, and up into the tree-top neighbourhood, watching all the various people go about their daily routines.

After three months of settling in and adjusting to their new lives alongside the god-titans, the Celts and Rangers had finally amalgamated their expanded families and clans into one large community: without the threat of the Wall Cult or Royal Government to worry about, they found themselves free to be more open and expressive in their cultural traditions, and to structure their new town as they saw fit. Tyto and the other heads of the clans and families had become the unofficial 'council' that oversaw the day-to-day running of things: everything from establishing the rules and codes of conduct (no one was keen to use the word 'law', as it sounded too formal) to ensuring everyone had their fair share of resources; from clothes and food to tools and raw materials, to aid in their home chores or jobs in the community.

It was as lively as it was homely, and many took to their new roles in this community with a quiet enthusiasm. A good number were carpenters and wood whittlers, so just about everything from basic household maintenance to boat building was taken care of, and with Shadow and the tree-titans on hand to grow an endless supply of wood in specially arranged copses, none of the forest ever had to be felled. Quite a few showed a penchant for gardening and growing vegetables, and so they became the designated gardeners for the communal gardens: ensuring the plants remained strong and healthy, and that the crops were good and plentiful. Most of the women, having helped their families on many a hunt, were expert seamstresses, especially with raw hides and dressed leather: they were able to make anything from clothing to accessories, and even saddles and tack for the deer and bird titans; they were also good at knitting, crocheting, weaving, and particularly embroidery and appliqué, with some of the more well-seasoned seamstresses being able to create truly beautiful works of art. Plus the fact Crystal had a boundless supply of silk meant they could create some truly luxurious items to wear, as well as make the strongest ropes anyone had ever seen. Some were expert healers, using medicinal herbs and plants to treat a whole range of illnesses and other health problems, and so under Breck's guidance, they became his unofficial 'apprentices' at the town hospital.

Law and order wasn't much of an issue on the island, in terms of crime, as everyone got along fine with each other and there were plenty of resources and food to go around: of course nothing and no one was perfect, and there would be disputes and disagreements here and there. So any serious issues raised would be brought to the court house in the centre of town, where a panel consisting of elders and some of the council heads would hear out both parties, question anyone else who was involved, and examine any evidence so as to rule out any bias and keep everything fair and neutral; then agree on a verdict.

This form of 'abidance' was well received by the community, and no one raised any issues over the subject: however, the god-titan's had their own rules that they lived by. No hunting on the island being one of them, there was also the 'law' that forbade anyone, human and god-titan alike from chopping off any of Yggdrasil's limbs or harvesting the sap, collecting and eating the fruit was permissible, but only once it had fallen from the tree. Then there was the law that decreed that all beings are one and the same, regardless of their external forms and are to be regarded and treated as equals: none will work for another, but rather, _with_ one another in all and any endeavours. And there was also the law that stated: none shall use their power or will to influence or dictate the freedom of another: ergo, no god-titan was to use their powers to do harm or deceive a human, nor was any human to trick a god-titan into using their powers for their own personal gain, regardless of whether it was good or bad. The latter was a tad redundant, as were the other laws since neither god-titan or human had any gripes with each other; but still, there was always room for trouble to spring up somewhere down the line, and so for the sake of prudence and maintaining order, these 'codes of abidance' were neatly carved onto a huge board and displayed outside the courthouse for all to see.

"...The place is really starting to feel more like a town, isn't it?" Ariana smiled as she watched a couple of little children horsing around with one of the smaller tree-titans: "Yeah..." Ash smiled as he noticed a group of gentlemen fixing the roof of one of the ground-based houses, with the help of a ten meter tall deer-titan who was using his antlers as a crane system to lift the roof truss beams into place. "In retrospect it's probably better to have additional company: I mean, living by ourselves might have been a good idea initially, but when you think about it, we'd probably all go mad after a while; having to put up with just each other on the same island day after day?" he smirked, "Being stuck with Rowan, Clay and the twins?" Hazel dryly droned, " _-Oh boy_ ". Ariana, Ash and Shadow all burst out laughing, while the redhead shot them a fustrated look, "Hell, we'd probably _all_ end up in the loony house!" Ariana chuckled: "Off our rockers, every last one of us!" Ash laughed he stroked back his long black bangs; "...Yeah well; it might have also gotten boring by the fact we'd have had no one else to talk to, (humans I mean)..." Hazel pointed out, "...Yeah, that's true..." Ariana sighed as the smile dropped from her face. The red-head's sarcasm wasn't lost on either Ariana or Ash, and Shadow could tell something was up; but for the sake of not wanting to ruin the moment, she didn't say anything, and simply changed the subject, "...I still can't believe so many people survived the titans during the first week after the breach: and the fact _there might still_ be more out there in Maria is pretty frightening...".

A long moment of silence passed between the kids for a moment, before Ariana nearly jumped, "- _Oh hell!_ I forgot to ask Bryson about Claude's research! Do either of you know how the field tests with the new hummers and chimes went?", "Pretty good I think?" Ash shrugged nonchalantly, "I was talking with Derek about it yesterday, apparently it went quite well" Hazel commented, "He didn't mention all the details, but he did say he'd be announcing the results at the meeting today". "Okay, I just want to be sure the instructions in the journal were followed right," Ariana breathed a sigh of relief; "Then its a good thing that journal was very specific on how to make those things, like how a good alternative to ceramic is bamboo".

"At least using them is straight forward: no fancy incantations to remember and recite" Hazel thought aloud. :You recite the concealment spell quite well, and it's not _that_ hard to remember surely?: Shadow spelt out, "Well no, it's just that-, some of the other spells and charms you guys can do, require you to say stuff that sounds so long it couldn't possibly fit on the page of a book... And anyway, that's something that's always bugged me, _how the hell_ are you able to recite a spell if you can't talk?" she gave him a weird look, to which he smiled and tapped the side of his head, :Telepathy counts. If you can imagine the words and know what they sound like, then the incantation still holds power:. "Huh, so even if you _think_ up a spell, it can still work," Ariana thought aloud, before she realized, "-But wait a sec, I think about the concealment spell incantation sometimes, making sure I get it right: so how come _I_ don't turn invisible every time I think it?", :Because you're not someone born with a natural degree of magic; wizards, witches, mages and alchemists are able to craft and wield magics because they're born with a certain level of those mystical energies in their blood. Ordinary people, though they don't have that same level of naturally imbued magic, are not totally beyond being able to wield it. It's just that they need a self-sustaining source of magic in order to do it. The concealment spell only works because we _'re_ always on hand to let you borrow a tiny fraction of our power. However, we're working on trying to find a way for you all to have your own source of magic, without resorting to using our blood:.

"You guys are still picky about the whole blood thing huh?" Hazel gaze him a slightly wry look, :For good reason: Shadow glanced at her seriously, :I've already explained why we don't allow you to use our blood so freely; it's an invitation for trouble:, "Just _hanging out_ with you guys outside this place is an invitation for trouble: remember back to when we still had you as our big secret? and we went to all that hassle to avoid getting you noticed by _anyone_ , not least the Scouts?" Hazel sarcastically shot back. "Look, Shadow's right, we've already been over this and it's no big deal: after all, it turns out their blood's not the only part of their body that's got magical properties. The hair, feathers, tears and tusks are all viable, and extracting them doesn't involve a needle being stuck in the skin" Ash pointed out. :Exactly: the god-titan nodded in concurrence, :After all, we don't want someone else's eyes changing colour, or worse:, "Ah come on big guy stop beating yourself up over that!" Ariana playfully punched him on the jaw, "I can still see out of it thanks to you, and besides, it looks cool", :Yes well, at least it's one thing I don't have to worry about; the _last thing_ I need is any surprises catching me off-guard:

"-INCOMING!" a voice yelled out nearby, right before something flew in front of Shadow's face and exploded with a loud bang, immediately followed by a huge cloud of white smoke: the god-titan quickly threw his arms up over his face as he jumped back and away, his sudden jerky movement threw the children off his shoulders as he corrected his balance, and summoned the wind to blow the smoke away. As they fell, the children shot their lines and flew away, coughing and hacking as they tried to get upwind of the smoke: perching in the nearby trees as Shadow assumed a fighting stance, the three youngsters looked around for the source of the sudden explosion. "-What the hell was that?!" Ash exclaimed as he scanned the ground, "Dunno but it was loud!" Hazel called back as she tried the catch her breath, "You okay Shadow?!" Ariana flew back to him and perched on his shoulder, :It's alright: he assured her as he gently stroked her back.

"- _Holy Sina_ who did we hit?!" Claude's panicked voice yelled in alarm as he rushed out of the tall bushes with Derek, Rowan, Dale, Lucius and Pascal on his heels. As he laid his eyes on Shadow, his panic spiked ten-fold: "- _Oh good heavens!_ I'm so sorry Shadow! I had no idea you were coming this way!" he ran up to him as the god-titan kneeled down to meet him. Landing back on the ground next the giant's shins, Ariana, Ash and Hazel gave him a weird look: "Claude, what the hell did you just fire at us?!" Ariana demanded, "Oh please I am sorry children! It was an accident, a miscalculation in trajectory! I didn't mean to-

Pascal placed a heavy hand on his shoulder, as he stepped forward to clarify: "-What he means is: sorry about that, it was a total accident". "Okay, but what _was_ that thing?!" Ariana reiterated, "The new smoke-snap bombs!" Rowan grinned broadly as he held them up in his outstretched hand to show them: the bombs in question were little round parcels of pale rolled up paper (much like a toffee from a sweet shop), about the size of a large walnut with blue ink on the tips: "-Pascal came up with the idea years ago to escape the Military Police, and Claude improved the size of the bang with his new gunpowder formula". "Indeed. it should come in most handy if a titan's hot on your tail, and you need a quick and easy smoke-screen (quite literally) to distract his attention" Claude stated in a satisfied tone as he regained his composure, adjusting his pince-nez. "According to the journal, if a titan completely looses sight of its prey, it'll stop chasing after it: so these should prove effective in evading the enemy if we're caught short on the ground," Dale explained as Pascal held up two other bombs, one marked with red ink, the other marked with yellow "And after tweaking the formula a few different ways, we also came up with a flash-snap bomb, which gives off a blinding explosion of lights: and a bang-snap, which just makes a really loud bang. Any one or a combination of these would be effective at throwing a titan off and allowing enough time to find cover" he grinned. "Ah but don't forget, that's _if_ you're hunting in the forest, with plenty of cover left right and centre: out on the open plains you'd be a tad hard-pressed to find somewhere adequate to hide" Claude pointed out, "Which is _why_ we go with the big guy here," Pascal motioned to Shadow, "With his concealment spell keeping us from being spotted, we'll have nothing to worry about" he stated smugly as he folded his arms. "If it can be helped we won't need to rely on him, not once he's got a 'vessel' for his magic to be kept in," Lucius pointed out, before smiling up at said god-titan, "Speaking of which, how's your research on that coming along Shadow?"

With a heavy sigh, he spelt out, :... Slow. I'm thinking I'll go to my brother for help:, "Okay, well I'm sure you'll find something eventually; you guys are the experts after all" Lucius offered, "But in the meantime, we found a suitable alternative to the concealment spell 'vessel'..." he motioned to the forest beside him, "...What do you think?". Ariana frowned in confusion, "What're we supposed to be looking at Lucius?": summoning his power to scan the forest with his mind's eye, Shadow smiled and nodded, :Very good, simple but highly effective:, "What's effective?" Ash frowned up at him. "Okay guys! Come on out!" Lucius shouted, beckoning whoever he was calling to to come forth: as they kept their eyes on the trees and bushes, Ariana, Ash and Hazel nearly jumped when the ground began to move just a few meters away, seemingly taking on a humanoid shape as it 'stood' up.

Several more strange mounds seemed to come to life as they too stood up and turned to face them: then, as they looked more closely, the kids realized the 'mounds' were actually sleeved cloaks of thickly woven muslin that trailed all the way down to the ground, dyed in varying hues of greens and browns, with leaf-litter, moss, twigs, and loose-hanging ripped and tattered straps of burlap, hessian and muslin sewn on all over; creating, what was essentially a convincing replica of the forest floor. "Whoa!..." Ash stared at the figures in wide-eyed surprise, "I know right right?!" Rowan grinned madly, "You could just drop to the ground and no one would be none the wiser!", "What are those?!" Ariana smiled, "And how do I make my own?". "They're called Ghillie cloaks" one of the Ranger's smiled as he threw back his hood and unbuttoned the front of his cloak, stepping out from the spot where he'd been hiding: "It's an old hunting tradition of us Rangers: we use them to stalk game in the wild, as well as avoid any unsavoury characters" he explained, "If you know how to make one correctly, you could go for days, even weeks undetected: and depending on the size, it can even double up as a make-shift tent" one of the other Ranger's smiled, "How come we've never heard of this?" Hazel raised an eyebrow.

"Because it's a family tradition that's been passed down in secret," Brooke explained as he quietly stepped out from the bushes, "With the Royal Government and Wall Cult ever vigilant, it's one of our best lines of defence in evading them, and thus a well-kept secret that isn't shared until our seventh year; only then do we learn to craft our own cloaks and use them accordingly. Many a Ranger and Celt owes their life to one of these" he gestured to the cloak nearest to him, "Thus, it is a craft that is held in the highest of regards and respect". "Of course, sharing this secret of ours with 'regular' folk has always been forbidden: but, under the circumstances we've agreed to make an acceptation; for the sake of the hunt" one of the other Ranger's threw in with a sheepish smile. :Thank you: Shadow smiled, before turning to Brooke, :I sense there is something important at hand. Is everything okay?:, "Nothing serious: I just came to let you all know that something came up and we had to move to meeting forward. Tyto and the rest of the counsel have already left for the city, and Gustav and the others are on their way to the boat yard right now: the meeting starts in forty five minutes" he replied. "forty five minutes?" Ariana gazed at him in surprise, "Oh we better get going then," Claude checked his pocket watch, before turning to the Rangers, "Would you mind finishing up here? We should be back by mid-afternoon at the latest" he asked, "Sure thing, we got it covered" one of the other Ranger's gave him a thumb's up. "...Typical, and there's me thinking I'd be able to squeeze lunch in before then" Pascal sighed under his breath as he folded his arms in mild annoyance.

* * *

Three quarters of an hour later, inside the City of Omnes Scientiam:

As everyone gathered together in the great garden of the tree of knowledge, the queen and her entourage arrived to head up the meeting, with Shadow, Midnight and Boar standing alongside them and their humans in a wide circle. There was a slight apprehension in the air, as this meeting was to serve as a status report: a broad review of the last few months and what progress had been made in preparation for 'the Hunt'.

The Hunt was an intuitive that had been thought up by the heretics and traitors, as a means to hunt and kill the titans that were rapidly populating Maria: from the beginning it was clear that a combination of military tactics and Celtic hunting techniques would be the way to go, since they didn't have the resources the Scouts had at their disposal. Everyone knew from the start that they would have to do things differently, and while Bryson served as the chief expert on hunting and killing titans, Tyto and his brothers sublimated some of the traditional Scouting methodology, with Celtic survival know-how. But it wasn't all the heretics and traitors smarts that contributed to their success: the journal that Derek discovered in Shiganshina's church had proven to be a treasure-trove of vital information... Information, that had turned out to be surprisingly true...

"Is that everyone?" Ariana asked Dale discreetly as she scanned the faces of every human present, "All but one," Bryson sighed in disappointment; wondering who he meant, Ariana rechecked, and saw that indeed, one was missing: "Mrs Jaeger's late?", "No..." Dale sighed, "She and Angel are pulling double on the flight training: combat with Stormwing" " _Again?_ That's the forth time this week, how's she not tired by now?" she exclaimed in surprise, trying to keep her voice down, "Should we wait for her?" Lucy asked offhand, "No," Tyto sighed in disappointment, "Unfortunately we can't..." he glanced up at Shadow, "Okay, shall we begin?". The god-titan bowed his head, and glanced over at Queen Aurora with a discreet nod: with small polite nod of acknowledgement, the queen stepped forward announced: "Friends, are we ready to begin?"

"Yes your majesty" Tyto bowed respectively: "Then, you may open the proceedings Tyto" she smiled down at him.

* * *

Meanwhile, above the western mountain range:

The winds whipped high over the mountains, swirling and vortexing over the peaks before dropping down to the valleys and lake below: carrying thick clouds that stretched and warped with the currents like cigar smoke, creating long ribbons and shrouds of mist that made the tops of the mountains drop in and out of sight.

The huge black ominous-looking silhouette of Stormwing glided silently through the pale brume, as she navigated the mountain tops: scanning the foothills and slopes periodically, before glancing up above her; ordinarily, she was the alpha hunter, the one who lorded over the skies with no other bird-titan big or strong enough to take her on. But today, there was an acceptation...

" **Where are you? ..."** she thought aloud as she summoned her power to read the ambient energies of the earth and sky: but just as she turned her head to the left, a sharp shrill whittling could be heard fast approaching from above and behind from the right; she just barely had time to bank hard to the left before a streak of pure white zipped right by her, missing her shoulder by mere feet. The powerful downdraught that followed in the speedster's wake was huge, so much so that it forced the titan-goddess to spread her wings and brace for an emergency landing. Finding a safe spot in a wide open glen next the lake's shore, Nyiera hit the earth with a resounding thud that shook the nearby trees to their roots, and caused every creature in the vicinity to flee. Glancing back up, Nyiera just barely had time to move as the white blur came back at her, and attacked her shoulder with a shrill screech, revealing itself to be Elysia. As the weather goddess kicked and clawed as the giant, Carla shot off her back and proceeded to attack: with her ODM gear working at full tilt, the raven-head's offence was fast and swift, with a strength and anger that forced the much larger bird-titan to keep her wits about her.

" **You're most eager today,"** Nyiera grinned as she tried to keep the smaller goddess at bay, while as the same time trying to grab Carla, who immediately flew into her blind-spot, **"Any particular reason for the extra enthusiasm?"**. **"We need to work on our combined assault!"** Elysia grunted as she laid into the night roamer, **"Yesterday's performance was too slow, and our timing was off in places; if we're going to be killing the titans, then we need to get it right!"** she stated fiercely as she used her wings and flank-plumes to shield herself from a downstroke of Nyiera's wings, **"Brat, your commitment to this endeavour is unquestionable: and there's no doubting you two have got guts,"** Nyiera stated as she coolly fought back, taking each blow in her stride, **"But don't you think you might want to give it a rest? Even for just a day? You've been at this whole training thing for three month straight with no breaks"**. **"The Scouts don't take breaks, Bryson says they train day in day out to perfect their attacks and fighting skills: so why should we be any different? The titans won't be giving us any breaks!"** the younger goddess shot back aggressively, Nyiera was about to retort back, when Carla made her move and landed a hard strike to the back of her nape with her wooden pairing blades, signalling the end of the fight. Stepping back and huffing in defeat, Nyiera got down on all fours, and sat herself down in the long grass, while Carla flew around her large shoulders, and landed back on Elysia's right shoulder.

"Excellent work Angel!" Carla smiled in satisfaction as she gently patted her on the cheek, "Definitely an improvement from yesterday" she nodded in approval, to which Angel replied with an equally satisfied warble and chirp. Motioning for her to put her down, the titan-goddess gently lowered herself forward, enabling Carla to jump down to the ground: "...I just need a drink, then we can get back to the lodge and work on those-

But Carla didn't even finish her sentence as she collapsed onto her side in the grass: **"-CARLA!"** Elysia panicked as she frantically read her aura, **"She's weak?! How can she be weak?!"** she glanced up at Nyiera pleadingly, **"Because she's got low blood sugar, idiot"** the larger goddess dryly gazed down at her as she came around Carla's other side, **"She's been pushing herself so hard that she's neglected to eat properly; she just needs some food in her"** , **"Your sure?", "Just get her back to the island and get her to the hospital, tell them what I told you, they'll know what to do"** Nyiera stated as she gingerly picked up the unconscious woman between her razor-sharp teeth, and deposited her in Elysia's back feathers. Elysia didn't waste time and took off up into the air, making a bee-line for the island: **"What the hell do I tell the others?!"** she panicked, **"Not my problem brat!"** she called back.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in the city:

"All things considered we've made surprisingly good time, given the scale of the operation" Tyto summed up, as he looked over the notes he held in one hand, "The rest of the volunteers are fully trained in the basics of ODM gear usage, and are now ready to begin learning the more advanced manoeuvres. We have over a hundred wind chimes and hummers, all of which have been imbued with the luring charms listed in the journal _and_ tested in full, plus we have over a hundred deer, bird and tree titans who've volunteered to lend their strength and skills to the Hunt. Thus far, we're still on schedule to start as early as next January: that is, if we can address one or two important issues..." he motioned over to Gustav, "Gustav?"

"Right," The Willum elder stepped forward to say his piece, "As Tyto as already explained, the ODM gear production is still running on schedule: we should have over twenty units built and ready by the end of next month, bringing the total up to a hundred and thirty, and another sixty-plus surplus ready by early December. Between Boar's ore-summoning powers and Shadow's plant and tree growing powers, we've got all the ultrahard steel and iron bamboo we need to make our quota: not to mention the ice-burst stones needed to replenish the gas. That being said, we're trying to be conscientious of our stock, and so I tweaked the design to make it faster and more light-weight. Changing the all-metal scabbard boxes for mahogany or yew wood for a start, I also incorporated my mods to make the gas go further, and make the unit go faster: it takes a bit getting used to but it works... But, we've _still_ got no way to make a decent set of pairing blades" he reluctantly added.

"I thought the machine shop had everything you needed to make what was necessary?" Ryder asked offhand, "Yeah, you can blame my overzealous enthusiasm for that..." Gustav huffed in frustration as he scratched the back of his neck, explaining further, "The machine shop's got _most_ of what we need: gas compressors for replenishing the supply tanks, moulds for metal casting, smelting kilns for extracting the ore from the rock, and most of the other things needed to make the units: but casting disposable pairing blades has been proving problematic. The bottom line is we just don't have the machinery or blast-furnace to make them: the closest equivalent would be a sword of the same dimensions, but it'll take at least two weeks to make just _one_ , never mind a hundred and thirty pairs, plus surplus"

A chorus of concerned whispers went around the circle as everyone gazed at him sceptically: "Are we sure there's no suitable alternative?" Ratatosk suggested, "What about cannons? I understand they can blow a titan's head clean off?". "With the correct aim, distance and trajectory, a cannon _can_ take a titan's head off and sever the nape from the inside out. However, given a titan's fast-paced movements and the time needed to load each round: such a bullseye is usually a lucky shot; also, using cannons of the size needed to take down a titan takes time and manpower, and even with the elk-titans pulling them in specially created wagons, we'd be slowed down dramatically. Putting _everyone_ at considerable risk" Bryson explained in a grim tone, "Not to mention just casting _one_ of those things is going to use up over three quarters of the ore in our supply: it's just not feasible" Gustav grumbled, letting Bemadette take the opportunity to offer her idea, "But what _would_ be viable, is to make Angel and the other other 'non-bird-of-prey' bird-titans a set of metal claws they can use to sever the titans napes from above. All they'd have to do is swoop down and _whoosh!_ They could take out every titan in their path quickly and efficiently, and it'd be _perfect_ for somewhere that's open and got no cover, like out on the plains. I calculated the time it would take to make one pair of these clawed gauntlets: if I'm allowed to get started right away I can have Angel's first pair done within less than a week, _and_ it won't take up much of the ore we got; there'll be plenty to go around". Everyone blinked in surprise, "A week? Are you sure?" Bowen asked, slightly surprised, "Hey, this _my_ apprentice your talking to: if she says she can get it done in a week, she'll get it done in a week; okay?" Gustav folded his arms, making it clear the issue wasn't up for debate.

"Well? Okay, that would take care of hunting out on the plains: but what about Stormwing, Midnight and Crystal's venom? Would _that_ do for felling the beasts?" asked Tarka; "Um? I'm afraid the results of the venom testing have been somewhat mixed," Claude elaborated as he stepped up to give his input, "Per our original plans to best utilize _all_ our resources: I, along with Bryson, Tyto, Evrard and a select few god-titans and Rangers, undertook a series of 'study trips' out into Maria to conduct a series of experiments to test our new arsenal. The efficiency of the hummers and wind chimes being amongst them (and highly successful they were too), we also took samples of the venom extracted from our three favourite titanic ladies," He gave a cheeky wink up at Midnight, who simply rolled her eyes, "And tested it on a wide selection of titans, varying in size class and regular to abnormality: after five trips and five hundred titans, we've determined that the venom is _not_ fatal"

"What?! Not fatal?!" Warren exclaimed: most of the other Celts and Rangers were stunned, until Evrard stepped in, "-Hang on a sec, let him finish". "Thank you, Evrard," Claude gave him a grateful nod as he cleared his throat, "While the venom is not fatal, it _does_ cripple the titans to a considerable degree: namely via the severe necrosis it causes, breaking down muscle and ligament tissues right up to the point where they can just barely move their eyes, nevermind try to move or do anything else. The time it takes for the venom to completely spread and take full effect is varying: while smaller size classes are incapacitated within minutes or even several short seconds (excuse the pun), any titan over nine meters takes upwards of two to eight minutes to be paralysed; and of course _where_ your arrow strikes on the titan's body is important to remember. However, there are _some_ rare acceptations: a few of the test subjects measuring over twelve meters were crippled in less than a few seconds, and vice versa a handful of five to six meter titans took over ten minutes to languish. So while there is a pattern of consistency in the venom's effect, the 'abnormal' reactions _will_ have to be taken into account"

"But it's no replacement for the pairing blades" Dakota sighed, "No, but overall, the venom (if coated on the tips of your arrows) has the potential to be a good means of crippling a titan and rendering them harmless: and it doesn't have to be fired into the nape to take effect; simply aim for an artery and the venom will spread throughout the titan's system within seconds" he smiled.

"Actually, we thought of a way we could use the venom in the Hunt," Dale stepped forward, "With enough archers placed in the right locations, we could easily cripple many titans all at once, thus eliminating the need to fight them, and reducing the potential number of casualties considerably". "I thought the hummers and chimes would do that?" Jaye pointed out, "The hummers will, but we won't need the chimes whilst hunting" Lucy stepped in with a large rolled-up parchment tucked under her arm, "Here, let us explain," she started to unroll the parchment, Lucius took one end while she held the other: "Uh? ..." Dale looked around for a suitable vantage point, to which Midnight kneeled down and offered her palm, "-Ah, Thanks 'Night..." he and the twins carefully climbed up, showing everyone the parchment. The crude yet discernible illustration depicted a mass of giant trees with people perched in the branches, some with pairing blades, some with bows and arrows, and others with the hummers. On the ground there were regular titans, and in the bushes the god-titan's seemed to be crouched down and waiting: while up above the trees, people seated on bird-titans were flying overhead. "Okay, so after a lot of brain-storming, experimentation, and trial and error: we think we've come up with a couple of tactics that'll ensure a high degree of success, and keep potential casualties to a minimum" Dale announced, "Like, _way down_ in the single digits percentage kinda-minimum" Lucy clarified.

"According to the journal, the hummers are effective over a nine to fifteen square mile radius, depending on wind direction and the lay of the land: and Claude's research team confirmed this when they tested the first hummers we'd made using bamboo. The plan is pretty straight forward," he pointed to the middle of the picture, which showed the people with the hummers, "After choosing a suitable location far away enough from the base camp, those who volunteer to wield the hummers will take their positions up in the trees and lure the titans in: while nearby, four teams of three to four archers will take up positions in four trees that all stand at right angles to the hummer's tree; think of the layout of a compass, with each archery team at north, south, east and west, that's how it should be. And as the titans get lured in, that's when we spring the trap"

"Now, this can be done a number of ways," Lucius stepped in to explain without missing a beat, "The archers, armed with venom-coated arrows, will fire down at the titans, incapacitating them and the god-titan's step in to finish them off by crushing the napes", "Or, to save on the arrows and venom: we swoop down on our ODM gear and sever the napes ourselves... That is, _if_ we can get the pairing blade issue sorted out" Lucy added sheepishly, "You said we wouldn't need the wind chimes whilst we're hunting: what do you have in mind?" Ratatosk asked curious, "Well, we can use the chimes to do half the work for us" Dale beamed, "See, Maria is _huge_ (as we all know), and obviously we're not going to be able to cover every last inch of it, but the chimes _can_ do the next best thing. The journal says the wind chimes are able to lure a titan from over five miles in any direction, that's approximately _a hundred square miles, way more_ than we'd be able to cover in one day, never mind a week. So the plan will be, in between the areas we hunt we hang the chimes and leave them there for a set period of time, say a week to be sure: then either we or a secondary team will go to those areas and dispatch the titans".

"But the most important part of the plan is _this_ ," Lucy pointed to an odd-looking symbol in the lower right corner of the picture, "The repelling charm: the Journal says this magic can keep titans out of an area over twenty five square miles wide, so every time we clear out an area of forest or plain, we leave one of these charms in place, let one of the god-titan's instil their magic in it to awaken its power, and voua la! No more titans in that area", "And in the places we install the chimes, we'll need to leave at least four charms to make sure none come back" Dale explained, "If we plan the course of each hunt correctly, sweeping through Maria in a diagonal line reaching from north-east to south-west over a one week period, we can cover more ground and close off the forest to the titans: forcing them out onto the plains where the bird-titans can easily pick them off with their clawed gauntlets"

"That's all well and good: but, given the radius of the repelling charm that would mean we'd have to move camp to a new location _every_ night, ten to fifteen miles apart _at least_ ," Warren pointed out, "Listen, I know we Celts are used to travelling long distance, but this is going to be pushing it, even by _our_ standards. There's no way we can cover that kind of mileage within a week, never mind the trek back to Shiganshina or the Vert valley to use the stone circles in less than a day or two"

"Actually, we won't need to use _those_ stone circles specifically" Derek stepped in with Lawrence and Drake at his side, each carrying several large rolled up parchments: "As you all know, when me and Claude decided to tackle the 'titan mystery', we decided to use a two-pronged attack to cover more ground: Claude would head up the scientific field research and I'd hit the books here in the city. And, while the literary search for the titans is still proving elusive to say the least, (who knew the name 'titan' would have so many uses?) I _have_ discovered some other information I think you'd all find very useful..." he grabbed one of parchments from Drake's pile, unrolled it and displayed it to the whole gathering; it was a highly detailed map of part of the forests of Maria, with tiny symbols showing the location of a stone circle, "It turns out there's not just a few other stone circles, but _loads_ of them: after checking and rechecking the maps against ancient topographical surveys of Maria, Rose and Sina, there's approximately over two hundred and ninety three circles in all"

"TWO HUNDRED AND NINETY THREE?!" Ratatosk gawked, as did the rest of the group, "And those are just the one's _within_ the walls, it turns out those stone circles are _everywhere_ around the outside of the walls, as far as over five hundred miles away, and possibly more even further afield (I'll have to recheck all the maps for precise locations of course)" Derek replied eagerly. "So, we could travel to _anywhere_ within Maria from here?" Eraman gasped, "Pretty much, yeah" Drake shrugged, "Cool!" Poppy exclaimed excitedly.

"That takes care of the travelling: but what're we going to do about the pairing blades guys? Ultrahard steel's the only other thing besides our crystal arrowheads, Midnight's claws and Boar's tusks that can slice through titan flesh effectively. Since the venom can only paralyse, and the hummers and chimes only hypnotise, we're pretty much stuck" Fox pointed out, Belle was about to eagerly suggest her idea when he stopped her, "And before you say it, _no_. we can't make pairing blades out of crystal: they'll be too heavy and too brittle". Defeated, Belle let out a long huff of defeat and folded her arms as she sided back with her sisters.

Unbeknown to the humans, Jarus snapped his head up slightly and his face seemed to fill with clarity, as if he'd just stumbled upon an idea: Aureia noticed this, as did Javorin, but neither of them said anything, as they let the humans continue.

"You have all made excellent progress, and I'm am glad to see so many inventive and resourceful means come to the fore" the queen coolly stated, "As for the dilemma at hand, is there really no other alternative to be found?". "No offence your highness, but we're kinda starting to run up against the clock with this" Gustav stated, "We agreed to start the first hunt by early spring at the very latest: winter will be upon us soon enough and we haven't found a suitable solution besides going out into Maria and picking over the corpses of fallen Scouts; not many are keen to volunteer for _that_ unpleasant little task I can tell ya"

"Okay look," Tyto interjected, "There's _got_ to be a way around this, even if it's not paring blades, there _has_ to be another solution to slicing the titan's nape: now does anyone have any idea's they'd like to throw in?"

Everyone was quiet for a few seconds as the whole group pondered over the subject, before one of Ratatosk's hunters raised their hand, "...Well? You said the venom completely cripples them, right? So they can't move even an inch", "Barely even a millimetre," Claude nodded, "Well we could use spears? Once the titans are down and out, we can use bear spears made of ultrahard steel to slice their napes". Both Tyto and Bryson glanced at one another, "What'd you reckon? ..." the Grey Owl elder asked: thinking about it for a moment, Bryson then nodded, "...We'd need extra hunters to work in pairs on the ground, and extra eyes in the trees to watch over them: but I don't see why it shouldn't work if the titans are completely incapacitated", "Gustav?" Tyto glanced over at the old gruff, "Shouldn't be too hard to carve out some new moulds?" he scratched his beard as he thought it over, "It'd certainly save on time, man-power and metal", "Okay then, we'll work something out back at the Lodge" Tyto nodded.

"Now that that's taken care of," Bryson stepped forward, "There's one other issue we really need to address..." he gazed up at the Queen and her entourage, "... The hunt, _will inevitably_ lead us to cross paths with the Scouts, and when that happens we're going to need a plan to keep each other safe, namely you guys," he glanced up at Shadow, Midnight and Boar, before passing a deep sigh of reluctance:"... It's been twenty years since I was discharged from the Scouting Legion, and I have _no idea_ how much things have changed, _if_ they've changed much at all? I want to say I'd like to be the one to open a line a communication between us and them: but after what happened to Shiganshina, I have _no idea_ how they're going to react to seeing humans alongside intelligent titans; there's a lot of potential for a misunderstanding, and a very thin window of opportunity for a good first impression. If we're eventually going to reach out to them with the offer of an alliance, we're going to have to be smart and tactful about this"

"Oh I know!-" Ariana quickly shot her hand up as she eagerly interjected, "-We could set up a small elite team to follow them and see what their all about: listen in on their conversations and get a feel for what they're like. And going on whatever we find out, plan our first introduction accordingly!"

Everyone stared at her weirdly for a moment before Bryson nodded slightly, "... It's not a bad idea, but how would you get close enough to eavesdrop on them?", "Uh hello? You're talking to _me?_ World's greatest stealthiest sneakiest hunter _and_ eavesdropper? Even dad and Shadow can't can't get the drop on me anymore" Ariana smiled smugly, "That's certainly true," Tyto couldn't help but smile as he let out an exasperated sigh: "It's a prudent theory for sure: but one we'll put a pin in for when circumstances call for it; right now, we need a strategy for evasion and disguise. The ghillie cloaks and concealment spells alone won't be enough to evade an entire company, let alone a whole expedition force" Bryson stated, "Well if we work together I'm sure we can come up with something?" Lucius suggested as he rolled up his parchment, "Yeah, I mean the military are sticklers for parting with tradition, maybe their usual way of doing things hasn't changed much in the past two decades?" Lucy threw in offhand.

Folding her arms and stepping back from the circle, Ariana passed a soft sigh as she leaned against Shadow's ankle: an almost-inaudible rumble made her look up, in time to see him discreetly spell out in his cupped hand, :That's actually not a bad idea:. Nodding with a forced smile, Ariana turned and gazed out over the city; her mind drifting away from the meeting as she pondered on other things.

* * *

Some time later, in the hospital:

Evrard's big heavy boots announced the Celt's arrival into the privet room, stirring Carla from her daydream and interrupting Rosemary and Freya's conversation; "Don't you ever knock? There're ladies in here!" she scolded her younger brother, "You? A lady? Since when?" Evrard teased as he, Tyto and the others all gathered into the room. Carla suddenly felt like a young girl who'd been caught by her father, sneaking out to go and see a boy he didn't approve of: passing a deep stubborn sigh, she met their concerned gazes, and judging from the look in their eyes, she could already tell where this was going. "How're you feeling? Breck told us what happened, we've only just got back" Tyto asked in a slight fluster; there was no disappointment in his voice per se (somewhat of a relief), but she could tell he wasn't pleased.

"I'm okay, thanks, it's wasn't anything too serious," she replied nonchalantly, trying to brush it off as best she could, "Wasn't anything too serious?" Break frowned as he entered the room, "Your energy levels nearly crashed right through the floor! If Angel hadn't brought you back when she did, I don't even want to think of the state you'd be in right now!" he scolded as he gently took her arm and kept two fingers on her pulse, checking his pocket-watch as he counted every heartbeat: "-I _warned you_ about pushing yourself like this, and now I'm going to have to recommend you stave off training for at least two weeks" he added firmly. "TWO WEEKS?!" Carla gawked in shock. She was about to argue back when Breck held up his hand and silenced her, "-AH! _Doctor's orders!_ Two weeks for proper rest and get some decent food into you; the way you've been pushing yourself on the ODM it's no surprise your body gave out on you!".

"Not to mention _your_ ODM was about to give out on you too," Gustav interjected in an equally reprimanding tone, "I only just got back, but Henley and Patrick told me what happened and showed me your gear. _What the hell_ were you thinking girl?! In your eagerness to keep training non-stop you neglected to keep your gear in shape! The wire-reel spring in the left casing is about to go, the piston valves aren't properly greased up, the exhaust fan's clogged with leaves and dirt, and the right-side reel casing has a crack in the fixture: damage like _that_ means I'm going to have to take it completely apart and rebuilt the whole thing from scratch! Which means you're without your gear for the foreseeable future anywa; not to mention one of the volunteers will be getting _their_ unit late because of you!"

Staring up at him shock, Carla suddenly felt awful: "...I-" she meekly tried to reply, but found she didn't have the words: "Okay, I think she gets the message guys" Freya stated as she stood up off the end of the bed, "Now just-, go back to work and leave her be; _we'll_ look after her alright?". "I'm done here anyway," Break sighed as he put his watch away and let go of her hand, "I'll send one of the girls up with a herbal broth to make sure your energy levels are good for the rest of the day: after that you're free to go, but I want to see you back home and resting by the time I clock off; understand?" he gave her the mother-hen look, "Understood," she nodded. Breck and the rest of the group left quietly, except for Bryson and Tyto: "Would you mind if we have a word with Carla in privet darling? There're some things we need to discuss" the Grey Owl elder asked humbly, "Alright, just don't take too long" Freya sighed as she and Rosemary left the room.

After Rosemary shut the door behind her, Tyto and Bryson pulled up a couple of the chairs that were by the bed, and sat near to Carla as she passed another deep sigh of regret: "Guys, I'm _so_ sorry,". "No, you're not," Bryson huffed in frustration as he ran his fingers through his light brunette hair, "You _knew_ fully well the meeting with the Queen was today, and you skipped it in favour of yet _more_ training, when I _specifically told you_ to be present". Carla merely let her gaze drop in shame, she knew she had no excuses, and there was no point in offering any; "Look, Carla," Tyto tried to reason with her, " _No one_ is doubting your commitment: no one else has prepared for the Hunt with more dedication and tenacity than you. And given how much you've struggled to learn everything that's required of this endeavour, I'm _tremendously_ proud of you. But there _are_ limits to how far you can push it, to how far you can push yourself: your spirit may be able to go the distance but your body is still flesh and blood, and it _needs_ to be cared for if you wish to perform at your best"

"When I was with the Scouts we trained hard and long to perfect our performance, but even _we_ had to acknowledge what our bodies were able to do under tremendous stress, and what they were not: our lives depended on our ability to stay fit and stay alert, and you _can't_ do that when you've run yourself to the point of exhaustion; _that's_ when you become a liability" Bryson stated seriously.

With tears in her eyes, Carla huffed in defeat as she glanced up at them: "...I just-, ... _I just want to be good at this_ : to be able to fight and have the strength to keep going, to know _how_ to fight, and to not let everyone down", "You _won't_ let anyone down Carla," Bryson sighed, "But you _won't_ be of any good to anyone if you push yourself to the breaking point; even Eren wouldn't want you to-

Carla snapped her head up at him as an incredulous look filled her eyes: realizing what he let slip, Bryson immediately felt like an idiot, and without another word he got up and abruptly left the room. An uncomfortable silence stretched out for a few moments, before Tyto pinched the bridge of his nose, and sighed, "...You can't keep doing this...", "What?" she frowned in confusion, "Relying on your anger to sustain yourself..." he gazed at her in a grave tone, "I know you don't show it, and you've learnt to hide it well: but I can _still_ see it in your eyes Carla, and I can see everyday that you struggle to try and temper it; trying to keep a level head whilst also trying to keep your head in the fight. _You can't do both_ and hope to win every single time, it's like spreading a little butter over a lot of bread, sooner or later you get thinned out, until eventually something gives and you break"

Carla didn't want to admit it, but he was right: as she stubbornly tried to think of a way to palm it off, she found she couldn't (her mother raised her too well). She _hated_ this, feeling so stupid: pushing herself as hard as she did to the point she fell unconscious with exhaustion, to the point her ODM gear could've broken at any moment, pushing poor Angel to the point she must've been exhausted too, and even deliberately missing an important meeting with the queen. She suddenly felt awful for letting Bryson and the others down like that; how embarrassed and disappointed they must've been when she didn't show up.

Ever since she started training to use ODM gear, Carla had given it her all: never in all her life had she been so determined to succeed; even when her first leg of training started with balancing on the cables, and she kept falling over and hitting her head due to a lack of balance, she stubbornly refused to quit. After three days of close one-on-one tutoring with Ariana, Belle and the Cooper twins, she finally got it: and after that, she was a woman on fire. She engaged titan combat training through and through, soaking up every bit of knowledge she could learn, and adding it to her growing arsenal of fighting skills: even Angel got in on the action, and before long the two friends were fighting as one in the air and trees. It was a real sight to behold, and before long the other volunteers and their titans were training to fight in pairs and small teams, which actually proved to be more effective in terms of engaging a titan and having a chance at successfully bringing it down. But despite the success of her inadvertent discovery, Carla began to get fixated on improving her performance: speed, strength, agility, tactics, every time she trained she tried to beat her own previous record, and every time she began to get that little bit more competitive, and arrogant. Soon it got to the point where she and Angel were the only one's training from dawn until dusk: both were determined to the best fighters, and in a way, it became an obsession for the raven-haired fighter. It wasn't healthy, and many in the group could see it: but despite numerous warnings to slow down and ease up, their concern fell on deaf ears...until today.

Looking back over the past three months, Carla suddenly realized how much of a repetitious blur it had been: how _aggressive_ she had been, and how it had worried everyone around her. But the one consistency that ran throughout it all, the one thing that kept pushing her to fight: no matter how much she wanted to rest, would starkly remind her _why_ she had to do this, and why she couldn't afford to stop for even an instant; was the day she lost the one thing more precious to her than anything else in the world. As a fresh wave of tears ran down her cheeks, her breath hitched as she blurted out, "...I still hear them screaming...". Tyto remained quiet as he realized who she was talking about, "... His face is the first thing I see when I wake up in the mornings: and-, even though I try to remember back to before, I-... _I just can't remember anything else but that day,_ " she sobbed as she wiped her eyes with the back of her sleeve, "...It's all I can remember of him Tyto,its the only memory I have left of my son, _and it hurts_ " she broke down. Tyto simply got up without a word, and hugged her as she sobbed into his shoulder.

Outside, up on the roof of the hospital, right above the window to Carla's room: Ariana sat with her knees up to her chin, as she listened to Carla sobbing, and her mother and Rosemary rushing back into the room to see what was wrong. Quietly, she stood up and walked up to the apex of the roof, and with a heavy hearted sigh, she shot her lines and took off up into the trees, disappearing into the vast green canopy.

* * *

Later that day:

As she silently walked through the forest, Hecate spotted the unmistakable white outline of Elysia perched high up in the Grey Owl's home-tree, sitting on a branch right next to Carla's tree-top cottage: as she called on her powers to sharpen her eyes and get a better look, she saw Carla and the weather goddess were hanging laundry out to dry. "Breck ordered her to take a two week reprieve..." Ash said as he flew down and perched on her shoulder, putting his gear's handgrips back in their holsters, "Shadow ordered Angel to join her too, seeing as they're both thick as thieves. I think that's the forth load of washing they've done today: in any case, mum and the old folks are taking it in turns to make sure they stay barred from the Lodge"

:How's she holding up?: she asked offhand: Ash pushed his bangs back as he let out a deep sigh of unsurety, "...To be honest? I don't really know? She looked real upset when she left the hospital; I don't know what the others said to her, but I'm guessing it didn't go down well?" he glanced up at her with a look of concern in his steel blue eyes. Gazing back up at the raven-haired woman, Hecate could tell from her aura something was off in a way: but it seemed as if she was still in a state of emotional stagnation; trapped in a limbo of her grief, and something was stopping her from being able to push through it. :Call it a hunch, but I don't think missing the meeting had anything to do with it: she told him, "Then what?" he pressed her, :...Don't know, only _she_ knows, and it's not for you and your brothers to go prying: she shot him a mother hen look, "Hey, if she's dealing with something heavy and she needs to do it on her own terms, fair enough... It's hard enough one of us is still dealing with losing their loved ones: but all of us? It's not like it can be rushed" he sighed as he sat down on her shoulder, :What do you mean?: she gave him a weird look. "Well? It's just that-... I heard Ashlyn crying again last night"

Midnight blinked in surprise, :Again? She's done this before?:, "Yeah, ever since Shiganshina, and-..." Ash paused as he began to feel somewhat awkward, "...She misses her mum: aunt Skadi... and it's the same with Clay and Hazel, Hawk, the twins; I don't know if they know it, but I hear them crying late at night, or in the early mornings before dawn. I mean, they don't do it everyday, it's kinda random; but when they do-...I just-, can't help but feel _useless_ ; like some kinda fraud". Gently grasping Ash off her shoulder and holding him up to her face in one hand, she gazed at him worryingly as she asked, :Why? Why a fraud?:.

Thinking about how best to sum it up, Ash took a deep breath and explained, "...Do you remember years ago when Shadow and Ariana first met, and how Rowan was kinda responsible for their meeting that night?", :Yes:, "Well? With Aunt Skadi, Ran and Bestla no longer with us, it got me thinking about my own parents: our _real_ parents. And how, I used to feel really conflicted about them... I mean, the way Rowan used to go on about the Wall Cult killing them and the rest of our clan? It was as if he'd known them his whole life, and had seen the horrible event go down in person: even though he was way too young to have remembered it all; hell even me and Dale don't remember what happened that night... Between the three of us, we didn't know them: not their names, not their faces, we only know them through what mum and dad have told us; and even though they sound like they were really nice people, I _can't_ honestly say they feel like my parents, not the way Tyto and Freya do ..."

He gazed up at the dappled sunlight though the Autumnal canopy, thinking back to that time in his childhood, "...I tried to tell Rowan once, and he got real mad at me: but I wasn't angry at him, because I knew that he was trying to stay faithful to their memories (in his own stubborn-headed way). I think, he doesn't want anyone to know that he wanted the chance to get to know them: and because of the Wall Cult, he'd never have that chance, and neither would Dale and I..." he gazed up into her rich violet-amethyst eyes, as he spoke his thoughts with more ease; he always found he could speak his mind around her. "...Is it weird? Or wrong? To morn someone you never knew? I feel bad in a way because I can see they were a big part of the family: mum and dad always speak of them fondly, but that's because _they_ knew them; Uncle Evrard, Eraman, Falken, and Aunt Bestla, Skadi and Ran too, but I didn't... I think that's what really pissed Rowan off the most: the fact that our elders still kept their memories alive, when we didn't have any real memory of them to begin with; and in a way, I think it made him feel left out of his own family (as weird as that sounds)"

Midnight hesitated a little, before spelling out, :Why didn't you tell your parents about it at the time?:. He merely shrugged and gave an exasperated smile, "Because I didn't know it at the time: at least, I didn't have the words to spell it out and make sense of it; but being older and looking back on it, I'm pretty confident that's what it was. And I didn't say anything because I thought it might make things complicated...It _sucks_ , knowing that kinda stuff at that age; you're not equipped to deal with it, the way you can when your older, and it sucks even more when your trying to be faithful to the memory of two strangers who you didn't know first hand. Don't get me wrong, I don't mean to come off as cold or indifferent to them, it's just-... When I think about what my cousins are going through, and how their trying to deal with loosing their mums, it feels... Strange, and painful; I don't know what to say; since I never really mourned my real parents passing in the first place"

With a her usual cool smile, Midnight replied, :Listen, you may not have known your real parents, but _they knew you_ ; and they are the reason you are alive:. She gently stroked his cheek with the side of her claw, :Not having a memory does not make you a stranger to them. Even if you didn't know their names or faces, that doesn't mean they're not part of you. Your elders knew them as _they_ knew them, and you know of them, _through_ them; of course it will be different, just because someone is gone doesn't mean you stop having a relationship with them: the fact you think about them means they're still with you; the dynamics merely change, as all thing do in time... Keeping them alive through memory is the only way they remain with you; its the only way any human can live forever:

"Live forever?" Ash frowned, :The people who wrote all those books, in the libraries of Omnes Scientiam: though they're no longer here, their legacy lives on in what they left behind. Parents are the same, for their children are _their_ legacy: that which they bestow upon the world to continue the legacy of _all_ who came before, and to leave their own mark upon the world... Whether you knew them, or not, your parents loved you regardless; and that love reflects itself in your aura:

Ash couldn't help but smile, as he blinked back the tears that threatened to overflow from his eyes; he quickly changed the subject, "...Ah come on 'Night," he stood up, and gently brushed his hand against her cheek, "You don't need to get all mushy on me: I know they loved me. _That_ , I've never doubted. Besides, you, me, Dale and Rowan? We got a reputation to maintain remember? We're the bad-asses no one messes with: the titans are gonna know soon enough too", :That's very true...: she smiled, before adding, :...Listen, when the next full moon comes around, I've got a certain strain of magic I want to share with you and your brothers:, "A certain strain?" Ash raised an eyebrow, :Yes, something that'll be just between the four of us; since we're going to be fighting the titans together, (and possibly evading the Scouts) I need to be sure your able to 'keep up', with my particular way of doing things, and to do that, I have something special in mind planned:, "Special?" Ash grinned slyly, "As in, that time you revealed your shadow-monster form to us? That was pretty cool", :Oh no: she smiled with a devilish glint in her eyes, :...This is _much_ cooler... and more _fun_ :

"Sounds wicked," Ash grinned, before gazing up at her with a more humble smile, and added, "...Oh and, thank you...You may be a bad-ass, but don't let anyone tell you you don't have a heart" he stroked her cheek, :...Thanks: she smiled honestly.

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere on the island:

"-INCOMING!" one of the Celts yelled out as something went splat on the ground some several meters away, turning round to see what it was, everyone saw it was one the fruits that had fallen from Yggdrasil.

" _Holy shit!_ We _really_ need to put together some kind of early warning system for this" Bemadette thought aloud as she breathed a sigh of relief,

"Yeah no shit: death by falling fruit? It'd actually be kinda funny if it wasn't for real" Bren chuckled,

"Look on the bright side, at least we get free food" one of the other blacksmiths smiled, immediately ducking his head down when a loud thud shook the roof of the smithy (another fruit falling and hitting the tiles).

Yggdrasil's fruits were sizeable to say the least: as big as a pumpkin and shaped like a fat pear or a robust marrow, the fruits were odd in that there were four distinct striped colour varieties; green, purple, pink and peachy-orange, and each had a distinctly different flavour (or flavours rather). With the great tree turning from lush variegated greens to a fiery red and orange autumnal blaze, every fruit had to fall the two hundred meters down to the island or lake, where it would either land in the water with huge splash and remain intact, or explode on the ground in one big almighty messy splat. The latter had everyone running for cover, and many were hesitant to go out in the open unless they had some kind of shelter. Thus far there had been a few close calls: several people were struck on the head but not seriously injured (surprisingly), a row boat was sunk when one fruit crashed right through the bottom, leaving its rowers having to swim back to the island with the help of some of the fish-titans; and several other people had the shock of their lives when the fruits missed them by mere inches.

On the plus side, the fruits that were fished out of the water, both on and around the island, were put to good culinary use when it was discovered they were edible. They were deliciously fleshy and juicy when cut up and eaten raw: when simmered down in a pan with water they made a wonderful compote, and they could easily be made into a nice variety of jams, jellies and sauces; thus far pickling had also yielded some nice strong flavours that would make for a nice treat over the coming winter. And as for the fruits that landed on the ground, exploding into a big goopy mess, they were not left to go to waste by the island's wildlife: the various species of exotic fruit-eating birds would flock to every downed fruit by the dozens; various rodents and other herbivorous mammal species would gorge on their share, fattening themselves up for their coming hibernations, and the many species of strange and wondrous insects would be lured in by the sweet surgery juices that ran from the flesh. In all, each fallen fruit would be mostly consumed within less than a day, and what remained was either left to decay into the forest floor, or put on the compost heaps for the communal gardens. Through the Keeper, it was also discovered that the seeds (which were the size of large oranges), when dried, peeled and ground up, could be used as a good alternative to flour.

"Yeah well, just remember to go and fetch the seeds or there'll be no bread for the soup tonight" Gustav reminded them.

"I like the green ones, they taste like apples, grapes and cucumbers: but I like the purple ones too as they taste like blueberries, blackberries and plums" Bemadette thought aloud, "Oh what about the pinky-orange ones? Peach, nectarine and orange makes for a nice pudding" Bren offered, "True, but the strawberry, raspberry and cherry flavoured pink ones make the best jam" one of the other Blacksmith's interjected, "Why not just have all four and stick 'em in a fruit tart?" Bren smiled, "We got enough fruit-cakes and nut-jobs on this island: as if living alongside titans and risk being accidentally stepped on is hazardous enough, now we gotta worry about being killed by fruit? I think I'd prefer to take my chances with the bears up in the mountains" Gustav grumbled as he got back to work, "Oh come on Pop's it's not _that_ bad" Bemadette waved off, "Yeah, and the titans here watch where they're going" Bren added.

Gustav was about to retort back, when a knock at the door drew his attention: "Hey Gustav? Have you got those new swivels dad asked for?" Clay asked as he poked his head in the door, "Oh-, right, hang on a sec I left 'em in the shop," the old grouch ran out and dashed over the machine shop next door; stepping inside, Clay glanced over at Bemadette's work bench, and noticed a set of blueprints that immediately caught his eye. "...Is this the clawed gauntlet you were talking about?" he looked the papers over: "Yep, pretty neat huh?" Bemadette smiled proudly as she looked them over. The blueprints showed a set of armour-like gloves that would fit onto the feet of the bird-titans via a series of straps and buckles, with long curved talon-like claws that were lied with ultrahard steel blades: "Since the ultrahard steel's pretty light, it'd be the perfect weapon for the bird-titan's to use, and Stormwing could teach them how to stoop and attack" the young apprentice added, "Of course, Angel's the first candidate in mind, but I need her here so I can measure her up; since she and Mrs Jaeger won't be training for a while it'll give me plenty of time to make her's up first and adjust it where needed"

"What?" Clay blinked in surprise, "Mrs Jaeger and Angel won't be training?", Bernadette looked at him weirdly, before realizing, "Wait a sec-, you didn't hear?", "Hear what? me and Hazel headed straight back to the Lodge after we got off the boat; remember?", "Oh right, of course," Bren nodded, "Tyto and the others went to the hospital to see her: apparently while she and Angel were training with Stormwing she fell unconscious: something about low energy levels, or something like that?" he dithered slightly, "Anyway, Breck told her to take two weeks off so as to get her health back up, and Tyto and Bryson made it official by confiscating her ODM gear," he pointed to said unit, which was looking in a very sorry state as it sat on a nearby workbench, "The whole unit's just about completely shot, we're going to have to rebuild it from scratch: and considering how long it takes to cast all the parts, Pop's ain't happy about that". "...Somehow, that doesn't really surprise me," Clay sighed offhand. "Well we all knew she was getting too wound up on the training: I just didn't think it would end up with a two week ban," Bemadette thought aloud offhand, "Still, it's probably for the best, she _could_ use a break" Bren shrugged, "Knowing her, you can bet she would have been spitting venom at them, and is probably going to be royally pissed off for the next few days; Angel too I'd wager" she added.

"A hundred and fifty swivels as ordered!-" Gustav strode back into the smithy with a large hessian bag in one hand, and tossed it over to the red-headed archer, who caught it with ease, "Now off with ya! We got work to do!" he barked, "See ya later Clay: and if you see Angel tell her to fly her feathered ass over here!" Bemadette called over to him as he turned to leave, "Will do" he waved over his shoulder. Stepping outside, he wandered over to where Hazel had been waiting for him: "Got 'em" he held up the sack, "What was that about Mrs Jaeger? I didn't catch it all" she frowned in concern. "She had to go to the hospital" was all Clay replied, "What?", "I'll explain on the way..." he sighed as he walked off, making his way through the town as his older sister listened in, "Apparently, while she was training her energy levels dropped and she fell unconscious, Angel flew her back to the hospital and Breck managed to treat her okay; he said she's fine but he's ordered her to stave off training for two weeks, and Uncle Tyto and Bryson confiscated her ODM for good measure" he explained. " _Oh boy_..." Hazel's eyes grew wide in surprise, "She's _not_ going to like that; how badly did they argue? I mean, no doubt she would've been on fire with them" she surmised, "'Don't know, I didn't ask" Clay shrugged, "But it might be an idea to give her some space for the rest of the day; maybe the next _three days_ for good measure", "Yeah..." Hazel nodded offhand.

The two siblings walked in silence through the forest for a while, listening to all the little sounds of the animals, insects, and the running waters of the near-by streams: while also keeping a set of eyes on Yggdrasil's canopy, checking for any falling fruit. As he glanced over at his sister, Clay tried to pluck up the courage to speak what was on his mind: he _hated_ this, it wasn't like him to seize up around his big sister, he could always speak his mind with her; so why was he feeling so apprehensive now? He knew what he wanted-, no, what he _needed_ to say, but this time he honestly didn't know how she'd respond, and it worried him. "...Just spit it out already," Hazel glanced at him dryly, "It's not like you to get all nervy like this".

It wasn't like Hazel to be stoic like this: regardless of whatever squabbles they got into with one another, she always cared about him enough to be concerned where necessary; it confirmed what he was already afraid of, and with an equally dry sigh he replied, "Well it's not like _you_ to be so aloof like this either", "And what's _that_ supposed to mean?" she placed her hands on her hips as she stopped in front of him, with a rather demanding tone in her gaze. Deciding to hell with it (even if it ended in them not speaking to each other for the rest of the day), Clay huffed in exasperation as he spoke his mind, "...Look, I heard you crying in bed this morning, before the sun came up: you do it most mornings, and I can tell from the look in your eyes _every time_ that you don't want to talk about it, so out of respect I don't pry... and I don't need to anyway because I already know _why_..." His firmness then began to lighten into a more pleading tone, "But ever since we started training you've been real cagey, more bossy, sarcastic, and have been rude on more than one occasion (and the fact you always apologize isn't the point). I just-... I know things have been hard with mum no longer with us, and I'm the _last_ person to be giving you a lecture about grieving for her, but _where_ is this coming from? Why are you so defensive around everyone all of a sudden? Did anyone say anything? Or do something? Why won't you talk to me about it?"

Seeing the genuine look of worry in his eyes, Hazel realized he was being dead serious; lowering her arms and taking in a deep breath, she walked in a half circle away from him as she thought about his words, before meeting his gaze with a dry yet frank look. "...Because..." she thought about it some more, "There's not much point: we'd just be going around in circles", "Going around in circles over what? Please, _tell me_ " he begged pleadingly, stepping closer to her, "The journal," she frowned as she felt her hackles rise, "...When Derek found that journal, and it became clear that the wall cult knew _way more_ than they'd been letting on all these years: I suddenly felt like-..." she tried to think straight as her mind raced with anxiety, "... You remember when dad first told us the truth about the cult? About, _why_ we had to hide from them all the time, what they did to Ash, Rowan and Dale's parents? And you remember how Ariana and Rowan had that fight over it, the night she and Shadow first met?", "Well yeah, _duh_ " he shrugged.

"I felt like it was that night all over again: and-, feeling so _uselessly helpless_ in trying to stop it..." she tried to let go of her anxiety in a deep breath, but found it wouldn't leave her, "... I thought I had reason to fear the cult before: now? _I don't know how to feel?_ The fact they concealed the journal from the military, when they _knew_ it would've helped humanity to beat back the titans? For a hundred years we've been trapped behind the walls, and even here in this beautiful place we're _still_ trapped. But what _angers_ me the most? Is knowing that if that information had been used sooner, mum could've been saved: hell, Shiganshina might not have been attacked in the first place...I know this is old news and we all know this, but-, it _doesn't_ change the fact I'm _still so angry!_ And that I'll _never forgive_ the cult for this: for letting mum, Eren, Armin, Mikasa, and all those other people die" her lips trembled as tears welled up in her eyes: "...So? I don't see what's the point in talking about it, when everyone already feels the same way: it's not like I deserve any special attention, I'm nothing special: we _all_ lost someone that day; so just-... Leave it be okay?"

" _What?_ " Clay stared at her in astonishment, "Hazel, how can you think that?!", "...What?" she wiped away her tears as she stared at him weirdly; Clay placed both hands on her shoulders, and looked her in the eye as he sternly told her, "It's _not_ old news, how the hell can it ever become old news?! _It was the worst day of our lives_ , and just because everyone went through the same thing, doesn't mean you have to sit aside and let yourself become silent for the sake of not wanting to point out the obvious!" he took a deep breath, as he continued in a more measured tone, "... It doesn't mean you can't voice your anger: if this is what's been making you cry, then don't hide it away just because you think you'll inconvenience others! You're entitled to be pissed off, you're allowed to be angry over loosing mum. _God only knows I am!_ ...It's not fair what happened, and it's even more unfair that somewhere within the walls, there's a religious organization that deliberately allowed the deaths of _thousands_ of their fellow humans, I-" he let go of his breath as he tried to keep his temper in check, "...I can't even begin to understand _why_ anyone would do such a thing? And in all likelihood? I don't think we'll ever know the answer...But I do know this," he held her hand in his, "Whatever happens, regardless of what's going on: if you want to talk about it, I'll be there and I'll listen; we may not see eye to eye on a lot of things, but I'll _never_ dismiss or underscore how you feel..." he gazed at her pleadingly, "...I only ask that, you do the same for me: because god only knows, I could use someone to talk to too"

Seeing the look of heartbreak in his eyes, Hazel suddenly felt so stupid, and guilty for not taking his feelings into account: she was about to apologize, when a familiar shadow loomed over them, and Boar appeared out of the bushes with Ashlyn, Hawk and the Raven twins seated on his shoulders. The two red-headed siblings gazed up at them in complete surprise, before the looks in their eyes told them that they'd overheard their conversation, and that there was a great degree of sympathy between them. Bending down to let the kids off, Boar remained crouched down as he spelt out, :It's okay to talk you know? Bottling it all up doesn't do anyone any favours:

"We lost our mum too remember?" Hawk let his gaze drop as he spoke his thoughts, "It's not like we don't feel the same way: neither do our fathers, or the rest of us?". "Yeah, I mean _come on_ , you're hardly making a fuss as it is (well, except for your attitude an' all that), but that's okay, you're allowed to feel that way. God only knows _I_ do" Jaye sighed as his sister put her arm around his shoulder. With a fresh wave of tears, Hazel's breath hitched in her chest as she replied: "...It's not just that,... What with everything that's been going on these past three months, and everyone working so hard to get this Hunt together in time for next year: I just didn't want to slow things down by loosing it and stating the obvious", "So what if it's the obvious?" Josefa shrugged, "It doesn't change the fact that it's an unfair shitty situation none of us asked for... People aren't going to tell you to shut up because your grieving for your mum: no one who's been through hell can be that heartless"

:Look,: Boar interjected with a low sympathetic grunt, :Regardless of what everyone else thinks, it's _your_ grief, you deal with it on your own terms; and everyone knows that: he smiled, : You don't have to keep your guard up, no one's going to think of you as an inconvenience; so don't worry okay?:

Taking a deep breath and letting it go, Hazel reached up to stroke his tusk as she wiped her eyes, "Okay..." she replied quietly in a shaky voice, "But I- ...I don't know how I'm going to make up for it? I've been awful to _everyone_ , even dad" she worried, "Well then let's start with him, he's not going to get mad at you for this..." Clay assured her as he wrapped his arm around her, "Besides, we can take our time; let's hang out with the big guy here for a bit: it''s hardly going to be _Boar-ing_ with him around" Clay grinned broadly as he thumbed over to Boar. The tusked titan sniggered as the twins, Ashlyn and Hawk groaned, "Aw hell Clay! That's the _worst_ one yet!" Ashlyn face-palmed, "How can it be bad? These two are hardly _raven_ about it!" the red-headed archer thumbed over to the twins, who cringed away from him, "And Hawk's not even _hawking_ _on_ about it!" he burst out laughing, to which Hawk shot him a hairy eyeball, "Boar, get him to shut up".

Then, unexpectedly: Hazel suddenly burst out in a fit of inelegant giggles, holding her side as she sniggered through her clenched teeth and nose. Her laughter was not something she was particularly proud of: whenever she was rendered into hysterics, her laughter came out as something of a cross between a donkey braying and an old man who'd been smoking twenty cigars a day for sixty years gargling tar and choking it down. But right now, she didn't care: and as she regained her composure, she noticed Clay standing there with a satisfied look on his face. "No matter how much everyone thinks my puns are bad (which they're _not_ by the way)" he shot the others a rather matter-of-factly look, "They never fail to make _you_ smile, do they?" he gazed at her fondly.

It was true Clay had the worst knack for puns: but the sheer cringe-inducing dumbness of his one-liners never failed to make her laugh (they were _that_ bad). Realizing how good it felt to laugh again, Hazel couldn't help but smile as she sighed "...No; but then, I guess that's just the big sister in me. Being able to put up with your shit and actually find it funny? How many other people can do that besides dad?". "Mum could," Clay sighed nostalgically, "And she'd want you to have some laughs again...I think we all could, right big guy?" he smiled up at Boar, who nodded in agreement. :Now that's what I'm talking about: he spelt out as he lifted them up onto his shoulders, :You guy's wanna go grab some lunch?: "I am feeling a bit hungry now that you mention it: but let's drop the swivels off to dad first" Hazel replied as she wiped her face and held on to his mane, "You guys coming with us?" Clay glanced down at the others, "Thanks, but we already ate: besides, uncle Tyto sent us to run some errands back home" Hawk replied, "Okay, see ya later then!" Clay waved goodbye as the tusked titan bounded off into the forest at a steady gallop.

"I guess this means we're going to have to suffer his puns for the next few weeks huh?" Josefa grimaced as she folded her arms, "Yeah: but if it makes Hazel happy again, I can put up with them" Hawk sighed offhand, "Yeah I guess..." Jaye sighed. A moment of silence passed between the four kids for a moment, before a look of doubt overcame Ashlyn's fair face, "Hey guys? ..." she glanced at her brother and cousins, "...This may seem like a dumb question, but I can't help but wonder... What Hazel said, about not wanting to state the obvious: how many other people do you think feel that way? Because, _everybody_ on the island heard about what was in that journal, and I've not really heard anyone talking about it". "Yeah..." Jaye realized, "Come to think of it, I've not heard much in the way of small-talk getting around either": "Perhaps we've just not been paying attention? We _have_ been busy for three month's straight, it's not like we've had time to hang out with aunt Freya and the old folks around the house and Inn?" Josefa suggested. "That's true..." Hawk sighed as he nodded offhand, "... Come to think of it, maybe it wouldn't hurt to lay off the training for a little while? After all, winter's not far off, and we've still got a lot of stuff to do back home in preparation for the cold and snow". "That's actually not a bad idea" Ashlyn smiled, "Until Gustav and the other blacksmiths can sort out the pairing blade problem, we can't really advance with the training anyway: so we might as well spend our time doing something useful elsewhere" she threw in. "Think uncle Tyto and Bryson would be up for it?" Jaye suggested he started walking off in the direction of home, followed by the others, "I think they'd certainly consider it" Josefa shrugged, "Besides, Aunt Freya would want him to get started on chopping the wood for the woodshed: god only knows those mountains are going to be sending a lot of snow our way come the winter"

SPLAT!

The kids all jumped out of their skin's in fright as one of Yggdrasil's fruits landed a few meters behind them, exploding in a huge mess of juicy flesh, pulp and skin: breathing a sigh of relief, they glanced up at the vast canopy, and quickly ran for the cover of the nearest tree. "...That's another thing we can spend time on trying to figure out: how to create some kind of early warning system for when those damn things fall off the tree!" Jaye huffed as he continued walking, " _That_ , I think uncle Tyto and Bryson would _definitely_ endorse" Ashlyn sighed.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Omnes Scientiam:

Walking through the grand streets of the city never failed to bring a smile to his face.

It always brought a feeling of awe and warmth to Javorin's heart, to see the better side of humanity's legacy: brought together in their combined wisdom, passion and creativity, to make something good, for the sake of bringing something better to the world. The sheer scale of the buildings and their architectural artistry actually made him feel as if he were human-sized again, and not the fifteen meter giant he'd become accustomed to being. Leaning against an ornate pillar three times the size of one of Maria's giant trees, gazing up at the vast intricately decorated domed glass roof: he was so lost in his musings that he almost didn't sense his brother's aura rippling against his.

" **Something's got your mind ticking over,"** Jarus observed as he approached with his red crystal staff in one hand, **"And it's not the results of the meeting"**

" **No, it's not..."** Javorin sighed as he stood up and turned to face his brother, **"I'm just thinking: what're we going to do if we can't resolve the pairing blade issue? If the bear spears don't work out and we're forced to find another alternative, I don't know what else there is to try?"**

Jarus studied him coolly for a moment, before suggesting: **"Have you perhaps considered trying a more 'divine' approach?"**

" **Divine?"** Javorin frowned, **"In what sense? Creating our own weapons to bestow upon our friends?"** he put one hand on his hip, **"Don't get me wrong Jarus, I'm all for trying to find a solution, but it's been** _ **eon's**_ **since I've been in Haphaestus's forge: never mind created any weapons imbued with the strength of my power"**

" **Actually, I had something a little more 'unconventional' in mind..."** he smiled as he held his staff in front of him, **"I can tell you've been wondering about this for some time now"** , **"I know the Shepard's crook was the symbol of your followers Order, but I don't recall** _ **you**_ **ever carrying one made of red crystal"** Javorin raised an eyebrow, **"That's because I made this one myself; observe, "** he replied as he held out his other hand.

The tattoo's around his wrist and hand glowed bright red as more of the red crystal grew from out of his skin, and formed into the intricate shape of a rose: the petal's looked so realistic that it could've passed for the real thing. As his eye's grew wide as wagon wheels, Javorin suddenly remembered the blue crystal that appeared on his knuckles the day he fought the Armoured titan, and again when he saved Carla from the titans the following day, **"...You have this power too? How?". "Come, I'll explain..."** he beckoned as he walked away, absorbing the crystal rose back into his hand as he led the way through the giant streets, heading towards the base of the tier that this level of the city rested upon. **"When I first awoke from my cursed sleep and saw what had become of my corporal form, I immediately endeavoured to try and find out the precise nature of the curse that has afflicted all of us, and to see how it could be broken. Needless to say, five years of analysis and research haven't bared much in the way of a significant breakthrough: but there have been a number of curious 'side-effects' discovered along the way; the crystal-forming ability being one of them..."** he explained as he led the way up a grand ornate staircase, heading up into a corridor that branched off into a number of different passageways that were lined with many titan-sized doors; until they came to their destination.

Jarus's personal quarters, which looked out over the top-most tier of the city, served as his own personal library, workshop and laboratory (of sorts): being the god of all written knowledge meant he was well versed in every conceivable field of study, both scientific and mystical alike. Stepping inside, Javorin made his way around the other side of giant titan-sized marble worktop, while Jarus came around from the other side, meeting him at the end by the huge double-arched doors that led out onto the mezzanine. There, stood a large round marble table with a set of charms intricately carved into the smooth cold surface, in a series of circles and spirals: propping his staff up against the wall, Jarus then lay his hands down in the centre circle; the symbols in the marble began to glow bright red, as did his tattoos as he concentrated on the magics that had awakened to his touch.

" **An analysis spell?"** Javorin frowned as he read the layout of the circle and symbols, **"Indeed, one I personally put together, and only answers to** _ **my**_ **touch,"** Jarus replied as he kept his hands in the circle: summoning his power to cover his hands and arms in yet more red crystal, forming a protective glass-like coating that made his limbs look as if they were made of glowing liquid diamond. As the crystal crept up Jarus's arms, a series of red glowing symbols floated up into the air over the table, forming long lines of information that Javorin was reading as soon as they left the marble: what the symbols said, left him wide-eyed in amazement. **"...As you can see: the curse that was placed upon us was not perfect, if anything it was quite crude compared to the standards we were used to back in the day",** Jarus explained as he held one hand up, allowing the long lines of symbols to rest in his palm, **"It would appear it was comprised from several dark magics that had been put together from scratch. However, I don't think this curse had been created with a view to using it on a God in their true form: from what I can tell, it would seem it's more suited to be effective on a human"** he explained, to which Javorin nearly gawked at him, **"...You mean-, we were in our human forms when we were cursed? ….** _ **All of us?!**_ **"** , **"As unlikely as that might be, it would seem that's what appeared to be the case: though, for what reason we were all human at the same time,** _ **that,**_ **I do not remember. The memory loss was, and still is, not so straight-forward to pin down: but I don't believe it was intentional, as there're no magics in the curse that would affect the third eye chakra directly. However, there** _ **are**_ **some magics that would cause inconsistent memory loss as a side-effect, namely those used in reversal spells"**

" **Reversal spell?"** Javorin blinked in surprise, **"... Someone tried to reverse the curse's effect on us?"** , **"Tried, and most likely only half-succeeded: curses of this power and nature are nearly impossible to break, unless you have the exact means to do so. But, a well-crafted reversal spell** _ **could**_ **lessen the curse's grip, even by a little: which would explain why our powers are still intact, all bar our ability to resume human form. As far as the memory-loss is concerned though, it can be remedied with a breaking spell: albeit not a hundred percent successful all the time; it can help to unlock buried memories and keep them in the conscious mind"**.

" **That's why you placed that talisman up in Yggdrasil"** Javorin suddenly realised: **"Yes, and since Yggdrasil's power extends throughout the entire earth and other realms, the power of that spell should also find it's way to all the other gods out there.** _ **If**_ **indeed, all of us have been cured..."** Jarus sighed. Thinking about it for a brief moment, Javorin then frowned in confusion: **"...But then? How does the crystal-forming ability factor in? My elemental dominance is over the earth and air, and yet when I tried to summon it again, it wouldn't come"**

" **That's because you're summoning it from the wrong source: this crystal is not derived from the earth, or any of Gia's creations"** Jarus explained as he held out his crystal-coated hand for Javorin to have a closer look, **"Like I said, the curse was not made perfect, and part of the magics that make it work had some unexpected side-effects: the crystal is a solidification of the essence of our power, diluted as it's brought into physical form and contained therein; a sort of 'energy sweat' if you will. One that's imbued with a fraction of the manna that makes up our divine powers: which of course, lends the crystal a great deal of potency, even in small amounts"**

" **So, it could be a viable source of magic for anyone not born with magical potential?"** Javorin surmised, **"Quite, but with enough training it is possible to adjust the amount of divine power imbued into the crystal: depending on what you want it to do"** Jarus nodded. **"Training? I don't even know how I summoned it in the first place? And if it's not derived from Gia, then from where does it originate?"** Javorin fretted, **"Ironical, the side-effects: the crystal can be drawn out from the curse itself. Which, as counter-intuitive as it sounds, is not so far-fetched when you take into consideration that the curse is essentially manna, that's being manipulated in a certain way to cause a certain effect on us. Our power, by the very nature of its connections to the earth, spirit realm and cosmic plain, is infinite: therefore, the manna that forms the curse is infinite as well; (until it is broken of course). It feeds off our power, in order to maintain it's grip on us. Thus, while the curse cannot be 'worn out', a fraction of its power** _ **can**_ **be 're-manipulated' to create this,"** he flexed his crystal fingers, **"And fortunately, the curse's power does not carry over into the crystal in any way, so it's perfectly safe to use"**

" **So, we** _ **all**_ **have this power?"** Javorin thought aloud, **"Essentially yes, but it's different for every god: some, like myself, are able to create it in large quantities and detach it from our bodies, while still retaining control of our power within it. Others are only able to coat their skin to form a protective 'armour' layer, and nothing more. Though, since we are brothers and we share a familiarity in the sources our divine powers stem from, I think your crystal might be along the same lines as mine"** Jarus gestured to his staff. **"...Okay, but how do I summon it? What must I do to control the curse's power?"**

" **That I'm afraid, is also not so straight-forward..."** Jarus sighed as he came around the table, recalling his crystal back into his body, and placing his finger on the centre of Javorin's forehead: all at once the god felt his brother's memories flow into his mind, as he shared his experience in figuring out how to summon his crystal through the use of various meditation techniques: **"For every god it is slightly different, and from what I've come to understand, it is not enough to merely 'think' the crystal into existence. By summoning it, you are by extension summoning a portion of the total sum of your power; and as you know, the first cause behind any thought or action is will. Thus, you must have a clear willingness to want to use it: for just as our powers are an extension of ourselves, so too are these crystals part of our corporal form,"** Jarus explained as he let go, **"I cannot promise you these memories will unlock your own power, but they should serve as a good starting point"**

" **Thank you Jarus..."** Javorin smiled, before something else came to mind, **" You know? Now that I think about it: I believe the Armoured titan had a similar power too"**

" **Hmm,"** Jarus pondered as he scratched his chin, **"From what you showed me of your memories concerning the fight, I wouldn't dismiss the possibility that this curse of ours is somehow connected to that titan,** _ **and**_ **his colossal friend... Though, the fact you sensed a human presence within that creature,** _ **greatly**_ **concerns me"**

" **But this** _ **wasn't**_ **a homunculus** _ **or**_ **a golem: I've encountered those before and that thing's aura wasn't even remotely similar to either. It was just like the regular titans, but more chaotic, more,** _ **unnatural**_ **. Whatever magics created the titans, I don't think it's the same that was used to curse us; call it a hunch but I've got a feeling that this whole thing started out with us being cursed, someone took advantage of those magics, and somewhere down the line those creatures were allowed to come into existence as a consequence"** Javorin frowned.

" **...You could be right,"** Jarus sighed as he turned to gaze out the windows, **"...You do realize though: the fact the titans are human in appearance is a strong indication that, in part at least, humans** _ **might**_ **have been used as part of the magics to create them?"** he glanced sideways at his brother. **"I had considered that possibility,"** Javorin met his gaze, **"But there could be another explanation too: after all, homunculi could pass for being humans, golem's too, and a whole number of other creatures and magically-imbued inanimate objects; but that didn't mean they were human, or derived from human body parts", "That is true: all I'm saying, is that we don't know the full story yet, and I'm just trying to cover all and any possibilities"** Jarus stated coolly.

" **...You know,"** Javorin sighed as he changed the subject, **"...I never thought anything like this could ever happen", "Which one? The idea that some human had the nerve and gall to curse us? Or the fact that the human world has become a shadow of it's former self since we were gone?"** , **"Both I suppose? ...But I can't help but wonder..."** Javorin turned to face his brother, **"...Since their sentience first awakened, humans have always strived in one form or another: to either become equal to us, or to emulate our power and take it for their own; with the latter never ending well. We gave them countless trials and tribulations in the beginning, to see if they really were as worthy as we believed them to be. And although every generation had its hero that would serve as the mark by which the human spirit, heart and soul could be measured: after a while, we realized such cruel tricks and tests were not necessary; unfair even. So when we lower gods came here to live amongst them, we swore we would never do what our elders did, and treat them with the respect and dignity they deserved. It wasn't easy, and it took time to earn their trust, as well as remind them of who we really were: but by and large we were both able to find a common ground, and we both made it work... But, we always had enemies, those that sought to deceive, control, or even destroy us,"**. **"And you think one of those enemies finally got to us?"** Jarus thought aloud, **"Obviously,"** Javorin shrugged,before he turned melancholy, **"But the thing that makes me worry the most? Is what happened to the rest of us? How long have we been gone from the world? And how did the humans fair, before the titans came into existence? …. Did they do alright for a time? Were they able to maintain harmony between each other? And what was the sequence of events that led the titan's creation? ….I just-, can't help that feel, that when we finally find out the truth (if at all?), it's not going to be easy for** _ **any of us**_ **accept"**

" **You might be right..."** Jarus placed a hand on his shoulder, **"But in any case, we will face it together, as we have always done; we may not have been there for the humans when the titans nearly wiped them out, but we're here now, and that's all that matters",** he assured him, before smiling, **"...You know, regardless of what you knew or didn't know before the titans attacked Shiganshina: you'd have found a way to muster your little 'acolytes' together to help save the world one way or another... You always had a knack for that: in every generation there were always 'those precious few' that always caught your eye; and would go on to do great things in one form or another"**

" **What can I say? I always did have a knack for getting 'involved' in things"** Javorin shrugged, **"It's true I always kept an eye out for potential: one thing I learned a long time ago was that humans are actually quite good at doing okay by themselves: as long as they're reminded of what's important and what's not. The capacity for good lies in all of us, but the ability to bring about change for the better? Well, that takes a lot more than just determination... Over these past five years I spent getting to know Ariana and everyone around her, I could see there was something there that was worth keeping an eye on, and helping it to grow where possible. But of course, change for the better doesn't come lightly, and it's best not to rush things: and the thing with this particular 'potential' was that it didn't lie in any one person;** _ **everyone**_ **was, and still is, capable of something good and great. It was only when they all came together as a family, that their true strength really shone through..."** he smiled, before he let his gaze drop in rueful thought, " **...But then:** _ **that day**_ **happened, and-,"**

" **-Proved what you believed in all along,"** Jarus reminded him, **"What happened to Shiganshina was terrible, but even that hell was not enough to get the better of them: and even when you lost your fight to the Armoured titan, they** _ **still**_ **endured..."** Jarus assured him, before changing the subject somewhat, **" ….You know? I find it odd: way back in the day, some gods used to believe I was envious of your 'gift' for nurturing human potential; but the truth is, it was quite the opposite. I used to find myself admiring you, for no other reason that by attempting to be human, all the humans around you would be forced to look at** _ **their own**_ **humanity, and to question their own morality, and who they really were"**

" **That was sort of the point?"** Javorin smiled knowingly at him, **"Sometimes, the best thing you can do as a God, is to not really do anything at all. And once people figure out how to solve their own problems confidently: it was if you were never there in the first place"**

" **Ah yes, I remember father saying something along those lines: he always did believe in taking a 'wait and see' approach. Well? Aside from that one time he stole fire from the ancient ones: he wasn't one to shy away from being pro-active where necessary,"** Jarus thought aloud, **"No he wasn't,"** Javorin couldn't help but smile, **"And I'd think he'd have approved of our 'getting involved'", "Keep talking like that and the Ancient ones will shackle you to a rock right alongside him, for sure"** Jarusteased, **"You're one to talk: you taught them how to read and write: from what I recall that didn't go down well either", "No, but then the Ancient one's should have given more clarification in what was permissible: we may have agreed to not tamper with the destiny of the world, but they pretty much gave us carte blanche for everything else (within reason). For all their wisdom and understanding, I don't know how the Ancient ones could've overlooked a loophole like that?"**

" **I guess it goes to show, that even the most knowledgable of us can be prone to oversight at times..."** Javorin gazed at Jarus with a sceptical look, **"And, speaking of oversight: why are you letting Claude and Derek comb through the city looking for information on the titans when you yourself have already been over every archive and library from top to bottom? You didn't find anything the first time around, so to what end does** _ **that**_ **serve?", "Hopefully, they'll find something I might have overlooked: after five years of near-constant research, a fresh pair of eyes and minds is what I need to help give perspective to this conundrum. And before you ask,** _ **yes**_ **, I already told them that I looked, and that their help would be much appreciated. I** _ **did**_ **promise full disclosure, remember?, as did we all"**

" **So where are they now?"** Javorin gazed out over the city, trying to spot their aura's, **"Somewhere down in the historic libraries I believe? The one's on the second level up"** , **"Is Iris assisting them?"** , **"No she left her familiars in charge of them. She's overseeing something else"**

Javorin turned to leave, but stopped at the doorway as something else came to mind: **"...When we first came here, you let slip that you knew the humans that lived here in the city: what do you remember of them?"**

Jarus sighed as he let his gaze drop, he was reluctant to answer, but he couldn't deny his brother anything; with a heavy heart he turned to meet his gaze, inhaled a deep breath, and let his anxieties go as he explained...

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the city:

"...Whoa..." was all Drake could utter as he craned his head right back to take in the sight of the vast ornate arches and columns that towered many meters above him. "Whoa indeed," Derek smiled as he took another book off the shelf, "Every time I come to this place I find something new to see, or I see something I missed the first time round", "You and me both ol' chum," Claude grinned as he carried a stack of books to the huge ornate oak table nearby, and placed them down alongside the others next to the chair, "Okay, _that_ entire section of the shelf done, and: _nothing,_ " he sighed in exasperation.

"You know? For a place that's supposed to have books about everything, we're not having much luck" Drake thought aloud, "Ah don't loose hope," Derek assured him, "It's a big city after all: we probably just haven't found it yet", "Then again, who'd have thought the name 'titan' could have so many uses throughout history?" Claude threw in as he flicked through another book.

"Hey guys" Mabel smiled as she walked up to them, carrying a small stack of books, with Lawrence in tow as he carried his own pile, "Any luck?" she asked offhand, "Thus far the titans are proving quite elusive" Claude frowned as he gazed up at the giant bookcase, "Which is rather ironic, given the fact they're now common as dirt back in Maria; but still, we're keeping at it" he stated confidently as he flicked through another book.

"Hey, what's that you found?" Derek glanced down at the books Mabel had in her arms, "These? I found them in the culinary section: they've got some really weird recipes, but they look delicious so I thought I'd give some of them a go," she placed the stack down on the table, and taking the one off the top off the pile, opened it up to reveal several recipes, along with an illustration of a strange exotic dish. "Chicken Kor-ma?," Derek narrowed his eyes as he read the text, trying to get the pronunciation right, "Tee-ka-masa-la? Tan-dory? Jal-free-zee? What kind of recipes are these?", "The kind that didn't come from within the walls, that's for sure" Mabel chuckled, "They're all different variations of a dish called 'curry', and they call for a number of herbs and spices, as well as fruits, vegetables and rice; think of it like a stew: only different", "Sounds like it might be interesting" Claude chimed in.

"Sounds like it might make me throw up!" Brendis huffed as he and his brothers trudged along up to the table, and deposited their book piles alongside the others, "This is _boring!_ Can we go now?" Bren complained. "Hey, we said this wasn't a pleasure trip: we're here to do serious work" Drake stated, "That was like, _forever_ ago!" Brendis whined, "Oh pish-posh, it was only half an hour ago" Claude waved off, "Besides, how can you be bored in a place like this? With _countless_ books to read!", "Uh, because _we can't read_ genius!" Brendis frowned up at the scientist.

Everyone stopped and gazed down at the three brothers in slight astonishment, "Wait, you guys don't know how to read?" Lawrence raised an eyebrow, "Well? No: it's not like our mum taught us?" Bren shrugged, "And sissy's been busy" Brendan chimed in. "Huh, well we'll have to do something about that, won't we," Mabel kneeled down to meet their eye-level, "How about _I_ teach you? I taught Fox and Shyla how to read when they were younger; would you like that?" she asked sweetly. "I suppose?" Brendis shrugged, "But what good's reading gonna do?"

Claude nearly felt his brain give out on him, as he tried to process what he just heard: "What good is _reading_ , going to do?..." He echoed in dumbfounded astonishment. Placing his book down and striding over to the three brothers, he regarded them each with a serious look: "Young master Brendis, learning to read is _the cornerstone_ of survival within the human world, and if you can't read there's not much you'll be able to do, the same goes for being able to write as well. It is a _mandatory_ skill to have, and I promise you you'll be able to do far more than if you go without it; try thinking more _sensibly_ of your choices and take up Mabel's offer" he stated, and then got back to work flicking through the books.

"He does have a point you know," Mabel offered, "Being able to read and write will enable you to do a lot of things: it's not easy at first, but you'll get it eventually, and I can help if you want?". The three brothers glanced at each other, wondering what to do: before Lawrence huffed in exasperation, "Just say _yes_ idiots". "Okay" Brendis nodded, "Lovely," Mabel smiled as she stood back up, "How about we start by going to find some books on the alphabet?" she suggested as she led the boys to another section of the library, leaving Drake, Lawrence, Derek and Claude to their own devices. "Hey, Claude?" Drake asked offhand, "Can I go explore the city? I might have better luck finding something on the titans if we split up?" he suggested; "Eh, that's not a bad idea," Claude thought aloud offhand, "Wha-, hang on a sec, exploring the city by yourself?" Derek interjected, "Why not? No one else is here besides the Keeper, Iris and the Queen? And all those flying snakes aren't bothered by us" Drake pointed out, "I know, but what if you get lost? You could spend hours if not _days_ wandering around, and we'd have no idea where to find you" Derek pointed out. Drake was about to protest, when Lawrence suddenly interjected, "I could go with him. I was talking to Iris earlier, and she said her flying snakes can help you find your way back if get lost; all you have to do is ask them"

"Really? ..." Derek thought about it a moment, before Claude threw in his two copper pieces, "Oh quite, Iris told me so. And beside he does have a good point you know: more eyes spread out around the city _would_ help to cover more ground, and given the fact we're still only on the second level, we're going to be here until next year at this rate if we only stay together as a group", "Well? ..." Derek reluctantly agreed, "Okay, but stay on _this_ level, understand? And stay within sight of the central clock tower so you you don't miss the boat", "Understood, and thanks!" Drake smiled before turning tails and rushing for the doors, followed by Lawrence as he ran after him. "Think they'll be okay?" Derek worried, "Derek ol' chum, you worry too much sometimes: just let them have a nosy around, who knows? They might just stumble onto something" Claude assured him.

Outside the library, Drake ran out into the giant circular titan-sized piazza, and as he gazed up at all the buildings, he was utterly spoilt for choice: "So? Where're we looking first?" Lawrence asked as he joined him at his side. "I-, don't know?" Drake suddenly realized, "We've nearly exhausted our search in _this_ building" he thumbed over to the building behind him, "And if it took _three months_ just to cover _two_ levels, how long's it going to take us to search all the others?"

As they gazed up at all the towering buildings around them, the two boys suddenly felt like tiny ants in a vast endless forest. It was daunting to say the least: and Drake couldn't help but wonder, if this was even possible to accomplish, "Well? The titans have got to be here somewhere, right? So where're they likely to be?" Lawrence suggested. "I don't know?" Drake shook his head "Do _you_ have any idea's?" he glanced over at Lawrence: the raven-haired boy pondered their conundrum for a minute, before an idea came to mind; "Well? Shadow said the titans are made out of chaos magic, right? So maybe they're up in the part of the city that's got books about magic?", "You mean the mystic arts and sciences section?" Drake corrected, "But that's _way up_ on the top level of the city, and Derek said to stay on _this_ level". Gazing up and looking around, Lawrence soon spotted the clock tower that stood in the centre of this level, "He also said to stay in sight of the clock tower: well? There's a clock tower on every level of the city, so _technically_ we won't be out of sight of it; and besides, we're not going home until much later. There's plenty of time to go to the top level and get back down again before then" he suggested.

"Well? If we don't hang around I guess it'll be okay," Drake shrugged, "By the way, what you said about the flying snakes helping us out if we get lost, is it true?", "I overheard Claude talking to Iris last week, she told him if anyone gets lost the snakes will help you find your way out. Which gives me an idea about how we can get up to the top level and back again without having to climb up all those stairs..." Lawrence beckoned him to follow as he ran towards one of the buildings on the opposite side of the piazza. "Come on, I'll show you".

Together, the two boys ran up the steps to the giant front doors, and after a bit of effort prying one of them open, they slipped inside. The building was dedicated to ceramics and other fine works of pottery: all around the whole interior was comprised of tall glass cabinets and shelves, filled with everything from tea services to wash jugs and bowls: figurines, urns, vases, apothecary jars and so much more. "Okay, so what're we doing in here?" Drake asked offhand, listening as his voice echoed all around the interior, "We're here to grab some attention..." Lawrence replied as he wandered down the central isle, looking up and around at all the vast displays, until he saw a small decorative-looking vase sitting in a small cabinet. Walking over to said cabinet, Lawrence grabbed the handle and gentle opened the glass door. "What're you doing?!" Drake panicked, "You heard what the Keeper said! We're not allowed to touch anything!", "I know that," Lawrence replied as he carefully removed the vase from the shelf, "But he _did_ say the snakes are in charge of keeping house, so surely they must-

A soft knock echoed from down one of the long arched corridors leading into the main entrance hall: both the boys snapped their heads in the direction of the sound and listened, but after several seconds, they heard nothing more. Turning his attention back to the vase, Lawrence saw a small strange golden symbol glowing in the spot where the vase had been sitting on the glass shelf: as he studied the strange mark, Drake stepped a little closer to him, "Uh...Lawrence?" he whispered as he nervously tapped him on the shoulder, "Is it just me, or are we not alone anymore?"

Wondering what he was talking about, Lawrence turned to ask him what was up, but was taken aback when saw a look of fear in his eyes. Indeed, Drake looked scared as he kept is eyes trained on a particular spot in the room: glancing over to where he was looking at, Lawrence narrowed his eyes in bemusement as he caught a glimpse of something moving between the glass cabinets several meters away; but the gap between the displays made it hard to identify...

HISSSSSS!

Suddenly, a low guttural hiss made them both jump: and as they spun around to see what had crept up on them, they both found themselves staring up at the huge form of Coatl, as the giant winged serpent stared them both down. It's glistening golden eyes boring into them as it's whole body filled up the space in the hall and its enormous wings arched up threateningly (all without knocking over a single cabinet, which was as impressive as it was confusing, given how many cabinets were clustered together). Although it wasn't as scary meeting the black serpent the first time around, with his mistress present to keep him calm and under control: being on the receiving end of his wrath was a very different, and very frightening proposition, and for Drake it was terrifying; he was so scared that he couldn't move or look away. But without even breaking a sweat, Lawrence calmly put the vase back in its cabinet and closed the door shut: "I'm sorry I took the vase, but I didn't know how else to get your attention..." he stated.

Hearing this, the serpent stopped hissing, and it's whole body and wings relaxed into a more placid posture: seeing this, Drake glanced over at Lawrence, who merely shrugged, "I guess we'll be okay now". Cautiously relaxing his stance, Drake watched as Lawrence looked back up at Coatl, who now seemed to be more attentive as he asked, "Listen, we need to get up to the top level of the city, to the mystic arts and sciences section: would it be too much to ask for a ride up there?". To Drake's surprise, Coatl nodded, and lowered his head down until his chin touched the floor: heeding his reply, Lawrence climbed up and sat himself on the serpent's feathered head, holding onto his feathers as he got comfy: "Well? Are you coming or not?" he asked; snapping out of his initial fear as he swallowed hard, Drake climbed up and sat next to Lawrence as the serpent carefully raised it's head, and smoothly slithered out the giant doors. "How did you know that would work?" Drake asked, rather impressed by his friend's ingenuity, "I didn't, but I figured the snakes must have some way of knowing when something's been taken; I was just playing a hunch" Lawrence shrugged, "Well, good hunch" Drake smiled as Coatl moved across the piazza, and made his way towards the titan-sized grand staircase that spiralled all the way up and down throughout all the levels of the city.

As the giant winged serpent effortlessly slithered up the stairs, the boys caught a view of the lake down below the city, and noticed another boat moored up alongside the one they had come on earlier. "Who else is here?" Lawrence thought aloud as he noticed Iris slithering along the ornate jetty, with several people by her side, all carrying boxes and loading them up onto the boat. "Oh, that's the new 'floating library'" Lawrence smiled, "'Floating library'?" Lawrence raised an eyebrow, "Oh, didn't you hear? Iris set up this thing where one of the boats will have it's own library aboard, so that everyone on the island can come and borrow books without having to go all over the city to find what they want. That way, everyone gets to sample the city's vast wealth of knowledge; pretty cool huh?", "Yeah I guess" Lawrence blinked in surprise, "So, the boat will moor up at the boat yard?", "Yeah, or around on the north side by Yggdrasil's roots, so the Otter clan don't feel left out". "What did Tyto and the others think?" the raven-haired boy asked offhand, "They think it's a cool idea too, if anything it'll help the Celts gain some perspective about the rest of the world: living way deep the forest your whole life means you probably don't get around much?", "Probably not," Lawrence shrugged, "But where did the boat come from? We've only got five back on the island, and that one's larger than the others", "Oh, that one belongs to the city: apparently, there's a boat yard and another jetty in a cave 'round where the wall of the lowest level meets the cavern wall: it's kinda hidden from sight so you don't see it as you come into the mountain. I'll show you it next time: there's a _whole load_ of huge boats hidden inside" Drake smiled.

As Coatl continued his climb up, the boys then noticed the shining white light of the tree of knowledge, lighting up the crystals on the cavern ceiling, right above where the garden of the tree was situated. "...So, what do you think the queen's gonna be doing to help us out? Besides letting us stay on the island an' all that?" Lawrence thought aloud, "Dunno, but the Keeper said she's always keeping an eye on things, and he said she'll be keeping a close watch on what goes down once we start hunting the titans"

* * *

Meanwhile, back on the island:

"Oh you're such good girl Clemmy!" Lucile beamed as she bounced the baby on her knee, "And so grown up: eight months old and you already know how to say mama". "Ma-ma!" Clemmy smiled as she hugged her favourite toy, "Yes, and mama will be back later with uncle Derek and uncle Claude," Lucile cooed as she placed her back in the crib, alongside her sisters Phoebe and Marigold. "Now, time for your bath, and then a nice long nap" she smiled as she went to fetch the bath tub, (a large cooking pot): "Everyone alright in here?" Rosemary smiled as she peeked around the door, "Just fine, we're about to have a bath" Lucile beamed, "Oh really? Need a hand?", "If you wouldn't mind 'Rosy dear: I'd quite forgotten what a handful three little ones are!" she chuckled, "Oh quite, hang on a sec and I'll go fetch the towel's" Rosemary smiled as she left to go to the linen cupboard.

From where he was listening outside, Fox paused every now and then as he was chopping logs and the largest of the kindling sticks; his mind wandering too much for him to completely focus on the job. "...What's up?" Shyla asked from where she'd been watching him up on the roof of the woodshed, "You've been distracted since we got back from the meeting: is something wrong?"

"...Do you think they remember?..." he gestured to the babies, who were all watching him through the window, smiling and giggling: "Only, they don't seem to have been affected by what happened that day". Realizing what he was talking about, Shyla sighed as she jumped down to the ground and approached him, "They were trapped in that basement during the worst of it, and we didn't find them until nightfall, so chances are, probably not". "Who's trapped where?" Belle asked offhand as she appeared from around the corner, followed by her sisters: "Fox was wondering if Clemmy, Phoebe and Marigold were affected by what happened in Shiganshina". The sisters paused a moment, before Gale offered, "Well? Considering how long they were in that basement, I'd say they missed the worst of it", "What I said" Shyla agreed; Fox didn't like the idea of this thoughts being broadcasted so nonchalantly, but he knew his sister didn't mean anything by it, and so let it go as he tried to get back to work.

"So? What's next on the agenda for training? With the pairing blade issue still up in the air, have we got anything else planned for the meantime?" Belle thought aloud as she climbed up onto the roof of the woodshed, joined by Shyla who perched herself beside her; while Gale and Poppy sat on a log next to the chopping stump: "Probably more tandem training?" West suggested as he approached with Pascal in tow, "The boss wants to be sure we're able to haul ass with our titan buddies okay if the Scouts spot us, so he's got another load of 'run and evade' moves for us to practise tomorrow". "Which is kinda bordering on over-worrying in my opinion: I mean, have you _seen_ how fast those deer and elk titans can move? Even those specially bred horses the Scouts use couldn't keep up with them. The tree-titans are so stealthy you walk right past them, even when they're not trying to hide: and the bird titans? Hey there's no competition there, with wings to put plenty of distance between us and the Scouts, we've easily got the advantage" Pascal threw in as he idly leaned against the corner of the woodshed.

"You think Tyto and Bryson are blowing this all way out of proportion?" Gale asked offhand, "Not out of proportion, per se" Pascal dithered, " _I'm just saying_ , the way we've been training with the titans, the way we've been learning more 'hide and evade' moves rather than actual combat? It's like we're keeping them wrapped up in cotton wool, when they're more than capable of holding their own. I just think, if things don't go our way and we're forced to fight our way out of some bad shit, it'll pay to have titans who know _how_ to fight, than to simply run and hide"

"You might be right: but Tyto said we must not resort to fighting the Scouts if it can be helped, the queen is hoping they'll become our allies one day, and that won't happen if we demonstrate aggression" Shyla pointed out, "There's a difference between being aggressive, and proving you're not to be messed with: it's a fine balancing act for sure, but if you can at least prove that you're not a push-over, then there's a level of 'understanding' to be had" Pascal explained.

"Understanding?" Fox raised an eyebrow as he lowered the axe, "You could say its a form of 'decorum' of sorts: despite being the shithole of all humanity, even the underground had it's own rules; what was permissible and what was not. And suffice to say, being weak and letting it show through wasn't one of them: if you wanted to survive in that cesspit, you had to fend for yourself one way or another. Whether it be beating up someone weaker than you for what they have, or stealing and trying not to get caught in the process, you had to have _some_ level of strength and brains to be able to live (at least enough to ensure you'd live to see tomorrow)" the former thief elaborated, "And your point is?" Fox asked dryly, "My point _is,_ " Pascal grinned, "We may not be going out to cause trouble for the Scouts, but that's not that same as letting them walk all over us if they have us cornered: fighting to save your own skin doesn't have to cost a life, but walking away with a bloody nose and fat lip serves as a good lesson in underestimating one's opponent. After all, You don't have to be cruel or kind to survive, just not stupid: and _damn lucky._ Remember, the only reason me 'an West got to be the best house burglars in Sina wasn't because we were the fastest, smartest or boldest: it's because we never got caught"

"Or, those idiots in the MP's couldn't be asked to get off their fat asses to go catch you!" Miriam interjected as she appeared around the corner with a basket of laundry in hand, "So this is where you all decided to skive off to huh?", "Skive?!" Fox retorted, "I'm still working!", "And we're on break, remember?" Pascal shot the old woman a wily smirk, "Yeah well, enjoy it while it lasts, because those titans won't be cutting you any slack," She glanced over at the girls, "-And those ODM's won't clean themselves you know! _Hop to it!_ ", "Yes Aunt Miriam," Gale sighed as she, her sisters and Shyla proceeded to head back inside, "And be sure to go visit Freya when your done so she can take measurements for your new garbs: you're going to need something more suitable for hunting than those tatty ol' things" she glanced over at the two former thieves, "That goes for you two as well, now _git!_ " she shooed them off, "-Okay okay!" Pascal took off with West in hot pursuit, "You _do_ know you won't be able to boss us around when we're out in Maria killing titans right?!" he teased, "HA! I'll still be waiting for you when you get back alive!" Miriam grinned.

"New garbs?" Fox raised an eyebrow, "Just need to make sure to your dressed for all weathers is all: it'll still be cold come January" she told him. Putting her basket down on the nearby log, Miriam stretched her arms up in an attempt to get the cricks out of her back, before changing the subject: "... So? Care to tell me what's really on your mind?", "Hm?..." Fox glanced at her weirdly for a moment, before the mother hen look in her eyes told him she knew him too well.

Heaving an exasperated sigh as he put the axe down, Fox sat on the log next to the basket, and tried to word his thoughts as best he could. "It still-...feels _weird._ Being here, living in a new place. Of all the things I thought would happen. I didn't think having to leave the Black Stallion would be one of them". Studying him impassively for a moment, Miriam then heaved a sigh of her own, as she sat down next to him: "Neither did I: us Willums have owned the Black Stallion for six generations; _long_ before the walls and the titans ever came along, and I'd hoped to see it pass to Gale, Poppy and Belle when they're ready," she gazed up at the dappled sunlight through Autumnal canopy; "To be honest Fox: I don't know how to feel about it? That Inn has been my home my entire life; pulling pints and measuring out spirits has always been second nature. And even though we got a new Inn here on this island, it's still not the same" she glanced up at the building ruefully; "...Seeing the Inn burnt to the ground like that? ...It broke my heart: as much as it did when I learnt Skadi, Bestla and Ran didn't make it"

Glancing at her sideways, Fox thought aloud, "...I know they say a home is just a house, that its just bricks and mortar, and it can be rebuilt again. But it doesn't take away the fact that it's a place that _meant_ something to us: somewhere that was safe, warm, and-... Somewhere, you _don't_ have to be afraid" his voice wavered for a moment: hearing the anxiety laced in those words, Miriam realized, "...After all this time: you still think he's looking for you? …."

Fox looked at her like a rabbit that had just locked eyes with a wolf: he didn't say anything as he looked away in fretful shame, but he didn't need to, as Miriam placed her hand on his shoulder in an uncharacteristic gesture of reassurance, "...It's been six years since that day we found you and Shyla on the roadside: and from what you told us, I don't think there's any way he could've known where you went, never mind the fact you successfully snuck through two gates to get to Shiganshina" she told him, "Fox, what you went through? _No one_ should ever have to endure, and if I ever do see him in person? I'll be sure to give him _more_ than a piece of my mind... No matter what happens or what anyone says: you and Shyla will _always_ have a home with us: after all this time I thought you knew that by now?"

Fox didn't reply at first, as an unreadable look came over his eyes, and he gazed off into space as he replied, "...People say all kinds of things, but that doesn't always mean they're telling the truth. Some people will say whatever they want, if it gets you to do whatever they want: and sometimes, if you lie about something long enough, it eventually becomes truth". Miriam studied him for a moment, before another serious look came over her, "... _Some_..." she stated, "Not all, right?", "Right..." he nodded, "I still forget that, sometimes". "I know, and I honestly don't blame you..." she softened her tone a little, as she spoke more frankly again, "Just-... _promise me_ : no matter what happens, not matter where you go in life; don't think of the whole world as your enemy. It's not fair to tar and feather everyone for the actions of one cruel idiot. Remember, there're a lot of kids in the same position as you and your sisters were, and many of them are not so lucky to escape their circumstances. Don't think that you have to keep your guard up all the time and keep everyone at a distance: instead, think how _you_ want to be treated, and do the same for others in turn; you'd be surprised how one act of kindness can come back around" she smiled confidently.

As they continued to talk, Ariana quietly slipped away from where she had been eavesdropping around the corner: stepping out around the front of the Inn, she gazed up at the black iron horse head that had been propped up on the top of the thick door frame, the same one that was perched on the Black Stallion's swinging sign. Studying the building up and down, Ariana couldn't help but agree with Miriam: even though this was an Inn, the cellars had been fully stocked long ago and the Willum's had dressed it up to their standards; it just didn't feel the same as the Black Stallion.

As she wandered off into the forest, gazing down at her ODM gear, Ariana still couldn't get Carla off her mind: hearing her voice so filled pain, and the longing to see Eren again; she couldn't help but begin to cry as she thought about that day, and how such a cruel twist of fate could happen. Though much had changed over the last few months, and they were steadily regaining some sense of normality-

But that's when it suddenly hit her

What was normal anymore?

They survived hell, and were now gearing up ready to rain hell on the monsters that destroyed their homes and way of life: alongside their kin of all allies.

And even before that, she, her family, and the families of her friends had all been hiding them from the world. The past five years she had come to take for granted, sure hiding Shadow and his kin wasn't taken lightly, but still: it was something she and everyone around her had grown used to, regardless of the pressure to keep the secret. And now, here they were: living on an island in a land filled with god-titans, on the doorstep of the greatest source of all knowledge.

Who in their right mind could conceive of such a scenario?

A cold knot of dread began to tie up in Ariana's stomach, as she suddenly realised the weight of it: the reality of all that had happened, and the fact that it was the truth. Who would believe such a fanciful thing? Such an unlikely and unbelievable life story: hell, even she herself might not have believed it, if it had been someone else.

The queen is hoping that the scouts will aide them in their endeavour to restore mankind to the world: but how? Even if they came to accept the fact that there were intelligent sentient titans in the world, would they believe such a place as the Hidden land could exist? And within the walled kingdom of all places? Not unless they brought the Scouts here, and let them see it for themselves: and even then, would they believe it all?

As she began to weight up the reality of what everyone inside walls Rose and Sina would or might accept as 'the truth', Ariana found herself thinking about Eren, and how he might have reacted to Shadow and the others. Maybe once, during the first few years when he was still that bight-eyed adventurous boy she loved exploring the forest with, he would've been accepting of them, (she certainly couldn't see him being scared of them). But, after Armin showed them that book, things were different, and even Ariana had to reluctantly admit that it wouldn't have been safe to let him in on the secret: Eren was different after that, she knew it, but deep down part of her wouldn't accept it. To her, he was still that boy she loved to sneak up into the forest with: Armin trailing after them with Gale, Poppy and Belle close behind, wandering the dark hollows and lush green vales of Maria, and playing beneath the towering canopy of the giant trees...

Those where happier times.

But then, everything changed the day they rescued Mikasa from those human traffickers: and ever since then, instead of seeing brightness and content in those green eyes of his, she noticed a quiet rage that always seemed to be simmering; even on his good days he was always restless and cagey, and it never changed. She had no doubt he was truly sorry for what happened that day up on the mountain: but deep down, she knew it would never be the same, and he wasn't that same boy who would go up into the forest with her anymore; from that time on, his eyes were always set upon wall Maria, and dreaming of the day he would see the ocean.

Of all the people, why did it have to be the one she cared for the most?

His dream was his dream, his _and_ Armin's to follow: Eren wasn't evil, he couldn't be; but she couldn't help but wonder, what the cost would have been? If it had only been their friendship that's one thing, but might his recklessness and short fuse had led him to make a terrible mistake? Would he have put someone else's life at stake, for the sake of seeing the ocean?

It was then she remembered Mikasa and Armin

Those two had been dear to both of them, and after what Mikasa endured, Ariana found herself amazed by her strength: able to move on from her grief, and forge a new life for herself with the Jaeger's. And what wasn't there to like about Armin? Even when he beat her at chess, cards and chequers, he was a kind and curious boy who always had time for her. And yet, despite being an outcast among most of the other neighbourhood kids for his beliefs, and his ability to be analytical about everything: there was something about him she couldn't quite put her finger on...

The day he gave her his book about the outside world: the way he explained how he'd seen things deteriorate between her and Eren, and how, one day it was likely they would part ways; did he know in his heart, what she'd known yet failed to acknowledge in the first place? As tears spilled down her cheeks, Ariana couldn't help but wonder, just what might have happened if she'd been honest with herself in the first place.

All these years, she'd felt so guilty about not letting Eren and Armin in on her secret: but had it actually been the other way around?

Was _she_ the one unable to accept the truth? That no matter whether they knew or not, it might not have changed what happened?

Part of her didn't accept that; if Shadow had been with them that day on the mountain, and had stepped in to help rescue Mikasa safely, things would have turned out very differently; among many other things that might have turned out otherwise if they'd known sooner. But as she remembered Eren's anger, and how _enraged_ he was: she realized it wouldn't have changed a thing; if anything he might have completely lost it with Shadow, and who knows what might have happened then?

As her mind continued to spiral downwards, picturing the worst-case scenarios: she suddenly remembered one major change that _did_ happen after that day on the mountain, something that she'd almost totally forgotten.

Armin and Mikasa were always there for Eren.

Between Armin's smarts to make Eren listen to reason, and Mikasa's stoic no-nonsense approach to keeping him safe: Eren didn't get himself into any trouble he couldn't get out of again. Of course the neighbourhood bullies were always still an issue, and he and Armin were still outcasts as far as the rest of the neighbourhood kids were concerned: but by and large, the three of them endured it together, and they persevered regardless of all of other concerns; and over time, they became closer, and stronger for it.

Despite drifting apart, Ariana never once felt any jealousy towards either Armin or Mikasa: she honestly couldn't fault either of them, and she had always been thankful that at least _someone_ cared about Eren enough to see past his flaws, and see him for the good friend he'd always been.

She just wished, she could've shared the same dream with him.

But then, that was the whole reason she didn't need a dream.

Having Eren, Armin, Mikasa, Shadow and everyone she cared about around her: the endless green forest and its wild secret places where she felt more at home than anywhere else. Why leave the wall to see the ocean, when everything and everyone she cared about was right here? That's what Eren couldn't see, but likewise, she failed to grasp the fact that some people in the world were just evil: there was no chance of redemption or forgiveness, and the only way to counter such people was to fight with everything you got. Did they both fail to grasp each other's point of view? Or was it just her? Ariana didn't know, and it was probably something she'd never know.

It hurt to think about the 'what if's' and the 'what might have been's': and as she thought about what Carla said in the hospital, she still couldn't shake the notion that her final memory of Eren was the worst one imaginable. Although Ariana herself wasn't witness to his death, it didn't change the fact that he met his fate at the hands of the very creatures he loathed above all else, and how in his final moments, he must've been filled with as much rage as he had fear and hopelessness; to know that his dream and ambition was at an end, before it had even begun.

Wiping her face as more tears ran down her cheeks, Ariana felt her breath hitch as she carried on walking: too lost in her grief to notice the forest around her. Thinking about Carla, she wondered if that was the real reason she'd been pushing herself so hard these past three months? That Eren's death had cut deeper than she thought, and that she was focused on getting revenge in his name? Or was the training simply a way to block out the pain? A reason to focus on something else, and distract her from her grief, if only for a little while? Either one wasn't healthy, and it was rather spooky in a way: how before, Eren was the one getting riled up about the titans and his mother scared witless for his safety; now, Carla was the one risking life and limb to sate her anger for the monsters. A burning eagerness that was on par with her son's: maybe that's where Eren got his fiery temperament from all along? Either way, fate certainly had a strange way of flipping things around.

But still, this wretched cycle of going over the past refused to let up, and as Eren came back to the forefront of her mind, she tried to think of something else, besides the day on the mountain, or the day Wall Maria was breached: something, _anything_ other than the memories that were filled with pain...

Suddenly, Ariana stopped as something flitted past her face, tapping her on the nose ever-so gently as it flew by: doing a double take as she blinked in surprise, she looked all around to see what it had been; and was surprised to see it was a large blue butterfly. Its wings shimmered with a metallic iridescence as it landed on a nearly orange flower. Watching it as it daintily sipped the nectar, Ariana suddenly remembered the time she, Eren, Armin and the Willum sisters snuck away from home to go up into the forest: and whilst trying catch butterflies in one of the secluded glens, one landed on Eren's nose and he froze in a mix of confusion and fear, unsure what to do as his friends just laughed at how funny he looked. Ariana couldn't help but smile as she remembered Eren pleading for her to get the butterfly off his nose, and telling him to hold still so Poppy could draw a picture of it...

As the butterfly took off and she continued to walk on, Ariana remembered how they used to love sneaking out together: how they had to convince Armin to pluck up the courage to come with them, and how it was always a struggle to rein in Belle's zealous thirst for adventure; they must've covered every inch of the forest, from the wall to the eastern forest road, and from the stone circle to the lower giant tree copses at the far eastern side of the central valley. Walking the strange exotic forest of this island, she felt like that young girl again, exploring her forest for the first time, with her friends at her side...

 _Hey Eren, there's a hollow not far from here that's filled with blackberry bushes: wanna go grab some to eat on the way?_

 _Sure, think you can keep up Armin?_

 _I-I'll try: I just hope it's not too steep_

 _Don't worry, this one's easy: trust me_

As she remembered those distant days, it felt as though it had only been yesterday: wiping the tears from her face, Ariana smiled as she flicked through the mental book of her memories; recalling the fun times that were worth getting grounded for. And as her mind began to think of all the good things that came before, the more distant her sorrow became: fading into past-tense as nostalgia took her to the happier times in her past...

 _Hey poppy? You still got your paper and drawing stick? You need to get a picture of this!_

 _Come on Belle quit it!_

 _What? It's not my fault you tripped and got yourself stuck in a badger hole with yer ass sticking out!_

 _Uh guys? Do you think the badger might eat him?_

 _Ah quit yer worrying Armin, it'll only chew his face off if it's really pissed_

 _Not helping Belle! Now help me pull him out: Ariana you grab his legs, while me and Poppy will pull up by his arms, Armin, you and Belle grab some large sticks so we can beat the badger if he comes for Eren...now, get ready, and PULL!_

 _Aw come on! This would make such a cool sketch!_

 _You can draw from memory, right Poppy?_

 _Uh yeah, for sure!_

 _Okay then, draw it after we get him out_

 _I swear, if anyone finds out about this-_

 _Oh calm down Eren, no one's going to tell anyone about this:_

 _What about the drawing?_

 _Once you made it, hide it and take it to your grave_

It was then Ariana stopped in her tracks as she hit upon an idea,

"Good memories..." she thought aloud as her brain began to clarify the thought at hand, "Good memories _are_ there, she just needs to be reminded of them..."

Quick as a whip, she spun round and dashed back the way she came: but she hadn't realized how long she'd been walking for, nor the precise direction in which the trail had gone. Decided to opt for the quicker route, Ariana shot her lines and took off up into the canopy: making a fast beeline for the Willum's place. As soon as she got there, she landed by the window of the girl's bedroom, and poked her head in to find the girls, who were all cleaning their ODM gears: somewhat taken aback to see her, they stopped as she climbed in through the window. "Ariana?" Gale blinked in surprise, "Is everything okay?" Shyla asked in concern as she noticed Ariana had been crying; "I'm fine, really," she waved off as she suddenly spotted Poppy sitting on her bed, "-Poppy! I need to ask a favour,", "Uh yeah okay? What can I do you for?" Poppy shrugged, "Do you still do any drawing? Like, while we've been living on the island?" Ariana asked pleadingly, "Actually, now that you mention it, I _have_ been thinking about taking it up again since I found that little shop in the town with all that parchment sitting around; I haven't been able to do any drawing since-, you know...But, I think I'm up for it again", "Great, because I've got a special request I need you to draw, and it's important we get it done as soon as possible. Oh, and will someone go and find Lucy and Lucius for me? There's something I need to talk to them about"

As he watched the girls talking from a distance, Shadow smiled as he thought to himself 'Yep: sometimes, the best thing to do is to just let them learn for themselves'. Silently walking away up into the forest, he sat himself down in a small clearing, and held his hands out as his tattoos started to glow: 'Now then, let's see if we can get this crystal to come forth...'

* * *

A short time later, elsewhere on the island:

"So remember, keep your elbows in and your legs out and relaxed: that way you won't sprain your ankle on impact" Bryson told the young Ranger. "Okay sir, thank you" he smiled before shooting his lines and taking up off up into the trees, followed closely by his bird-titan as she swooped down after him, staying close by his side as he disappeared into the thick greenery.

"Hey," Evrard greeted him as he approached, "You ready? The other's are waiting in the Lodge"

"Yeah, just coming" Bryson sighed as he followed the Celt.

The Lodge was one of the larger ground-based buildings on the island, so nicknamed because it was a large spacious three-floored cabin adorned with numerous antlers and animal skulls all around the outside: while the interior was filled with furniture made from furs, hides, antlers and carved bone; truly a hunter's idea of home sweet home. Also, it served as a suitable roosting sight and aviary for the Celts ravens and tamed birds-of-prey, allowing them adequate space to nest and relax. It had been made into the heretics and traitors central headquarters, where the other Celts, Rangers and god-titan's who'd volunteered to aid in the Hunt met up to train, discuss important business, and test their newly acquired knowledge and arsenal. As they walked up the steps, across the porch and through the front entrance, Bryson noticed Dale leaning against the huge table near the fireplace, starring down at the the map of the stone circles, one of a number Derek had discovered in the city's archives. "We'll be a little while, okay? You and the twins can carry on if you want" Evrard told him, "Uh-, yeah, okay" Dale replied offhand, having been suddenly roused out of his daydream.

As the ex-Scout and Celt proceeded upstairs, the sound of chatting voices could be heard coming from one of the rooms, before the door gently closed shut.

"Have they started yet?" Lucy asked offhand as she and her brother appeared from out of the kitchen with some glasses of water in hand, "Bryson just came in, Uncle Evrard said we can continue here" Dale confirmed as Lucius handed him a glass, "Thanks..." he replied, taking a swig as he continued to stare down at the map. "So what's on your mind?" Lucius asked, noticing the far-distant look in his eyes: "Everything: mind being more specific?" Dale weakly smiled, trying not to sound sarcastic, "Well? What's bugging you about that map?" Lucy clarified.

Thinking about it, Dale sighed "...Two hundred and ninety three stone circles within the walls; and all this time, hardly anyone knew they were there? I don't buy it", "Neither do we" both twins replied, "-I mean, yeah okay, they're pretty spaced out and situated in areas where people haven't been in many decades, possibly even since humanity first took refuge behind the walls? But still, you'd think more than a few individuals would've noticed something as obvious a giant circle of carved standing stones sitting in the middle of the forest" Lucy added within skipping a beat: "That's another thing," Dale observed, "According to the map, all the circles were situated in very remote areas. But the thing is, this map and the others like it are old; _very_ old. And there's no way to confirm if the topography and the layout of the towns and villages is more or less the same now, as it was when the maps were first drawn up"

"You think not all the circles will still be there? That maybe the wall cult or the government will have had the one's they found torn down?" Lucius thought aloud, "That, and will any of them still retain any power?" Dale replied as he stroked his chin, "I mean, how can we test them to make sure? And if they do work, how will the god-titan's be able to tell which one they're travelling too?", "Considering everything up until this point? I thinks it's a fair assumption the Keeper will have something up his proverbial sleeve to handle this" Lucy suggested, "He's been able to deal with most other problems that have cropped up thus far"

"...That's something else that's been bothering me," Dale frowned as the cogs in his brain continued to turn, "The god-titan's memory-loss: they said it's part of the curse they were inflicted with, that they can only remember certain things and not others. I'm not saying I don't believe them, and I don't believe they have any reason to hide anything, but-...", "What?" the twins both raised an eyebrow.

Thinking about it for a long moment, Dale then passed a heavy sigh, as he rubbed his tired face and leaned back in the chair: "...I don't know guys? I think maybe I'm starting to overthink all this?", "Overthink it how?" Lucy asked offhand. Dale gazed across the room, at the journal sitting on the desk: "...For the past three months, that journal has been the reference point from which we've based our entire plans on: alongside Bryson's expertise as a Scout. We've done _everything,_ from field-testing the chimes, hummers and repelling charm, to building our own 'upgraded' ODM gear: training to fight, hunt and work alongside our god-titan friends, and even learn incantations to some simple spells using their 'borrowed' magics... I really can't complain, the whole thing has been going like clockwork, and we've made incredible progress getting to this point"

"So? What's the problem?" Lucius asked in concern: "It's just-..." Dale hesitated, "That journal has raised so many questions: mysteries as to what's really going on between humanity and the titans. And I can't help but feel, the answers to those questions are _not_ going to be found here... We don't know exactly how long ago Omnes Scientiam was abandoned, but we _do_ know it was long before humanity retreated behind the walls: therefore, we can assume that any historical documented accounts of then-current events, stopped coming into the city around about that same time. In which case, any knowledge pertaining to the last hundred years and before won't exist in the city's libraries and archives. Which presents a very serious problem: _what if_ , the reason Claude and Derek haven't been able to find anything on the titans in the city, is because the titans only appeared within the years prior to the last century? In which case, we're back to square one"

"Whoa, that _is_ a problem: if that's the case" Lucius sighed.

"And one I believe, could be a very real possibility" Tyto added as he came down the stairs, "You're leaving the meeting early?" Dale asked offhand, "They just needed my consent on a few things: Evrard, Bryson and Ratatosk have got things covered..." he assured them as he approached the table with a serious look in his eyes. "What you said, about the answers probably not existing within the city: I can't help but feel that might be a possibility we'll have to keep in mind" he frowned as he gazed over at the journal, "But the titans appearing somewhere within only the last hundred-plus years? As stark as that sounds, you could be right; after all, we're still very much in the dark as to the titans true origins"

"Maybe it's mentioned in the other half of the journal? (wherever that is), I mean, it talks about the titans anatomy and other stuff as if it's a formal back-up to something else: judging from the bindings on the spine, we know the first half of the journal had way more pages than the half we have; maybe the missing half details the titans origins and how they were created?" Lucy added. "It would be the most likely scenario" Lucius added; "Agreed, but there's something else that keeps gnawing at the back of my mind..." Dale thought aloud, "Derek's theory about the walls not being built when the Royal Government said they were: _if_ the walls really do predate the titans; then what were they really built for in the first place?"

A long moment of silence stretched out between them, before Tyto sighed, "...So many mysteries, and even with all we have: we're still no closer to the truth"

"Yeah," Lucy sighed, "But at least we have an advantage over the titans with the chimes, hummers _and_ that repelling charm: and if we work out the new hunting formations right, there's a good chance we won't loose a single life" she smiled. "That would be great," Tyto smiled as he ruffled her hair, "I'll leave you three geniuses to your work: anyone wants me, I'll be overseeing the newer volunteers out on the range" he added as he left through the front door: leaving the three children where they sat. Another silence stretched out between them, before Dale changed the subject: "...By the way: I was wondering how _you_ guys are doing?"

"Huh? In what way?" they both asked in synch, "Well? ..." Dale tried to word his thoughts right without sounding insensitive, "...Your parents made it to wall Rose before the breach, and they're still alive. What I'm trying to say is, I know _why_ you guys decided not to reunite them, and I don't blame you: not after what happened the night of the storm, and-... Well? I was just concerned if maybe-, you had any regrets over it? I mean, I know they weren't the best parents, but they were still _your_ parents; some people might still hold guilt over that kinda thing, and if you wanted to talk about it? I'm always here"

Taken aback slightly, both twins glanced at one another with unreadable eyes for a moment, before offering an understanding smile: "Thank you Dale," they both said together. "We appreciate this can be construed as an 'impulsive', if not a somewhat heartless choice," Lucius replied in a frank tone, "But we still stand by our decision _not_ to reunite with them" Lucy stated in an equally frank manner. "... For what it's worth?" Lucius elaborated, "I think it's as much a burden off their shoulders as it is ours... But allowing Muller to chain us up in the basement? Considering us unworthy of being rescued? Even moving elsewhere and not telling us until the last minute? Sorry, but we're _not_ sorry: your parents wouldn't even dream of doing anything like that, so why would ours? There're plenty of orphanages that take in unwanted children: would it have been such a fuss and a pain in the neck, to give us up if they _didn't_ want us in the first place?"

"You know? ….In a way, I have to wonder sometimes," Lucy thought aloud, "What happened to them in their lives to make them both such unhappy people? Why they felt they had to keep us, when clearly they both knew parenthood wasn't what they wanted... And it's not just them: Bemadette's mum, Fox and Shyla's parents, Mrs Muller; they all had that kind of unhappiness about them, that only comes from being hurt in one form or another"

"But then? If they were hurt, doesn't it make sense to try and show them what real kindness is?" Dale reasoned; "Why of course," Lucius concurred, "But that only works if that person is _willing_ to listen: to take a chance and put a little faith in your fellow human beings. And believe me, it's not like we didn't try..."; "Mother and father just-..." Lucy sighed in rueful disappointment, "... They _weren't_ those kinds of people... And no matter how much we didn't want that to be the case: the reality was, they _weren't_ going to change, for us, or anyone". "...But strangely enough, there is _one_ good thing that came out of it," Lucius added.

"What?" Dale knitted his eyebrows together in confusion: "We know what we wanted to do, and what we didn't want for ourselves. We didn't leave them because they betrayed us: we stayed with you guys, because we didn't want to betray you" Lucius smiled. Dale stared at them both in awe, as Lucy elaborated further, "From the start, _you_ _guys_ have _always_ been our family; and no matter what happens, we both know this is a choice we will never regret"

"Guys..." Dale smiled in heartfelt appreciation, "...Thank you" was all he found he could say. "Yeah well, don't worry about needing to talk about it, okay? As far as our real parents are concerned? They're water under the bridge"

"That reminds me," Dale suddenly remembered, "Has anyone talked to you guys yet, about the subject of who's going to 'formerly adopt' you both?". "Given how busy we've been of late, it's not really been at the forefront of everyone's priorities" Lucy shrugged offhand, "Though, that being said..." Lucius threw in, "Even though we've been staying with the Willums since coming to the island, we're thinking about letting Mrs Jaeger adopt us". Dale blinked in surprise, "Really? I mean-, given how she's been behaving since taking up the ODM training, do you really think now's the best time to approach her about this?".

"Dale, after what happened earlier today? We'd say now is _exactly_ the right time to talk to her about this; but not for our sakes," Lucy stated, "Huh?" Dale raised an eyebrow. "Look, you and the others might have been too busy to notice? But Mrs Jaeger _hasn't_ been coping well since loosing Eren; we thought at first she was, like everyone else. But after what Tyto described of his meeting with her earlier? We think she's struggling to get through her grief, and maybe it's why she threw herself into the training as hard as she did? Because it's become a distraction from the pain: something to take her mind off and forget about, if only temporarily" Lucius explained anxiously. "She may be one of the best volunteers to have completed the basic training: but if she keeps up like this? She won't even last until mid-winter, never mind next spring" Lucy worried.

"...I should've guessed; and _I'm sorry_ , if I haven't been paying closer attention..." Dale sighed in ruefulness, "...I know she's had it hard: but at the risk of sounding insensitive, I don't understand _why?_ We lost aunt Bestla, Ran and Skadi, and we're trying to deal with our loss as best we can; so why is she suffering so much more?"

"Because it's not the same thing..." Rosemary stated as she stepped in through the doorway, "Sorry for the intrusion, I saw the front door open and assumed it would be okay to come in: is your father still with the others Dale?" she asked with a small smile, "He went up to the range: do want me to send him a raven?" the boy replied offhand, "Oh no it's okay, it's nothing urgent: I'll wait until he gets back..." she waved off, before approaching them: "...Forgive my eavesdropping, but I couldn't help but overhear..." she smiled knowingly as she sat herself down at the table, gazing over at the twins, "So you've decided to go stay with Carla, hm?", "Please don't take it the wrong way Mrs Willum: we couldn't thank you enough for letting us stay with you guys: but we've already talked this over between us; and we were going to tell you, Gustav and Miriam some time tomorrow" Lucy sighed. "Oh don't worry yourself about it darling: we've already got the gist of it; the walls of the Inn are paper-thin, so we hear everything that goes on upstairs from down in the parlour. And I have to say, I'm very proud of you both, for being concerned for her and her welfare: I just wished you could've let us in on what you were planning sooner" she smiled. "Well? We know how you Willums have a habit of 'collecting' kids, we just thought you might want to add us to the pile" Lucius teased, to which Rosemary laughed, "-Oh goodness! I don't think there's any risk of that! We're already full as it is!"

"Really? You could've fooled me..." Dale smiled, before letting his curiosity get the better of him again: "...Um? What you said, about it 'not being the same thing': what did you mean by that?" he asked anxiously. Rosemary stopped laughing, and as her delight faded, she gazed at Dale and the twins with a small weak smile: and a look of wisdom and understanding in her eyes that seemed to reflect all her long years; as she explained, "...The thing about love and friendship, is that they come about in many different forms: and the nature of each relationship we have with each person in our lives, is different from one to the next; no two are ever the same. But of all those different kinds of bonds: none is more greater, powerful or enduring than that a mother shares with her son and-or daughter. Once a woman takes a child into her heart and life, she will give her all to ensure that precious young one survives no matter what, even giving up her own life if it means they might live..." Rosemary paused as she reached for the little golden locket tucked beneath her blouse, and clutched it tightly as she maintained her composure: "...And the thing about it is, you never really stop being a mother: even when your child is gone, and is no longer-... There..." she sighed ruefully.

Dale and the twins began to get the feeling there was something in those words that struck a chord deep within her: something that was obviously painful to talk about; but they didn't ask, and simply let her continue, "...You never stop loving them, you never stop thinking of all that might have been, and you never really stop hurting: even though you learn to carry on with life. To bury your child before your own time has come, is the very worst thing any parent could wish to face... That's why, she's finding it so hard at the moment: because she has not yet reached the point (if at all?) where she can look back over Eren's life, and remember him as he was in the happier times, and not how he left this world..."

A long moment of anxious silence passed between them, before Lucius hesitantly asked: "...How-...did _you_ manage to reach that 'point'? ...". Rosemary hesitated a moment, before smiling, "... It was rather random, now that I think about it: one day I realized-, or rather, I _remembered_ how my son was always concerned for me; how, he always use to ask me if I was happy. He was always such a cheery boy, always saw the bright side of things: and always tried to make me smile when I was down... That's when I realized, he wouldn't want to see me so sad: and yes, while it was painful to lose him, I hadn't lost the memories of him, and all the times when things were good and we had reasons to laugh and smile together. After that, whenever I was sad about his passing, I'd think back on those memories: and in a way it was as if he was still with me. And still is: I see him in his daughters; they have his laughter you know? And his boundless optimism... And that's what helped me the most I think? To know that his legacy lives on in his children, and that they have the chance to know him through me, through the memories I share with them. I know it's not the same as knowing him in person, and yes, I wish they could've known him, and their mother: but still, he was such a great presence in life, and even now after all this time I still feel him nearby when I hear the girls laugh... In a way, I don't believe we ever truly die, so long as we are remembered...To stay stuck between grief and pain, is no place anyone should dwell for long: because if they do, and they allow that pain to keep them in that sorrowful state of mind; there's very little chance they'll find their way out again..." she glanced over at the twins, "...That's why, you think having Carla for a parent would be for the best: not for your sakes, but for her's"

The twins both glanced at one another hesitantly as they tried to clarify: "...We just think-, after everything she went through in Shiganshina, she could use someone to have her back" Lucy explained, "We're not trying to replace Eren and Mikasa: _no one_ can do that, and we'd _never_ ask to do so; that'd be just-, awful" Lucius added without skipping a beat, "It's just that-...During the storm four years ago, we-

Suddenly, a creak on the porch outside drew their attention to the door, where Ariana was standing, and judging from the look in her eyes, had been standing there for some time: realizing she'd overheard most if not the whole conversation, Dale decided to skip right to the point; "... You know? I'm beginning to think privacy have been totally lost on _all_ of us: since no one seems to know what confidentiality is anymore" he sighed dryly, "Well you're right there: but I don't gossip (much)..." Ariana smirked weakly as she entered the building, and glanced over at the twins "And before you two ask, _yes_ I already knew about your 'adoption' plan: I overheard you talking with Gale and the others about it three days ago; and actually? I'm glad you chose to do it"

The twins glanced at one another, slightly perplexed: "Um? Thanks, but why the interest?" Lucy asked curiously, "Because, I think I might have found a way to help Mrs Jaeger with her grief..." she smiled as she held up a large white envelope, "And I think having you two along to help me with it, might just do the trick; you interested? I'll explain on the way to my place (I got a feeling I might need my mum to help us with this), and you fill me in with the details of how you plan to get her to 'adopt' you". "Uh? Yeah okay..." Lucius nodded as he and his sister got up from the table, wondering what Ariana had in mind. "Hey Dale? If anyone asks, just tell them we had important business to take care of" he added as he followed Ariana out the door. "Sure thing" he waved off as the three of them disappeared out the door.

"Well? I best getting off too, I've still got to help Freya and the others finish off Bryson's surprise" Rosemary smiled as she got up from the table, "Surprise?" Dale raised an eyebrow, "Oh-, um? Don't tell Bryson this: but Freya and the other Celts are putting together a little 'thank you' gift of sorts; for everything he's done to help everyone get in shape for the Hunt," she explained as she headed out the door, "Don't ruin the surprise now".

'A surprise for Bryson?' Dale smirked as he thought offhand, 'What's mum got in mind?"

"Ten pieces of jerky says its a new cloak..." Rowan's voice interjected from outside, beneath the window nearest the table. Sighing in exasperation, Dale glanced over at the window as Ash and Rowan climbed inside, and rubbed his forehead as his brother's sat themselves down either side of him. "You know it's pointless to lecture us about eavesdropping, so let's just skip that part okay?" Rowan sighed as he folded his arms and leaned back in the chair, "Besides, that was some pretty deep stuff you guys got into back there...So _that's_ what's been bugging Mrs Jaeger?" he asked offhand. "Not bugging, just-," Dale sighed as he tried to explain, "...Trying to find her way out of the worst of it". "So what's Ariana got in mind?" Ash asked offhand, "No idea: I just hope Lucy and Lucius are successful in broaching the subject of adoption to her" Dale replied.

"I don't get it?" Rowan frowned in confusion, "Why do they think she'll adopt them? I mean, don't get me wrong, I know all about that shit with their real parents: but why now? Why, when she's going through a hard time like this?", "It's the other way around," Dale clarified, "It's not a question of them needing a mum, but rather, Mrs Jaeger having someone to look out for her... Besides, she knows they won't try to replace Eren and Mikasa; no one can..."

A short pause hung in the air for a moment, as the three brother's thought about the subject of Carla's grief: "...You know? ..." Rowan sighed in an unusually sympathetic tone, "After that day on the mountain last year, I _hated_ Eren for what he forced Ariana to do: I mean yeah they saved Mikasa from a terrible fate and stopped a whole gang of despicably evil bastards; but that's no excuse for breaking my sister's heart like that. Of all the people she trusted in this world, _he_ was the one she cared about the most. Even Shadow didn't compare to him...I hated the guy, me and Fox... But he didn't deserve to die the way he did"

"Eren was-, _complicated,_ " Dale sighed, "He was always angry with his lot in life, and couldn't stand the fact the titans ruled all beyond the walls... Just, _knowing_ he wasn't able to freely wander the outside world: to go see the ocean, constantly plagued him. From what Ariana told me at the time, he was willing to fight to make that dream a reality, and he'd never back down; he wanted it so badly... Sometimes? I can't help but wonder, what would've happened if _he_ survived, and saw his mother get eaten instead? ….The rage that would've torn his heart to pieces: if he hated the titans _that_ much before, just how badly would he have lost it?"

" _That_ , doesn't even bare thinking about..." Ash worried slightly, as he got a picture of that notion in his mind: and it wasn't pretty to say the least. "Well, in any case: Lucy and Lucius aren't just doing this for the sake of her welfare: they're returning a favour" Dale clarified, "A favour?" Rowan glanced at him in surprise, "I'll explain later," Dale waved off, before changing the subject, "By the way, what did you guys swing by for in the first place?"

"-Oh, right" Ash suddenly remembered, "Dad asked us to remind the others they gotta sort out pseudonyms for themselves: something short and easy to remember", "Oh yeah, what was that for again? I missed that part" Rowan raised an eyebrow. " _Because,_ " Dale explained dryly, "In those letters Derek found with the journal: the wall cult mentioned that they'd been beyond the walls into the titan's territory, to test those hummers and chimes, and the only way they could've done _that_ was with the repelling charm to keep them all away. Therefore, if the cult were able to do that once, there's a good chance they'll do it again (and might have already done so, for all we know?): so just in case we're not alone in the forest and the Scouts are nowhere in sight, we gotta use pseudonyms to identify each other. Since our clan was the first to initiate the Hunt we got first dibs. Unsurprisingly, he's now the Grey Owl"

"I'm Raven and Dale's Jackdaw" Ash grinned, "Clay is now Waxwing, Hazel is Goshawk, the twins are Stella's jay and Blue jay, Hawk is now Swift and Ashlyn is Swallow". "Hawk? A Swift?" Rowan frowned in bemusement, "Yeah I know, but honestly? The way he flies on his ODM he might as well be a swift (plus most of the Rangers and other Celts already took all the good hawk species names)" Dale explained. "Plus, the Willum's lot are getting in on the bird theme: Gale is now Yellow Warbler, Belle is Mountain bluebird, Poppy is Flame coloured Tanager, Fox is Bullfinch, Shyla is Cuckoo; oh, and Pascal is pheasant and West is Blue throat" Ash added. "Pascal? A pheasant? Actually, considering how he dresses, that's not very surprising" Rowan smirked, "Yeah: oh, and Lucy and Lucius are snow bunting and snow finch" Dale threw in, "So what're the old timers choosing for their new nicknames?", "They're still keeping their original Clan titles: Uncle Evrard's the Red Boar, uncle Falken's the Black Hawk and Uncle Eraman's the Raven; they even dusted off their old ceremonial hunting masks, so they can hunt like our ancestors did... So that only leave you: what're we going to call you bro?" Ash asked offhand.

"Hmm..." Rowan thought about it for moment, before a smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth, "...Rook's got a good ring to it", both Ash and Dale glanced at one another in surprise, "Uh yeah, it's just-, not what we were expecting from you" Dale replied, "Yeah, I'd have thought you'd go with Crow" Ash thought aloud. Rowan simply gazed at his brothers with an unusually perceptive glint in his eye: "...It's tempting, but I want to be different for a change ...Besides, Rook sounds dark and mysterious, like our favourite black and white babe; I figured she'd like it", "Yeah, that's true" Ash nodded with a small smile, "Okay, Rook it is then.

"-Hey wait a sec, I'm not the last one! What bird name did Ariana choose?" Rowan suddenly realized, to which both his brothers smirked in exasperation, "...Uh? It's _Ariana_? It's a no-brainer what everyone'll be calling her"

"...Oh, right yeah..." Rowan mentally face-palmed, before realizing, "-But wait, what about Bemadette? Ain't she coming?", "Nah, she's gonna stay with Gustav and Bren in the forge: someone needs to keep our gears in good shape? (among other things) And besides, she's got Angel's 'talon gauntlet' to get started on," Ash explained, "Oh yeah: that's gonna look so cool; she's gonna _rip_ through the titans no problem" Rowan smirked.

* * *

A short time later, elsewhere on the island:

As she stepped out the shower, Carla grabbed the towel that was hanging over the railing on the wall nearby, and proceed to dry herself off: though she'd been living on the island for over three months now, she was still impressed by the the fact all the tree-houses and terrestrial buildings had sophisticated water pumps running throughout their interiors (indoor plumbing, she reminded herself). Using the heated water drawn up from the hot springs near Yggdrasil, and pumped directly into the little indoor pumps known as 'taps': the fact the town's plumbing system still worked after so many years of dormancy, was just as remarkable too. As were Gustav's and Bren's plumbing skills: having managed to iron out a few minor tweaks during the first few weeks of using the system, they got it working just fine.

The tree-houses interiors were amazingly spacious and ornate too: only the grand mansions, castles, and town houses of Sina could compare; but from what Claude, Bryson and Break described, those places didn't even begin to compare to the unusual style and décor of the island's buildings. Everything seemed to 'flow' and 'blend' into each other: there were hardly any straight lines or right angles, no timber framing's, plain simple walls, or windows with tiny glass panes set in lattice frames.

Instead, everything was made to imitate nature in a random abstract way: floors had been paved to look like a pebbly riverbank or a flower-strewn meadow using intricate mosaic patterns, doorways, columns, fireplaces and banisters had been carved or plastered to imitate trees, bushes and other unusual plants, often with little birds, animals, insects, or fairy-like creatures hidden amid the foliage, while the walls had been plastered in unusual patterns; the basic fixtures like the taps, water pumps, bathtubs and showers were dressed up to look like animals or plants too. Even the furniture was made to blend in with the strange décor: beds, chairs, tables, lamps, dressers, sideboards, cupboards, and everything in between was designed to either imitate plants or trees, or articulate the natural curves and shapes found in nature. And in every building, there were huge single-pane windows: often circular, oval, or bow, they would usually cover a good third of wall space, sometimes going around whole corners in a single sheet of glass (which confounded most to say the least; how was such a feat of glass-blowing even possible?). Despite being most unconventional, if not quite contemporary compared to the standard of the rest of the walled world: this style was most beautiful, and pleasing to the eye, as it made one feel as if they were living in the wild itself.

Many had come to the conclusion that the people who lived here before, must have had a deep connection with the forest, and to nature as a whole: why else go to all the trouble of dressing one's home up to look like the forest? The care and attention taken in sculpting, carving and moulding every last detail, from the veins of the leaves to the faces of the nymph-like sculptures, showed just how much the people of this island must have revered the beauty of nature: bringing it into their homes, and ultimately into their lives. For the Celts and Rangers, it felt like home, and for the 'regular' folk, it was as quirky and unusual as it was stunning and beautiful.

Carla's tree-top cottage was no acceptation, it was a spacious off-white hexagonal building perched up where the largest branch of the spiralling trees split off into a triple fork: held in place by brackets and buttresses of a strange yellow crystal-like substance, and was accessible only by a wide staircase that spiralled up and around the branch from the Grey Owl's home below; emerging onto the branch that held the front of the building in place. The large branches that forked out from the cottage enabled Angel to build a new nest right alongside it, and still have enough dense canopy overhead to keep the rain out: as well as have many thick sturdy perches that could easily support her weight. The cottage had a wide porch all the way around it that doubled up as a garden, with the roof overshooting the porch and held in place by beautiful twisting columns that were made to look like linden trees. Wisteria and rose bushes clung to the ornate eaves as they climbed their way up some of the columns, though with it being autumn their flowers had long since wilted and died off, and their leaves were in the process of turning their colours and falling away. While in the garden boarders, a myriad of various flowers and herbs had grown during the season of plenty: all now dying back and becoming dormant, readying for the coming winter.

It was indeed, a most beautiful place to live: but today, taking time to admire such wonders was the last thing on Carla's mind...

As she wiped the steam off the bathroom mirror, she noticed the scars on her left shoulder and over her left eye, and thought back to how she got them in the first place. She couldn't remember how she sustained the injury over her eye per se, but she knew the one on her shoulder was from when that piece of debris went right through her, missing her heart and lungs by several inches: and how that same bit of broken wood didn't skewer her spine was a miracle in itself. The scar looked ugly and warped, as if the skin hadn't totally meshed back together properly: Breck had explained that must have been when the fire passed over her, and some burning debris must've landed over the wound; burning it and damaging the tissues quite badly. She couldn't remember being burnt, or how long she'd been lying in that hole amid the ruins of her home, slowly bleeding to death: she only remembered Ariana and Angel digging her out, and Angel using her tears to bring her back from death's door.

But despite the titan-goddess's healing power, it couldn't erase the scars: and in a way Carla wasn't too surprised by it, after all, she couldn't erase the memory of watching her son die; the two seemed to go hand in hand. She recalled how once, she overheard Bestla saying that scar's are nature's way of reminding us why we're alive: that the past is real, and that we survive for a reason. If that was true , then it was a pretty cruel reminder of the worst day in human history, and the worst day of her life. Staring into the mirror, and gazing at the reflection that stared back at her: Carla was slightly bemused for a moment, before realizing it was _herself_ staring back...

'...Is that me?' she thought to herself: of course she'd seen her reflection before, but this time was different; _she_ was different. Not physically (bar the scar over her left eye), but something about herself just wasn't same, not in the way it had been before that awful day over three months ago. It was true things were different now: but had she really changed _that_ much? And if she didn't recognize herself, what else had changed that she hadn't noticed?

After finishing off drying herself with the towel: she proceeded to put some fresh clothes on, and went back to finishing off her chores for the day. Being officially barred from training for two weeks had left her very raw at first, but after her talk with Tyto in the hospital, she just didn't have the mental strength to do much else anyway. In a way, he and Bryson had actually done her a favour: being forced to go home made her realize just how much her housekeeping had been slipping over the past few months. Dust had settled onto most of the surfaces, the kitchen was in a dismal state, and the laundry was in serious need of attention: thus, the rest of the day had been spent getting the cottage back into shape.

But amid the business of housecleaning, doing the laundry and what seemed like a hundred other things to do: Carla couldn't get that talk with Tyto and Bryson out of her head. She still felt stupid and ashamed for letting her overzealousness get to this point: getting so bent out of shape and desperate to succeed, letting everyone down, and cringing at the realization that this _wasn't_ her, this wasn't how she used to be before. If it had been one of the kid's, she'd be lecturing them on the importance of looking after themselves and slowing down; the fact it was _her_ on the receiving end of the lecture, felt both odd and awful at the same time. But, she knew she did the right thing in not arguing back: and decided that for the next two weeks she would just avoid the Lodge and the training range altogether; out of sight, out of mind... And out of fear for being disliked by everyone.

Hell, she wouldn't be surprised if they just told her to give back her ODM gear, and quit before she did something else to embarrass herself: she wouldn't blame them, and maybe it would be for the best? Looking back over the past three months, she felt her heart sink as she realized just how reckless she'd been: so determined to be the best; her and Angel...

Angel

Gazing out the window, she saw her favourite bird-titan was gone: probably elsewhere on the island, or maybe somewhere up in Yggdrasil's branches, socializing with all the other bird-titans. Carla felt even worse, having realized how hard she'd pushed her friend to train with her: learning to use ODM gear was a real strain on the human body, but learning to use it in tandem with a titan, bird or otherwise, was even harder. How on earth Angel could be so patient was beyond her: she owed her one hell of an apology, and she had no idea where to even begin making it up to her.

As she watched the colourful exotic birds flitting about the canopy, Carla felt her melancholy return with a vengeance: she screwed up in more ways than one, and had no idea how she could make it right again...if at all?...

Outside the cottage, sitting on a huge branch above the roof: Elysia sat alone with her thoughts.

Today's events had been a real wake-up call, for both her _and_ Carla: sensing her physical exhaustion was a stark reminder that humans were still mortal, no matter how fiercely their aura's blazed with fearlessness, determination and courage. And from the way Carla had been training, that's exactly what it looked like; it was so easy to believe she could go on forever with that kind of gutsy spunk...But then, that was exactly the reason why, she didn't see the fatigue setting in.

Angel felt horrible: Carla was her best friend, she was supposed to look out for her, and instead she let her get too carried away; the intensive training and hard-pushed attitude she could take, she was a goddess, her energy could be boundless if she wanted it to be: and that's what she did in order to keep up with her human. And now, Carla had been banned from training for a fortnight, and it was _her_ fault for not doing something to stop her sooner...

" **...You know,"** Hecate's familiar dry tone spoke up from behind her: **"There's not much point to wallowing in self-pity: it does you no favours"**.Glancing over her shoulder, Elysia saw the black and white titan-goddess sitting on the branch behind her: getting up and effortlessly jumping the short distance across to sit next to her, she glanced down at the cottage with her typical stone-cold poker face, **"... You** _ **do**_ **know she feels bad for pushing you as hard as she did, right?"**

" **I'm her best friend Hecate, I should've realized sooner how out of control she was, and like an idiot I just-, did nothing"** Elysia sighed in frustration, still angry at herself. **"What's done is done"** Hecate waved off, **"The important thing is you both realized the seriousness of it..."** she glanced back down at the cottage, as she read Carla's aura, **"Though, that being said: she's got to find a means to channel her anger in a more pragmatic way. Use it without becoming consumed by it..."** she then glanced over at the young goddess with a hard mother hen look: **"And** _ **you**_ **mustn't let yourself become so compliant in everything she asks of you: if something's up and you know it's not safe, or right,** _ **tell her**_ **and don't take no for an answer: you** _ **can**_ **speak up for yourself you know? You don't have to follow her around like a hapless fool for the sake of keeping her happy"**

" **Yeah, I know"** Elysia nodded, **"...But** _ **you do know why**_ **she pushed herself so hard in the first place, right?"**

Hecate reclined back on the branch, as she let out a soft "-TCH!": **"Pain is such a common diversion from grief,"** she thought aloud, **"Pushing yourself to the point you can't think of anything else, is one way to distract your mind from it; but when your body tells you to stop, and you have to rest: you have no choice but to confront it again"**

" **But why is it so painful for her? I mean, I know** _ **why:**_ **Eren and Mikasa** **were her children after all, but why is her mind doing it to her like this? Isn't it just self-destruction?"** Elysia pleaded. **"It is,"** Hecate sighed offhand, **"But then, that's how most mothers react to loosing their children; especially under** _ **those**_ **circumstance's. They were in a dangerous situation, she made a call she thought to be the right one: and it wasn't. It wasn't her fault of course, she wasn't to know things would turn out the way they did: but still, she punishes herself because it was** _ **her**_ **child; her call, and knows she has to live with that... Dispelling survivors guilt and confronting the truth of what happened is painful: and no amount of magics can help... It's one of those things she has to work through on her own"**

" **...I figured as much,"** Elysia sighed ruefully, as she tried to hold her composure, **"...I wish I could've saved him"**

" **I know brat"** Hecate sighed as she sat up and patted her on the shoulder, **"Now go down there and tell her what you want her to hear: your aura's crying out to get it off your chest, so go do it already"**

Taking in a deep breath, Elysia hopped her way down to the cottage: chirped loudly at the front door to get Carla's attention, and within virtually no time at all her raven-haired friend was out on the porch like an eager child who hadn't seen her best friend in the longest time.

But her smile quickly faded when she saw the hesitant look of anxiety in her vivid ice blue eyes: and as she took another deep breath, she unfolded one wing and spelt out :I wanted to say I'm sorry for letting you down:. "Letting _me_ down?" Carla blinked in surprise, but Elysia didn't hesitate as she continued, :Yes, the way you'd been pushing yourself so hard, and being so wound up? I could see you were different, but I didn't say anything because I thought I'd be letting you down if I did. But I see now that doing nothing was the wrong call to make, I should've told you to slow down sooner, but I just went along with what you wanted, and it nearly cost you the chance to be part of the Hunt. So from now on, if something isn't right with you, or you're in danger and you don't know it, I'll stop you. Even if it means you hate me for it: she paused a brief moment, trying to keep it together before she continued :...You're my best friend Carla, and I just want what's best for you is all; so please, just let me do what's right, okay?:

Carla paused a moment: somewhat taken aback, before a sympathetic smile lit up her face and she held her arms out as she approached the bird-titan. Smiling with relief, Elysia bent right down so she could let her hug her face, and repay the gesture with a nose-boop. Stroking her cheek, Carla sighed "...Thank you Angel,", she stepped back a little so she could gaze up at her, "And I'm sorry for being such a jerk. You're right, I shouldn't have been so eager to rush into things; and now?" she hesitated nervously, "...I don't know what to do?...".

Angel sat down on the branch as Carla's eyes became filled with sadness, and as she stroked her feathers, she continued in a more regretful tone "...I thought-...I _believed_ I was doing it for _him_ : to seek justice and bring freedom to this walled world in their names... But all I was doing, was running away from the hurt of loosing them: and in so doing I lost myself, right to the point I nearly didn't recognize myself in the mirror; isn't that something?" she gazed up at Angel with a pained look in her eyes, but maintained her composure as tears ran down her cheeks, and she continued, "...You know what the worst part is Angel? Every morning, right before I wake up: between the darkness of sleep and the light of the waking world, I still see him crying out for me at the end of that road. Hannes is still carrying him and Mikasa as they run further and further away: I think they're going to be okay; and then I see that titan round the corner, and before they have a chance to turn back it reaches down and-

A flock of birds taking off out of the canopy nearly made them both jump: Carla wiped the tears from her cheeks and sniffed hard as she continued, "...It was out of my hands, but I still failed them none the less: I _hate_ the titans for taking him and Mikasa away from me, but not as much I hate myself for hesitating, and not saving them sooner. I just-... I don't know what to do to make it go away? I just want to sleep without waking up to the memory of my greatest failure: but it's all I see whenever I think about Eren, _only that day_ , and nothing else. I don't know how to see past it? To let go of this pain and just-, get on with my life,"

Angel was about to reply, when she spotted movement out the corner of her eye: turning to see what it was, she was slightly surprised to see Ariana and her mother, and Miriam along with the Cooper twins standing on the porch on the other side of the cottage. Following her line of sight, Carla was taken aback by the unexpected arrivals, and as she approached: she could tell from the looks in their eyes that they'd overheard her. Suddenly feeling embarrassed, Freya only smiled warmly as she put her arm around her shoulder, and assured her "Oh come on now don't be like that: you've already put yourself through the wringer enough times today; you've got nothing to be ashamed of". "She's right, you may not believe it now but torturing yourself ain't gonna do you many favours in the long run" Miriam stated as she folded her arms.

"Th-thank you, but what're you doing up here?" Carla nervously asked, unsure what was going on, "Oh it ain't us that's got business with you today: we're just here to back up the brats," Miriam motioned to the children. It was then Carla noticed Ariana was holding a large white envelope in both her hands, while the twins seemed to exude an air of confidence as they stood there with a glint of eagerness in their pale blue eyes. "Um?..." Ariana nervously hesitated as she stepped forward, trying to think of the right words to say: "...Look: I-, _everyone,_ knows you've had it real rough these past few months, and they all understand the reasons why. What happened today was-, not good, but it wasn't totally bad either: I mean, you got all your house-chores done, right?" she smiled nervously, to which Carla couldn't help but smile, "Well? The laundry was well overdue for a fluff an' fold" she replied with a forced smile. "Well? That's one good thing you can take away from today, and we're here to give you another two"

"Another two?" Carla blinked in bemusement, "...Here: I'll give you mine first," Ariana handed her the envelope: taking it, Carla opened the flap and pulled out the sheet of rectangular parchment inside; when she flipped it around to read it, she was instead, greeted by something wholly different. Something that brought her train of thought to a screeching halt, and made her stare at the parchment in awe and shock. Ariana took that as he cue to continue: "...The way I see it? You don't have anything good to focus on: no happy memories you can recall, and remember Eren as he was in better times, and not-, how he left this world...What I'm trying to say Mrs Jaeger, is I hope this will help you remember the good times: the bad ones will come and go I think? But if this gives you a reason to slow down and take things easier? Then that'll be fine" she smiled anxiously.

Carla didn't know what to think, as she stared at the parchment with tears in her eyes, and her face unable to express the heartfelt tender happiness she was feeling right now: "...I-...I d-don't what to s-say? ..." she stuttered. "Well hopefully? You'll agree to the second one," Ariana smiled sheepishly, "The second one?" she glanced at her in confusion. Lucy and Lucius both approached her, and holding her hands in theirs, gazed up at her with a frank yet optimistic look: "Listen..." Lucius started, "We know we're not Eren and Mikasa, but will this okay?..." Lucy smiled.

Carla didn't know what they were talking about at first, until she suddenly remembered saying those exact words four years ago: "We chose not to go back to our parents, and you look like you need someone to help you out a little... You were there for us at a time when the only two people in the world who were _should have_ to come to _our_ rescue, didn't. And now? With everything that's happened, we'd like to return the favour: if that's okay with you?" Lucius asked anxiously. Realizing what this was about about: Carla felt her heart throb as she got down on her knees and scooped all three children up in one big bear hug; tears pouring down her face as she sobbed in joyous appreciation, "...Why're you doing this?" was all she could think to say, "Because..." Ariana sighed with a rueful smile, "We're family, and we're here for you...I know I couldn't save Eren that day, and I'll carry that with me for the rest of my life: just like everything else that happened that day...But we were there... _All of us_... We were there, and we picked each other up and got out together..." Ariana paused a moment as she tried to maintain her composure, blinking back the tears that threatened to spill from her eyes, "...In a way, we're still holding onto each other: trying to find our way through all this; and even though we don't know where we're going? I know we can only do it if we're all together... So I hope, at the very least: this will give some better reasons to want to fight; one's that will make you smile, and not let you be consumed by the pain" she gestured to the parchment.

Letting another wave of sobs wash over her, Carla couldn't stop smiling as she continued to hug the children: "... _Thank you so much_ , all of you" she sobbed: "It's okay Mrs Jaeger" Ariana patted her on the back, "Oh, please," Carla wiped the tears from her cheeks, "You can call me Carla". "I'll go put the tea on," Freya smiled as she headed inside the cottage: "Guess you brats'll wanna go pack your things, eh?" Miriam asked offhand with a satisfied smirk. Watching the happy little scene, Elysia couldn't help but cry in a mix of relief and joy, and she watched Carla hug the children. High above, Hecate watched with a satisfied smirk, before gazing up at the sky and thinking offhand, 'Funny... How some things work out'.

* * *

The following day, late afternoon:

As the final training session wound up for the day, Bryson watched as Carla, Lucy, Lucius and Angel stared clearing up the equipment off the range: watching them, he was struck by the sudden turn-around in Carla's attitude, and how it was almost as if the events of yesterday never happened, as she smiled, laughed and chatted with the twins and bird-titan.

"...Did I miss something?" he frowned in confusion as Tyto approached him, "Heh, I'll tell you about it over dinner," Tyto smiled as he patted him on the shoulder, "But before that, there's one last bit of business to tie up at the Lodge" he motioned for him to follow as he led the way: the short walk through the forest soon brought them to the clearing where the Lodge was situated. Stopping in his tracks, Bryson was surprised to see the entire band of volunteers, their family's and the rest of the heretics and traitors standing in the clearing. On the other side of the lodge, a good number of tables and chairs had been set up with bowls and plates of food laid out in readiness for a grand feast, and just off from the clearing, a fire pit had been dug out and a colossal boar was roasting over the huge open fire, being turned by a couple of people on a long rotisserie. At the front of the group, Freya and several of the volunteers wives stood with a large parcel in hand, wrapped in the leaves of the great tree and tied up with dried braided grasses.

"What's this?" The former Scout smiled in pleasant surprise, "A little something me an' lad's arranged: as a token of our appreciation in helping us to get ready for the hunt," Tyto smiled, before Ratatosk stepped forward to humbly speak: "...Despite our own knowledge of the wild, and the ways of the forest: the titan's invasion of Maria taught us how unprepared we were to handle them adequately: and although the discovery of the journal and its importance cannot be underestimated, it cannot be denied that if it had not been for _you_ , Bryson Leon, we would never have known how to hunt, fight and kill the beasts in the first place. Never in the history of our people has such a creature had to be reckoned with: and thanks to the wisdom and bravery of the Scouting legion, we at last, have the means to fight this enemy. So to this effect, we present you with this gift of appreciation and brotherhood"

After handing him the parcel, Freya and the others all watched as he opened it: and was taken aback by what greeted him. "It's you're old cloak" Freya smiled, "We took the liberty of patching it back together: and giving it a make-over (of sorts); with a Celtic twist thrown in". The cloak was just how he remembered it, with all its little repaired rips and frays exactly as they were, but with one major difference. Instead of the wings of freedom crest, a new insignia was sewn upon the back: two fork-tailed hawks, one white and the other dark blue, intertwined with their wings and tails spread wide; almost resembling the wings of freedom. The dark blue one held a spear in it's talons, while the white one held a tree branch, and behind them, a big gold and orange sun with long rays reaching out into a circular blue sky filled up the space between their wings. As he studied the image, Bryson was both amazed and humbled.

"In our culture, the fork-tailed hawk is the farthest flying of all the birds, the most resilient, and the most daring: that is why, his is the totem of strength, courage and tenacity, and the spirit guide of all warriors and kings. The spear, is the spear of Siegfried the Great: the first Celtic warrior to fight the gods and earn his place amongst the stars, becoming our people's watcher and protector. The branch is that of the Linden tree, the symbol of hope and the promise of better things to come: and the sun hails the dawn of the day, when hopeful, the last titan will fall, the walls will come crumbling down, and the world will suffer the titans rule no more" Evrard explained, "No greater honour can be bestowed upon one of the regular folk, than to bare our people's most sacred emblems: as of this day, you walk among us as a brother, and master hunter of the titans"

"Here's to the titan hunter!" one of the Celt's hollered, to which everyone gave a resounding cheer. "Now come on you lot! We got a feast to put away!" Falken smiled as he led the way over to the outdoor dinning area. "Guys," Bryson smiled in heartfelt gratitude, "I don't know what to say?", "Just try it on" Breck smirked as he came up alongside him: throwing the cloak over his shoulders and buttoning it up, Freya smiled in delight, "Oh, it suits you!". "Now come on, let's eat, I'm starving!" Gustav pipped in.

"HEY YOU GUYS!" Bemadette's voice echoed from out of the trees,

Everyone stopped and turned to see Shadow, Midnight and Boar approaching from out of the forest, with Ariana, Bemadette, Ash, Rowan, Dale, Clay and Hazel standing on their shoulders: "Hey, where've you lot been all this time?" Tyto smiled as the titans kneeled down in front of the crowd: "You're just in time for the feast" Evrard smiled. "That's great, but before that, Shadow's got a surprise to show everyone!" Bemadette smiled as she jumped off the god-titan's shoulder, into his waiting palm, and down to the ground: "Another surprise?" Bryson smiled, "Trust me, you'll love this!" Ariana grinned madly as Shadow held up one hand and spelt out, : I've found a solution to the pairing blade problem:

Everyone's smiles dropped, as they all gazed up at the god-titan in a mix of surprise and bemusement, "A solution? How?" Tyto blinked in surprise, :Just watch: Boar spelt out as he grinned in eager anticipation. Holding out both his hands palms facing up, Shadow's tattoos around his hands and forearms began to glow their characteristic soft blue, and as he clenched both palms into fists, an intense electric blue glow shone from out of the gaps between his fingers and the folds of his skin. Watching in a mix of wonder and anticipation, everyone waited as Shadow unclenched his fists; and there, sitting in both palms, were a set of blue crystal pairing blades.

"What?" Gustav stared at the blades in wide-eyed amazement, "I know right?!" Ariana beamed as she hopped down to the ground, picking up one of the blades and latching it into the clip plug of her right hand grip, "And check out how sharp they are!" she swung her arm back and sliced a nearby boulder clean through. Everyone gasped as the top half of the rock slid down and hit the ground: feeling it, Gustav was shocked at how clean a cut it was; the stone felt like polished marble, and the blade didn't even have a single knick in it.

"Unbelievable" Evrard gasped, "Most fascinating!" Claude grinned as he looked up at the god-titan, " _How on earth_ did you come by this, ol' chap?", :Keeper showed me. It turns out we're able to create our own crystal, some more than others, and in amounts that can be sculpted into whatever we wish: Shadow replied with a satisfied grin, "And the best part, it's virtually indestructible: look," Ariana held up the blade for Bryson to take a better look, "It didn't even chip"

Looking the blade over, Bryson was astounded by the level of detail: it looked-, no, it was _exactly_ like an ultrahard steel paring blade, complete with anchor clips. Touching the side, the surface felt like glass, and as he ran his fingers over the blade edge, he could feel just how sharp it was as he felt the edge catch each ridge of his dermal papillae. "...Oh my god," he breathed as he gazed up at Shadow, "How the hell were you able to do this?"

:A lot of practice, and a lot of trial and error: the god-titan replied sheepishly, :Do you think it will suffice in place of the ultrahard steel?:, " _Are you kidding?!_ " Gustav nearly gawked, "That stuff can slice through solid rock without chipping! There's _no way_ ultrahard steel can match up to that!" he glanced over at Tyto and Bryson excitedly, "Guys, we have our pairing blades!".

Hearing that, a wave of excitement and cheer washed over the crowd as they bunched in closer to inspect the other three blades in Shadow's hands: "Alright now settle down everybody, you can check them out in the morning: tonight is Bryson's night, and we've got a whole colossal boar to get through" Tyto announced over the crowd .

As the people dispersed, the other kids climbed down off the titans to join the grown-up's at their sides: "Bryson's night? What's going on?" Ariana asked offhand, "Apparently, I'm being honoured as the new 'master titan hunter'" Bryson smiled as he turned around to show them his new cloak. "Oh wow!" Ariana, Clay and Hazel beamed, "Told you it was a new cloak, pay up!" Rowan grinned as he elbowed his brothers. "Wow, congrats," Bemadette smiled, before glancing over at Gustav like an excited puppy, "So does this mean we can use the ultrahard steel for the clawed gauntlets?" she asked eagerly. Gustav couldn't help but smile as he shook his head, "First thing in the morning, get your stuff and get what you need: we're gonna be gonna be busy for the next few weeks" he sighed, "WOOHOO! YES!" she punched the air as she ran off towards the feast, "Thanks pops!" she shouted back. "So does this mean we can get back to the training?" Ariana asked offhand, "I should think so," Bryson smiled as he gazed up at Shadow, "And _you_ : you better get some sleep; you're going to be busy tomorrow", :I figured as much, and probably for the foreseeable future: Shadow replied with a happy sigh, "Seriously though," Bryson smiled, "Thank you: you never fail to amaze me", "Amaze _all_ of us you mean!" Evrard chuckled as he patted his son and daughter on the back, "Come on, we can talk about it over dinner"

* * *

Later that evening:

The sun had long since set by the time the party was beginning to wind-down: and everyone slowly started to make their way back to their homes. Bryson was still wearing his new cloak as he followed his brother and Claude up the spiralling trees to their tree-house. Glancing up through the canopy, he saw the lights in Carla's windows were still lit, and something suddenly came to mind: "Hey uh, guys? You go on ahead, there's something I nearly forgot to take care of" he said as he turned around, and headed off onto another branch that led around to the other side of the Grey Owl's tree-house, "Okay, just be quiet if you're late coming in" Breck waved off as he held his dizzying head; he knew Freya's fruit wines would come back to haunt him in the morning.

Following the paths and spiralling staircases up the tree to Carla's cottage, Bryson quietly slipped past Angel, who was fast asleep in her nest, tentatively knocked on the door, and waited several seconds before Carla opened it; "Bryson?" she blinked in surprise, "Uh, hi" he sheepishly smiled, "I know it's a tad late, but, I was wondering if I could just have a quick word?"

"Who is it?" Lucius called out from somewhere inside the cottage, "It's Bryson," Carla called back, "Please, come on in" she stepped aside to let him in: stepping into the cosy abode, he saw Lucy and Lucius sitting at the table, inspecting one of the blue crystal pairing blades. "We heard the news about Shadow's pairing blades: Ash dropped one of them off for us to have a look at" she smiled as she approached the table, "It's beautiful" Lucy smiled as she ran her hand over the sides of the blade, "And _so_ sharp, this will definitely do the job of cutting through the titan's napes" Lucius added. "Oh by the way, love the new cloak" Lucy glanced up at the former Scout, "Sorry for not sticking around the party longer, we were all pretty bushed by the time we'd finished clearing away the training equipment". "We did have some of the boar though, it was real good" Lucius threw in. "Yep, the Deer Clan sure know how to roast a mean boar..." Bryson smiled, before turning to Carla with a more frank look: "Um? Do you mind if we talk in privet for a moment? It's nothing serious, just-, grown up stuff," he offered the twins an apologetic look.

"Sure, you can help me put the tea on," Carla smiled as she led the way into the kitchen, and after closing the door behind them, reached for the pot of tea leaves in the cupboard, while Bryson got the black iron kettle from off the nearby shelf. "So? What 'grown-up stuff' did you want to talk about?" she smiled. Pausing a moment, Bryson wasn't too sure at first, but the nagging thought in the back of his mind won out over his sensibilities, and he asked as sensitively as he could: "...Are you, okay? Today you seemed to be a completely different person compared to yesterday". Carla paused a moment, before letting a small smile pull at her lips, "...Oh, right..." she sighed sheepishly as she filled the kettle with water, and put it on the stove, "Yesterday was-, complicated...It was one of those day's where I realised I'd been about things totally the wrong way: and it took someone with a very big and very understanding heart to snap me back to reality"

"Ariana?..." Bryson smiled, Carla glanced at him surprised, before smiling timidly, "So you heard what happened?". "Freya and Tyto filled me in on the details over dinner: you can thank Poppy for that masterpiece by the way, I know she's always had a 'thing' for drawing, but _wow_. I didn't expect her to be able capture such a likeness" he explained. "Neither did I, and it's a good skill to have" Carla agreed as she lit the fire in the stove and closed the door, before getting back on track, "...Look, I'm sorry for how I've behaved these past few months: I have no excuses and I'm not going to offer any"

"Why? What is there to be sorry for?..." Bryson blinked in surprise: stepping in front of her and looking her in the eye,"...In the Scouts, coming back from an expedition was always a relief: but the part that always brought us back to reality, was heading back through that gate, and seeing the faces of the mothers who's sons or daughters didn't make it back. I would see them gazing up at me, at all of us, checking our faces to see if it was them; and the look that filled their eyes when they realized they weren't there? ...You become desensitised in a way, because its the only way your mind can preserve your sanity, amid such horror and carnage. But seeing the _heartbroken_ look in those mothers eyes? And seeing them fall to their knee's in tears? You _never_ get used to that: and it's _not_ something your supposed to get used to either..."

A moment of uncertain silence stretched out between them, before Bryson sighed, "...Carla, if anyone owes an apology here, it's me: I'm sorry I failed to realize you were still grieving, and I'm even more sorry for not realizing you were trying to find a way out of the pain" he paused a moment as he swallowed hard, "...I have to confess, this is something I've never really been good at: both of us really. Between seeing death left right and centre as a Scout, and Break unable to save every patient he treats: death is something we've been accustomed to over time; and in a way? I guess it's numbed us to the fact some people really struggle to deal with it... Some, can't even deal with it at all..." He met her gaze with look of shame in his eyes, "I guess, what I'm _trying_ to say is: I'm sorry, for not having the empathy to see things from your point of view, and I'm sorry I just brushed yesterday off as an overreaction"

"No-" she stopped him, "Bryson, It's okay, really: I need to apologize for nearly loosing it like that; and-, for everything prior to that," she added as she took the boiling kettle off the stove with a thick rag, and poured the water into the teapot, adding two teaspoons of tea-leaves to steep: "And you're right, I _was_ trying to find a way out of the pain..." she hesitated as she passed a rueful sigh, "...Parents, are not supposed to bury their children: and suffice to say, they should never have to see them die in person... For a long time I couldn't see _anything_ past the memory of that day: and I never will, not entirely; but what Ariana did, reminded me of the better memories I have: the one's worth looking back on and holding close to my heart..." she gazed out the window, as an owl sat perched on a branch outside: "...I don't know how the Hunt's going to go: how much danger we'll have to contend with, and how many good people we'll loose along the way; but I _do_ know, regardless of what happens, I'll have no reason to be a suicidal idiot," she couldn't help but smile, "I know now, how to keep that pain in check: and I'll deal with it on my own terms in my own time. For now though: I'd like to have to have the opportunity to make it up to you, and everyone else in the Hunt. I know I can't be part of the training sessions for the next two weeks, but in the meantime, I can be of use elsewhere around the Lodge"

"Yeah, Tyto told me you'd like to keep busy with some 'other chores' around the place," Bryson smiled as she poured the tea, and handed him the cup, "And I don't have any issue with that... Actually? Now that I think about it: you could help out with a few things that've cropped up of late. I take it you've heard we're all picking bird names as pseudonyms for when we're out in Maria?"

"Yeah, the twins filled me in yesterday," Carla nodded, before taking a sip of her tea, "Not a bad idea actually... But, even if they had the means to keep the titans away, why would the Wall Cult want to venture out into Maria?", "Well?..." Bryson glanced at her frankly, "When you think about it: _a whole land_ completely devoid of people, leaves a lot of room open for who-knows-what to go on. Despite being a force to reckon with, their reasoning has never been totally clear at times: and if its the Disciples who decide to take advantage of the abandoned lands, then we have to be prepared for anything" he took a sip of tea, "Which reminds me, have you thought of a name for yourself yet?"

Carla smiled as she reached into her blouse, and pulled out the dove pendant that hung around her neck: running her thumb over it, she confidently met his gaze: "...You know? Freya told me an interesting Celtic belief a few years ago now: she said that white doves are considered sacred by the Celts; the one bird they'll never kill no matter how hungry they may be. Because they're considered to be the children of the great sky spirit, made from the white clouds and the winds that blow high up above the trees and mountains: they're the souls of those who've passed on, returned to the earth as pure spirits, to watch over those they've left behind, and to bring hope to those who despair... I don't know why, but that always stayed with me: something about it just-, sounded reassuring, I suppose? ...And thinking about it, I think that's what _I'd_ like to be... The dove that brings hope,"

"And kills titans like a colossal boar stampeding through the forest," Bryson chuckled, "No seriously, It suits you: and actually? Given Angel's plumage you two will be an even better match", "I suppose you're right there," Carla smiled offhand, "I just hope everyone'll be able to see me okay, what with the 'uniform' I picked out for myself". "Uniform?" Bryson raised an eyebrow, "Oh, you'll see when I start training again: in the meantime it still needs a few tweaks here and there, so it's not ready anyway," she motioned to the small study through the other door, where a peddle-powered sewing machine sat on it's own small stand, with pieces of clothing laid out all around on the larger table nearby: still in the process of being put together. "Oh, right I see," Bryson nodded, "Well, in any case, Dove's a good one: I haven't quite made my mind up yet on 'Free Wing', it has a ring of sorts but I'm not sure? What with all the good names already taken I'm sort of getting hard-pressed to think up something original"

"Free Wing?" she nearly chuckled, "As in, the wings of freedom?". "Is it _really_ that obvious?" he deadpanned. "Pretty much!" the twins replied from the other side of the door, to which both grown ups sighed in exasperation: "...Why don't we go into the other room, and we can discuss those 'other chores' in more detail?", she smiled as she walked over to the kitchen door, "Carla-..." Bryson stopped her, "... I'm glad you're okay..."

She simply smiled back: "...Thank you Bryson, ". She opened the door, "...Now, the twins had an idea for a new training exercise"

* * *

One week later, in the city of Omnes Scientiam:

"We must've searched half this level by now?" Drake thought aloud as he glanced up at the towering bookshelves, "Though, I'm still amazed we've been able to get away with coming up here for a week straight now"

"Then don't waste our time by stating the obvious: keep looking" Lawrence flatly replied as he kept flicking through the book he had in his lap, "You know? I know this search is like trying to find a needle in a haystack, but would it kill you to have a little more optimism?" Drake dryly huffed as he walked back the way he came, into the central hall where all the book aisles branched out from.

Craning his head up at all the book shelves that loomed some ten to fifteen meters high, and seemed to stretch on forever into the seemingly endless building. Drake had to admit this search was beginning to loose its momentum: with so much knowledge stored in one building (nevermind one whole city), he never thought it would be possible to not find what he was looking for.

But as he turned around to try his luck down one of the larger corridors, he nearly jumped when he saw Coatl looming over him like a patient dog waiting for its owner; "-Oh, don't scare me like that Coatl!" Drake patted his chest, trying to slow his fast-beating heart, "It's not time to go home yet, surely?" he met the placid winged serpent's gaze .

:You've got another three hours before the boat departs: a long line of words materialized in front of him: gazing behind him, Drake blinked in surprise as Iris approached him with a friendly smile: "Oh, Miss Iris," he realized sheepishly, "Sorry, I didn't hear you coming... You're not going to tell Derek and Claude we snuck up here are you? Only, we're not supposed to be up on this level,"

:Oh, I think I can keep a secret or two. How has your search been going?: she spelt out with her staff as she bent right down to met his eyeline, "Not good, we haven't found anything on the titans yet; and what about you? Have you found anything yet?" he asked offhand as he climbed up into her waiting palm. "Well? I'm not sure? I found _something;_ I'm just not sure its got anything to do with what your looking for:. Drake gazed up at her in excitement, "Really? What? Can you show me?"

Smoothly slithering her way through the maze of corridors and aisles with Coatl following close behind, Iris soon came to a seemingly empty wall: she tapped it once with the end of her crystal staff, and all at once a door materialized from out of the marble, as if it were emerging out of water. Drake stared in wide-eye astonishment as the door opened to reveal a long dark corridor, "Whoa! What _is_ that?! And how'd you do it?!" he beamed. :This,: she gestured to the door as she slithered inside, :Is one of the countless unseen archives that run throughout the city. There is so much knowledge within Omnes Scientiam, that it cannot all be displayed in the libraries and museums: much of it is bundled paper-work, journals, diaries, and other 'loose' works that have to be stored in boxes and filing drawers: she explained.

As she headed into the darkness, guided by the glow of her crystal staff, Drake watched as the door closed behind them with Coatl waiting outside, :The people that used to live and work here, would gather and process their knowledge here, and store it for when they were ready to put it all into a book. It could be that what you seek, might not be a published work: so I've been looking through all these archives, in the hope that something might be hidden in here: she explained. "Huh, and I thought this city couldn't get any bigger" Drake blinked in surprise.

Unlike the libraries and museums, which were filled with light, colour and beautiful architecture, this place was dark, gloomy and dull: as Iris slithered along, Drake saw rows upon rows of tall shelves stacked with various-sized boxes and crates, all with numbers painted on small hanging signs along each row, with huge tall filing drawers and cabinets in between. There was nothing inviting about this place, and it felt rather spooky: what with the long dark shadows and ominous darkness that lay beyond the reach of Iris's light. Sensing his nervousness, she held him close to her side, and spelt out :Don't worry, there's nothing to be afraid of. We haven't got far to go now:

Slithering on for what seemed like another two hundred yards, they eventually came to the end of one long row of shelves, where a large blue book sat by the wall, along with a pile of other smaller books that looked to have been dusted off. Holding her hand up to the shelf so Drake could reach them, the boy took the whole pile and placed it in her hand. :It was random luck, coming across these books. I used a finding to spell to try and find 'Titans', but instead, it led me to these. What do you think?: she queried.

Opening the large blue book, Drake scanned over the first several pages, and it didn't seemed to be anything of interest...At first.

But as he continued to flick through, an illustration caught his eye. It was an anatomical drawing depicting a titan from the side: the titan seemed to look just like a regular titan, except it had well toned muscles, a regular human-looking face, and long pointed ears; it didn't look too unusual, except for the nape. The skin over the nape and neck was opened up in an almost surgical-like manner, and a man seemed to be emerging out from the muscle and sinew: his arms, face, chest and sides seemed to be attached to the inside of titan's neck by a series of long fleshy string-like attachments, as if he were physically merged with the titan itself. Staring at the image, Drake read the text next to it, but it was all comprised of long 'hard-to-pronounce' words he didn't understand: flicking through some more pages, he saw more illustrations of the same thing: people physically merged with titans via the nape of the neck... What on earth was this?

Eventually, he came to a page where the text was more simplified, and he could understand some of it: "...Titan-shifter?..." He read aloud as his eyes scanned down the page, "...What the hell?" he thought aloud as he frowned in confusion.

:Is this what you were looking for?: Iris asked,

"...No..." Drake glanced up at her with a look of realization in his eyes, "...This is something else: we need to get Claude and Derek up here; I think they'll want to see this"

* * *

 **Don't forget to R &R please :)**


	17. Chpt 16: Narrow Escape

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Chapter 16: Narrow Escape

846, May, The Marian Forest:

It was the loveliest of days as the sun shone its warm rays down through the thick canopy of the giant trees into the patchy understory below: bluebells carpeted all the available space, covering the entire forest floor in a sea of rich blueish-purple, with yellow cowslips and primroses peppered here and there, white wild garlic and wood sorrel surrounded the base of the trees, pinkish fox gloves and red campion bordered the bramble patches, and ox-eye daisies blossomed along the verges of the overgrown road that snaked its way through the low-lying glen. The air was filled with the numerous chattering's, warbling's and whistling's of bird songs, while butterflies and bees flittered and buzzed about, taking full advantage of the rich bounty of nectar. And amid the colourful undergrowth, a herd of fallow deer were passing through; the hinds keeping a watchful eye over their fawns, and keeping their ears attuned for the slightest hint of danger.

The wind hardly blew at all, save for the gentlest of breezes that tapped at every leaf in the upper-most canopy, while high overhead the clouds raced across the bright blue sky: it was so still one could've herd a pin drop from across the other side of the glen. Instead, the distant thuds of titan footsteps echoed up from the neighbouring valley.

Then, the air began to ring with another sound, one that had never been heard in the forest before: it started low, almost like a gust that howls over the tops of mountains, and then it began to take on another form, or rather, a series of voices all mingled together. Humming, whistling, crooning: a strange continuous droning that sounded like a choir singing an uncoordinated chorale. To anyone standing within range, it would've sounded so odd, so strange: and yet, there was an eeriness to it, as if it were being sung by beings not of this world; some kind of spirit? The mournful cries of those long past? Or something else?

As the spooky droning reached beyond the valley, echoing through the trees and over the far-off ridge, it didn't take long for the titans to notice it, and before long the giant behemoths were lumbering their way into the glen. But something was different about the half dozen titans that were following the sound, their eyes seemed to be more glazed over than usual, and their pupils were fully dilated. As more titans filed into the glen, they too seemed to wear the same dazed expression, as if lulled into a trance of some kind. Soon enough, the glen was filled with about thirty titans all heading in the same direction along the road, towards the source of the sound, which was emanating from somewhere in the giant trees above a nearby abandoned hamlet. As the titans began to gather beneath where the sound was coming from, they all bunched together in a tight crowd, gazing up into the canopy: just standing there in a hypnotized daze.

Another ten or so minutes passed, by which time around fifty five titans had gathered: as the monsters continued to listen to the strange siren song, they were completely oblivious to numerous humans hiding in the trees above, and even more unconscious of the strange tattoo-covered titans hiding amid the base of the trees and dense understory of smaller trees: titans that somehow, didn't seemed to be affected by the sound...

Moving with the swiftness of a squirrel and the silence of a mountain cat, the humans all climbed into position above the group of titans, forming a wide circle that encompassed the behemoths from above, and gave them a good view of their backs: especially the napes. One of the humans waved a hand gesture, and as if on cue, the tattooed titans crept into position around the group, covering all sides and cutting off any potential escape routes...

The trap was set.

"NOW!" Bryson shouted, and all at once the hunters dived head first out of the trees, shot their lines, and flew down with their blades drawn: moving in synch like a braid being woven thread by thread, the hunters sliced their way through the titans in the centre of the group, taking it in turns to strike each one. While on the outskirts of the group, Midnight slashed at their napes with her elongated blade-like claws, and Shadow sliced them with a long blue crystal spear: Boar charged out of the undergrowth and rapidly shot up the trunks of the giant trees, climbing up effortlessly with his sharp claws, and then like a mountain goat jumped from titan to titan, grasping the napes and ripping them out with one strike; and finally, Angel swooped down with her legs outstretched to reach forward, grasped the napes in her metal talons and cut through them in the blink of an eye. As she barrel-rolled up and over to line up for another strike, Carla and the Cooper twins flew off her back, and joined the others in dispatching the monsters. All the while the titans remained completely oblivious to what was going on, as if nothing and no one was there at all, and only the strange melodious droning was all there was: death came swift, and unannounced for them today...

Between the hunters and god-titans, the fifty-five regular titans were reduced to a steaming pile of rapidly-evaporating carcasses in less than five minutes: and as the last titan fell, the hunters returned to their perches in the trees to regrouped, "Excellent work as always everyone," Bryson smiled as he put his blades back into their scabbards, and gazed over at one young Ranger sitting on a nearby branch with a notebook and writing stick in hand, "Is that all of them?" the former Scout asked, "Uh, not quite," the Ranger replied as he re-read over his notes, "We've still got three unaccounted for"

"They must still be down in the south-eastern valley," Tyto sighed offhand, "I _knew_ that bluff would obscure the hummers". "Don't worry dad, we got this" Ariana smiled as she patted him on the shoulder, adjusting the neckerchief that concealed her nose and mouth, "Three titans less than five miles away? Easy, we'll back you up" Clay smiled as he readied his quiver and bow, slinging them both over his shoulder. "You sure?" Tyto asked, "Dad, come on: five miles plus three titans is hardly a challenge" Ariana stated as she folded her arms. "And we still got plenty of arrows between us" Hazel chipped in. "Okay then, but no sightseeing on the way back: we're putting the charm in place and heading straight back to camp, okay?" he told them. "Sure thing!" Ariana grinned as she dropped down out of the tree and into Shadow's waiting hand, letting him place her on his shoulder: Clay and Hazel both jumped too and were caught by Boar as he jumped down out of a tree and onto the ground below, carefully placing them on his shoulders as well, where they moved into position on his back. "Be back soon!" Ariana waved good-bye as the titans took off into the forest.

As he watched them disappear into the endless green, Tyto then turned his attention to the rest of the group: "Okay guys, we're done here!" he called up into the canopy. On the branch the titans had been staring up at, the four Rangers perched there stopped swinging their long hummers, and breathed a sigh of relief, "Finally! My arm was starting to ache" one commented offhand as he pulled the two meter long bamboo tube towards him. "How's that 'titan sense' of yours? Any late-comers?" the Grey Owl elder asked his friend, "Thus far we're good," Bryson replied as he threw back his hood and lowered the neckerchief that covered his nose and mouth, "Though I'll feel a lot better once the charm's in place", "You and me both: I just hope the kids don't dawdle" Tyto sighed in a worrisome tone, "Ah don't worry Grey Owl, Dove's got them covered" Eraman patted him on the shoulder. Gazing up and around, it was then Tyto realized Angel, Carla and the twins were gone.

As Shadow and Boar ran through the forest, their charges clung tightly to their long mane-like hair, making sure to remain braced against their napes so as to avoid their massive shoulders as they moved back and forth with each rapid stride. Riding a titan was no easy feat, but it was the most exhilarating experience: far faster than any horse, Shadow and Boar practically glided on the wind as they moved through the forest like shadows; swift, silent, and hardly kicking up any dirt, or making any loud booms as their feet struck the ground. "So guys, anyone feel like a triple-turn loop? Or a three-way dive-'an'-dodge?, if all three are above eight meter-class I'm going for the dive-an'-dodge!" Ariana shouted down to Clay and Hazel: "You know we're strictly triple-turn! It's only one we can do at the same time!" Clay shouted back, "Just thought you might want to try something different today!" Ariana smiled, "But okay, triple-turn it is!"

"Sorry kids, but no fancy tricks today! ..." Carla shouted down from Angel's shoulder: as the snow white avian titan glided down and flew above Boar's head, blocking off Clay and Hazel's space so they couldn't fly off. Carla then stood up, holding tightly onto Angel's feathery mane, and gazed up at Ariana: "We've got a schedule to keep today, remember?". "Fine, whatever" Ariana rolled her eyes, "Killjoy!" Clay and Hazel shouted up at the bird titan, who merely shot them both a mother hen look.

Before long, they found the three titans in a shallow hollow near a winding river: as Angel perched herself in a nearby giant tree overlooking the shaded spot, Shadow and Boar hid behind the massive trunk, and all three god-titans turned invisible, while their riders silently dismounted and gathered on the branch between the bird-titan's feet, crouching down low so as to try and remain inconspicuous. "Okay, one ten meter and two sevens: what'd you reckon?" Ariana asked offhand in a low whisper, "Bait and disable?". "At this distance it would be easy" Clay shrugged, "Or just let the guys handle it? It'll only take them seconds" Hazel thumbed over to where Shadow and Boar were standing. "Oh come on Goshawk, they've been doing all the hard work for three days straight: and anyway, I could use a little exercise" Ariana scoffed, "Alright then" Carla smiled as she stood up and walked along the branch, "Bait and disable is it".

"Yes..." Ariana grinned smugly as she stood up and walked along the branch in the opposite direction, clipping her blue crystal blades into the handgrips: slipping her hand into the hip-pack on her belt, Carla took out her little hummer; a foot-long section of bamboo that had been fashioned into a hummer with a luring charm carved into the side, and filled in with Shadow's blue crystal, attached to a three meter length of thick twine in the middle. Holding the twine, she gave enough slack for a good meter and a half, and started to swing the device around in a wide circle above her head, creating a high-pitched droning that sounded almost like someone whistling and humming low at the same time. Simultaneously, Clay readied his bow and three arrows, the heads of which were coated in Crystal's venom, and calculated his aim while Hazel assumed her position next to Ariana.

As the girls got ready to jump, all three titans stopped and stared in their direction: they paused at first, as if listening to the strange sound, and then they started to walk towards them. The three god-titans watched silently as the regular titans came within range, and Clay fired all three arrows in rapid succession, striking each one right in the jugular: within a matter of seconds the titans flesh began to turn a deathly shade of grey, and their movements became more ridged and sluggish. "Figure of eight?" Ariana glanced sideways at Hazel, "Figure of eight" the red-head nodded, and together they jumped, shot their lines and took off, flying towards the titans and flanking all three as they moved in a line towards the perch. In near-perfect unison, Ariana and Hazel both struck the titans on the left and right, and in one fast move sliced the nape of the remaining titan from opposite sides: both passing within inches of each other; a well-practised trick that took days to master, and days more to apply in the field. As the venom crippled the titan's bodies and they remained enchanted by the hummer's melody, their reaction time had been drastically reduced to nothing: even as they fell to the earth and crumpled up into a pile one on top of the other, they remained completely oblivious.

Flying back onto their perch, the girls sheathed their crystal blades and stood before Carla as she put her hummer away: "Okay, that's all the titans in this area taken care of: is it lunchtime yet?" Clay asked as he threw his bow and quiver back over his shoulder, "Should be, we've been at this for seven hours straight" Lucy chipped in a she climbed out of her hiding place on Angel's left flank plume, "I'm quite hungry myself" Lucius added offhand as he shuffled out from under the right flank plume. "Okay then," Carla smiled, "Let's head on back and see what's in the ration packs"

Remounting their giant friends, the hunters and god-titans set off back the way they came, and caught up with the group as they headed back to base camp: which was situated in a wide spacious clearing with a stream running through it, and hidden from prying eyes with a concealment spell. Up in the giant trees that boarded the clearing, the humans had pitched their tents: called drays, they were suspended from the branches and interconnected by rope ladders, they were also camouflaged to blend in with the canopy; and pretty good it was too, for if you didn't know what you were looking for, you'd easily miss them. The clearing was reserved for the god-titans, as they undoubtedly needed the space, with the acceptation of the campfires and tents set up to house the supplies, and the bird-titans that roosted up in the giant trees alongside their riders. As the group reconvention with those who had been charged with looking after the campsite, the hunters could finally relax and kick back, if only for a few hours: at least enough to get some lunch and take the weight off their feet.

Climbing down out of Shadow's hand, Ariana sighed with relief as she removed the neckerchief from her face, and breathed deep through her nose, taking in the scent of the camp: "Ugh! I _hate_ not being able to smell properly with this thing on my face!" she huffed as she pushed aside the bangs that fell out from under her black bandanna, "You and me both," Clay sighed as he removed the neckerchief that had concealed his face too, "Unless we're using our concealment stones, these seriously compromise our sense of smell: which is just about the best line of defence in calculating the titan's positions".

"Ah come now, you _know_ why we have to wear them," Evrard reminded them as he removed his wooden hunting mask, "There's no telling whether those Disciples might be out there: better safe than sorry". "I _still_ don't see what there is for them to be getting up to out here, what with all the titans now running the place" Fox huffed as he removed his neckerchief, "I agree, but the walled kingdom is a small world Bullfinch: and absolute privacy is a luxury many can seldom afford: at least out here with a repelling charm in hand, you could do _anything_ and no one would be none the wiser" Tyto replied as he removed his hood and hunting mask. "But let's not worry about that now: you've all done well today, so go grab a bite and rest; we'll start packing up in two hours" he smiled. "Finally!" Rowan exclaimed as he flew down off Midnight's shoulder's and made a bee-line for the rations packs.

"Ninety seven titans: not bad for a morning's work," Bryson smiled as he joined the others, heading to where the food was being prepared, "And we've still got another three days before we go home: this has probably been the best hunt of the season yet, _and_ we might actually surpass last month's tally" Falken chipped in as Evernight flew down to perch on his shoulder.

Bryson couldn't help but agree with him, for he knew he wasn't speaking of their luck lightly: indeed, the hunt had proven to be unexpectedly successful in the last several months since it's beginning in mid-November of last year. Every month since, between seven to ten days, Tyto led the Celts, Rangers and god-titans out into Maria to hunt the titans, with his children, nephews, nieces and close friends at his side; with the acceptation of the Willum elders, Freya, Claude, Derek, Mabel, Bren, Breck, Bemadette, and the much younger children who all remained back in the Hidden land with the other humans and god-titans. With over a hundred and thirty humans and seventy five god-titans making up the numbers, it was a massive undertaking that had to be dealt with in a tight and orderly fashion: fortunately, between the Celt's and Ranger's own experience in living out in the wild, and Bryson's own military discipline, organization and coordination was a doddle.

In order to cover as much ground as possible, the Hunt was divided into four main teams: each consisting of both hunters and god-titans who would be assigned an area of land over nine to ten square miles wide, and wipe out the titans in that particular territory. The long hummers covered a range of over three to five miles in any direction, which added up to an area over nine to fifteen square miles wide (give or take the topography of the land and any blind-spots in which the hummers might not be able to reach), while the little hummers were more suited to mid-range distances of about five hundred to eight hundred meters. Between all four teams working together, an area over a hundred and fifty square miles could be cleared of any titans within a morning or afternoon (which was staggering to say the least), with the base camp centred right in the middle between all four territories.

Each team consisted of Look-out's, Message and Supply runners, Baiters, and Ambushers: the look-out's were mostly the bird titans and their riders, their job was to circle the sky above where their team was situated, counting how many titans were in their territory as well as keeping an eye out for anything else that might pose a problem. The message and supply runners were the team's main back-up: made up of mostly the smaller deer titans and their riders, their duty was to carry the supplies; which would be food, water, medical equipment, gas and emergency repair kits for the ODM gears, tents for if the team were unable to return to base camp, and anything else that might be needed. Their riders also cared for a team of ravens that had been trained to relay messages to base camp, or any of the the other teams in the neighbouring vicinities (with their sharp cunning, excellent memory, and knack for recognizing faces: ravens were a reliable form of communication, as well as acting as spotters for potential prey or danger; the same went for Evernight too, as she was quite a cleaver bird herself). The Baiters had one of the easiest jobs, as they were the ones who'd picked the short straw to use the hummers to lure the titans in: between each wave of titans they'd swap with the archers, so that everyone wouldn't run the risk of getting exhausted doing one set task; since everyone was proficient in archery and ODM gear usage, the issue of someone not being able to keep up for a lack of one particular skill-set wasn't a problem. Depending on the terrain and whether the titans heard the hummers or not, the archers would be used to incapacitate the them with their venom-coated arrows: thus dramatically lowering the risk of someone getting eaten. And then there were the ambushers, the main attack force of each team that took down the titans: the ambushers consisted of the hunters that were more proficient with the ODM gear, and the biggest and strongest of the god-titans; mostly the Elk, Bird, Tree and larger Deer titans, as well as Shadow, Midnight, Boar, Angel, and of course, Stormwing.

Each team would deploy a different set of tactics to bait and attack, depending on different topography and weather conditions: the forest was the favoured choice of course, as the ODM gear could be used to full effect and there were more places to hide. However the plains and any expanse of wide open ground posed more of a challenge, but the Hunt had the means and skills to pursue their quarry, and still be able to use their ODM gear by using the god-titans as mobile anchors and perches, as well as utilize the Bird-titans with the help of Bemadette's 'talon gauntlets'.

Though the first few months had been a learning curve, perfecting the little details and 'polishing off' one's skills at killing a titan: everyone had at last managed to get into a comfortable frame of mind in hunting the beasts, and utilize the skills that served them well the most. Even the god-titans were able to move and fight with ease amid their human families, using their powers and physical strength in a balance that could be put to devastating effect against their mindless counter-parts, whilst keeping everyone safe.

"...You know?" Bryson thought aloud with his brows furrowed, "...Even though we've been doing this for several months now, I _still_ can't believe we've not had one single fatality: in a way part of me is starting to get paranoid that maybe this good luck won't hold up forever", "Well? It probably won't: but for now at least, we're doing it right, and we're not allowing ourselves to become complacent," Tyto patted him on the back, "We've taken every cautionary measure we can think of: all we can do is follow through with what we set out to achieve, and just go with whatever comes our way".

Gazing down at his hunting mask, Tyto couldn't help but feel sentimental: it was a wooden mask that had been carved and painted into the likeness of the Great Grey Owl, his clan's totem: his cloak, sash and sweater too were made to resemble the owl's plumage; grey with pale vertical bars and finely mottled flecks of greyish-browns. It had been carved long ago by his ancestors, and handed down through the generations, as a means of honouring the spirit animal they believed watched over their clan; it was one of the few things he managed to grab the day Shiganshina fell. Evrard, Falken and Eraman too managed to grab their clan's masks and kept them safe: donning their totem animal's colours as well.

Their children however, didn't have the luxury of wearing their own totem masks, as they were only meant to be worn after they had performed and passed their clan's traditional initiations (which wouldn't be for another good several years yet): so instead, they settled for hiding their faces beneath neckerchief's, bandanna's and larger neckerchief's that covered their necks and fronts. But, having chosen bird names as their pseudonyms: the kids and some of the grown-up's decided to do their own takes on the bird's who's monikers they'd borrowed, and donned the colours of their chosen bird's plumage; which had been met with mixed results to say the least. Gale's chosen bird was the yellow warbler, so it came as a surprise when she showed up to the first hunt decked out all in yellow, Belle, Poppy and the Raven twins too, as their birds were known for their bold plumage: Pascal's choice of clothing was met with scepticism too, as the Pheasant was a boldly plumed bird indeed, as well as the Bullfinch, Blue throat, and Magpie. While the Raven, Jackdaw, Rook, Cuckoo, Swallow, Swift, Waxwing, Goshawk, Snow Bunting and Snow Finch were more muted, more camouflaged in a sense.

But the one that really took the cake was Carla's choice of colour: with the pseudonym of Dove she was dressed all in white from head to toe, even the leather of her boots was a pale sandy-beige colour, and it was a pain trying to spot her on Angel's back when in flight, as she practically disappeared into the bird-titan's dazzling white plumage. Most of the other Celts wore their traditional hunting masks and totem animal colours, while the Rangers mostly wore a blend of green and browns, coupled with their ghillie cloaks and assortment of leather clothing and accessories. It was a bit of an eclectic mix, as the kids choices in hunting garbs wasn't everyone's first choice for blending into the wild, as some (like Gale's) stuck out like a sore thumb; but given the god-titans powers and the magics they could craft on a whim, the issue of camouflage wasn't too much of a problem.

Bryson, for his part, wore his new cloak with pride: and although the idea of wearing his old uniform for the Hunt was tempting, he decided it wasn't quite fitting. The Hunt was _not_ the Scouting legion: though they were fighting for the same reason and were both proficient in their skills and knowledge, they were treading very different paths; and he felt his garbs needed to reflect that. But on the other hand, the Scout in him would not be so easily put to rest: it was part of who he was, part of what made him into the man he was today, and he still felt compelled to pay tribute to his brothers and sisters-in-arms one way or another. So, after inquiring with Freya and her sewing circle about making a few alterations to the clothing he'd had in mind: he settled for something that was more informal, more indicative of the Scout's principle of fighting for humanity's freedom, and the Celt's and Ranger's cultural connection to the forest. Though it wasn't his old uniform, he was happy with it: and felt it suited him in his new role as the Hunt's resident titan hunter. Dressed in green blue and white, with neckerchief's and a sash that sported some finely detailed embroidery, he could've easily passed for one of the wild men of Maria: and it delighted many in the clans and Ranger families to know he honoured them by donning their colours and patterns.

As everyone lined up at the camp fires to receive the dish of the day, a familiar smell wafted past: "-Is that... _Beef?!_ " Ariana realized, "We're having beef for lunch?!" Belle bounced up and down excitedly as she tried to hurry the queue along. Glancing around, Bryson and the other elders noticed the large bullock carcass hanging from a thick branch, with two other Rangers still in the process of butchering the meat: "Huh, where on earth did you guys get a cow from all the way out here?" Eraman thought aloud, "Oh, it came wandering near the camp: so we thought some fresh beef would make a nice change" one of the cooks shrugged, "The hides a bit tough but the meat's still good, given the fact its been feral for nearly a year now" the other cook added, "Two of our guys followed it's tracks down to the edge of the forest, and they said there're _loads_ of farm animals wandering about all over the place: I guess the titans aren't the only one's who now got the run of the place huh?" another Ranger offered as he tucked into a thick piece of meat.

"Huh," Tyto raised an eyebrow, "That might be an idea". "What's that?" Ariana glanced up at him as she waited to be handed a bowl of food, "Oh, something the counsel have been contemplating for this year's winter preparations: someone posed the idea of rounding up some of the now-feral farm animals and rearing them for meat, milk, wool and hides: thus saving us time and trouble hunting" he explained. "You know? Now that you mention it: I _do_ miss omelettes" Poppy reminisced with a growling stomach, "I miss cheese; you need milk to make cheese you know?" Belle added, "Having fried eggs and bacon again would be nice" Dale threw in. "But we're hunters, there's loads of game in the Hidden valley to keep us all going over winter" one of the Celts commented. "True, but we have to think of the numbers: not to mention there're other animals in the Hidden land that rely on the game for their own survival: and besides, we really need a good supply of wool. Crystal's silk in nice but it's not the best protection from the winter cold: not to mention we need milk and eggs for our own dietary needs" Tyto explained.

"Dietary needs?" Evrard echoed in bewilderment: "Oh, it was something Breck came across in a book on how different foods are good for the body in different ways. Apparently milk's good for making your bones strong, and eggs are full of something called 'protein' that helps build up your muscles? According to Claude, it seems like it was a real tried and tested thing, (back when the book was written at least)" Tyto elaborated. "Wow, our ancestors really did a lot of sciencey things back in the day" Jaye thought aloud as he left the queue with his bowl of food in hand, "And a load of other stuff, according to all the books they found in the city's medical-sciences section"Lucius threw in as he and his sister went to sit next to Angel.

After getting her food, Ariana found Shadow reclining against a giant log on the edge of the clearing, alongside all the other Deer, Elk, Bird and Tree titans: holding her bowl in one hand, she carefully climbed up into his belly and nestled herself between his well-toned abs. "Hey big guy," she smiled as she crossed her legs, "Tired much?". :I'm okay actually,: he spelt out with a lazy wave of his hand, :Just enjoying a little sun:, "Yeah, it's really warm today," Ariana gazed up at the sky through the canopy as she started tucking into her lunch, "I just hope the rain stays away". "Well that won't be a problem, right Angel?" Lucius smiled as he patted the avian titan's side, to which Angel nodded with a bold chirp. A loud "TCH!-" grabbed their attention over to where Midnight was sitting against the side of a giant tree, half-hidden in the dark shadows of the thick foliage, "Well of course _you_ like the rain, you got those fancy water-powers: you can control it however you want" Belle replied as she and her sisters came over to join Ariana up on Shadow's abs; "I dunno, I like listening to the rain, and it has a nice smell when it's pouring during the summer: I just don't like having to track anything when it's coming down heavy. It neutralizes every smell for miles around" Clay chipped in as he and Hazel went to sit next to Boar, who was lounging half-asleep on a giant log. "Ugh, I hate it when that happens," Ariana agreed as she ripped a chunk of steak apart between her teeth, savouring the juicy tender flavour with a satisfied smiled, "...Mmm, _I can't even remember_ the last time we had beef like this"

"You guys have had beef before?" one of the older Ranger's asked in slight bemusement, as he tended to his Deer-titan's saddle pack, "What? You mean you _haven't_ had beef?" Ariana blinked in surprise. "Well? No, you don't get cows out in the forest kid" he chuckled, "Still, I've always wondered what it tastes like" another younger Ranger thought aloud as he checked over his quiver, "Well? It looks like there's still loads left: why don't you go and find out?" Gale pointed to the cooking pots. Without another word, the young Ranger placed his quiver down and took off to the cooking station, eagerly grabbing his food bowl on the way over. "Well, I guess we won't be seeing him for a while... But, I'm curious though," the older Ranger stopped what he was doing, and gazed up at Ariana, "When did you get to try beef for the first time? I may not have eaten the stuff myself, but even I know it's expensive". "Oh, our aunt Miriam used to run the Black Stallion in Shiganshina, _and_ a delivery service out of our livery. She had several clients who's produce she used to deliver, and one of them owned a beef ranch up in the north of the central valley: he'd send us some cuts of meat every now and then as a thank you, and she'd share it with her workers" Poppy explained, "My whole family worked for the Willum's, so we always got the good stuff to put in our pantry" Ariana smirked.

"I _still_ can't believe you guys used to live in a city: never mind passing yourselves as regular folk for so long," One of the Celts commented offhand as he rested on the back of his Bird-titan: a large female that had a plumage resembling that of a collared dove. Ariana looked at him weirdly, as he'd taken leave of his senses for a moment: seeing the look on her face, the Celt immediately shied away, "Oh uh-, I'm sorry I didn't mean-" he stuttered anxiously, "-No no it's not that!" Ariana hurriedly tried to explain, "-It's just-..." she paused as she thought about it, "Mum and dad were the one's who moved to the city, along with uncle Evrard, Falken and Eraman and their wives. But, Shiganshina is where _I_ was born: it's the only place I've ever known (beside the forest); it was _my_ home; mine, and ours..." she glanced over at the Willum sister's, who's expression took on a more sombre tone, "Honestly? I didn't feel like I had to hide in my own home (much): we lived three streets up from the cult's church, and I can tell you, they never so much as gave a hoot to anyone else, never mind _us_... Well? Unless it was the Disciples of course, but those guys were never an issue for us: not when Midnight was on the prowl. Am I right?" Ariana smiled over at the black and white titan-goddess, who simply replied with a sly smile and dangerously narrowed eyes.

As the Willum sisters and the Ranger carried on their conversation, with Clay and Hazel chipping in: Ariana got up and wandered over to where Shadow had placed his spear against the giant log. Over eighteen meters long and topped with a spiral spear-head shaped like a broad Celtic bear-hunting blade, it was an imposing weapon made entirely from the blue crystal he was able to create: as the sun shone on it, the crystal refracted the light inside and out, creating a dazzling array of varying hues of blue; and as she ran her hand over the shaft, she felt how the strange substance was as smooth as glass, and as cool as marble. :Not bad for one of my first tries: Shadow commented offhand with a small smile; the light-smoke words drifting past Ariana's face before dissipating on the wind, "I still can't believe you were holding out on us all this time" she smirked up at him as she ripped apart another chunk of meat, :Hey, I had no idea I could do it. If it hadn't been for that fight with the Armoured titan, and saving Carla from that one titan in the forest? I might never have know of this power: he smiled as he held up one hand, and as the tattoos on his wrists glowed their characteristic shade of cobalt blue, the crystal in question began to form along his fingers, spreading out from his markings like water: soft, smooth and bright.

The way the crystal glowed was almost mesmerizing to watch, reaching out her hand to touch it, Ariana felt it softly thrum beneath her fingertips, as if the god-titan's breaths and heartbeats were reverberating throughout her whole frame: in a way it was loud as she felt each muffled pulse shoot through her arm and into her body, and yet, it wasn't deafening or painful. It just felt soothing, rhythmic: like the steady beating of a drum, or the low howling of the wind as it blew through the sky. Smiling, Ariana closed her eyes as she felt the steady pulses relax and ease her whole body: all the exertion from this morning's hunt melted away, leaving a feeling of calm and stillness; as if waking up from a good night's sleep. "...What is it about this crystal that makes you feel so relaxed when you touch it?" she thought aloud as she gently removed her hand. :It's the substance of my powers: Shadow replied as he recalled the crystal back into his hand, letting it dissolve into his tattoos like snow into water. :I am the god of wisdom, guidance, nourishment and balance. Of those four strengths, I believe it's my ability to provide nourishment that comes through the greatest; for the time being at least. Though I've only been utilizing this ability for several months it's still early days, and there's much we've yet to discover and try to understand:

Glancing over at Midnight, Ariana watched as Ash, Rowan and Dale were sitting on her knee, watching her elongate her fingers into her blade-claws, and covering with her own crystal, which was a pale yet vivid shade of lilac. Turning around, she noticed Boar sitting upright on the giant log with Clay and Hazel on his shoulders, letting out a low gravely chuckle in response to one of Clay's pun while Hazel cringed. "It's a shame Boar doesn't have his own crystal power: but then, I guess he doesn't really need it, given that he can summon any crystal stone or metal from out of the ground" Ariana thought aloud offhand. : I did ask him if he was okay about it, but he wasn't really fazed to be honest: Shadow shrugged, :And besides, that abdominal armour of his is pretty tough:. "Not as tough Midnight's crystal," Ariana glanced back over at the black and white titan-goddess, "With her claws coated in that stuff, she can just about cut through anything, bar _your_ crystal of course...I wonder, if it's as tough as the Titan-shifters own crystal?".

An unreadable look came over her face as her mind began to drift toward something that had been quite the subject of interest over the last several months: reading her aura, Shadow knew what vexed her, and knew it was something that everyone (himself included) had been curious about. "...You know? I still can't get my head around the fact that there were once people who could turn themselves into titans: I mean _actual titans_ ; and the fact they had different powers too is just as incredible," she thought aloud, glancing back up at her best friend as she walked up onto his chest, "...I've been wondering about this for a while now: but do you guys think it might have something to do with that curse of yours somehow?". :Personally? I think so. The fact there is a degree of similarity between our powers and theirs is too coincidental: he nodded with a look of sureness in his dazzling blue eyes; a short pause hung in the air between them, before Ariana thought of something else "...Do you think? They're still out there? Somewhere in the outside world? I mean, I know there's a lot of stuff in the city's archives to suggest they were around a long time: but could they have survived the regular titans somehow?". :Who knows?: Shadow shrugged, :It's been seven months since Drake discovered the first information about them, and Claude and Derek are still trying to piece together everything they've found thus far. For all we know it might just be the tip of the iceberg? There's enough evidence to suggest they were capable of many things; who knows where it'll take us?:

"Beyond the walls, that's where," Rowan butted in as he climbed up over Shadow's shoulder and stood up on his chest, followed by his brothers: "I mean, if those guys really are still around, they can only be somewhere in the outside world, right?" he folded his arms, "Cuz' It's not like they're here within the walls: people turning themselves into titans? That wouldn't go unnoticed for long" he joked. "But still, it _would_ explain that mysterious yellow crystal holding up the tree-houses on the island: if titan-shifters really did that, and they were the ones who helped to build the island community in the first place? Who knows what else they were capable of?" Dale threw in.

As the four siblings discussed the matter further, Shadow was about to offer his input, when the sound of soft footfalls made him glance up, and he saw Midnight standing over him with a smirk: **"Still going on about the titan-shifters, hm?"** she asked as she sat down beside him on the log, **"Though personally, I'd rather wait until** _ **all**_ **the fact are in first, before we all start jumping to conclusions"** , **"You and me both"** Javorin sighed, **"But you know humans: once they find a nugget of information they believe is relevant to them, they rush to try and find out more"** , **"Claude has certainly been the poster-boy for** _ **that**_ **of late** **"** Hecate smiled, **"At the rate he's been hitting the books I'm amazed he hasn't completely cut off all ties to the island; I told Jarus he should start charging rent"**. **"Given the fact we can expect more than our share of the unexpected: what's your take on this new discovery?"** he asked, **"...Professionally or personally?"** , **"Both"** , **"Okay: professionally, it might be something; whether it has anything to do with the regular titans remains to be seen... And personally? My gut's telling me its a can of worms we may not want to open"**

Javorin raised his eyebrow in curiosity, **"...I know your gut instinct, and I know it's seldom ever wrong: so what is there about this that's got it twitching in a bad way?"**. Hecate didn't reply at first, as she thought about the reason why; gazing at him with an unreadable look in her eyes, she sighed with a shrug, **"...Honestly? I don't really know... But if I had to guess? I suppose it's the old notion of 'digging up the past only gets you dirt' that comes to mind...When you put anyone under a magnifying glass,** _ **everything**_ **shows up: even the worst of them"** , **"Every human culture has had it's vices and negative qualities down the ages: the titan-shifter's own culture won't be much different, surely?"** Javorin suggested, **"True, but the question is** _ **how**_ **different?"** Hecate thought aloud with a cool yet vexed look in her eyes, **"It doesn't take a genius to work out they utilized some kind of magics to give themselves those tremendous hulking forms: magics, that** _ **we**_ **would never have approved of, in all likeliness... The fundamental principle of all the mystic arts is that all magics can only be achieved through the balance of universal equilibrium: nothing can be achieved without first giving something in return...So what did they** **offer up, in return for** _ **that**_ _ **kind**_ **of power?... In my experience: in every generation and in every age: the cost to achieve such power, was** _ **always**_ **too high"**

" **...I know..."** Javorin sighed quietly as he gazed up at the sky, using his mind's eye to watch the chaos manna drifting through the upper atmosphere: it was rather patchy today; a good sign that they shouldn't encounter any problems (in terms of the weather at least).

Overhearing the conversation from where she sat perched on another giant log nearby, Elysia passed a deep sigh as she watched Carla eating her lunch, and pondered on what this all means for everyone. **"It's pretty big, that's for sure"** Herne interjected as he glanced at her with a knowing smile, **"But then, humans** _ **always**_ **take big new discoveries with mixed feeling: in a way? I don't think** _ **anything**_ **is really unprecedented until its been criticized to the point of demonization, and praised until its all everyone can talk about"** he offered. Knowing he'd read her aura, Elysia sighed again as she gave him a vexed look: **"But this isn't just unprecedented, it's something that could explain a lot about the mystery of the titan's origins"** she stated, **"If that's the case: but Claude and Derek haven't found anything to prove that yet. Hell, they're still going over the general history of the titan-shifters, never mind the ins and outs of how they came up with the magics to create that power"** Herne shrugged, **"Look kid, don't go looking to worry yourself over this: Claude, Derek and Jarus have got it covered; they're doing their part, and we're doing ours. Okay?"**

" **Okay"** she nodded, **"Oh and kid?"** Herne smiled, **"We're gonna be going across the plains to our next base camp: you know what that means, right?"**.Elysia's face lit up with eager excitement as she kneaded the log with her feet.

"Ah, I take it you overheard us?" Tyto smiled up at the bird-titan as he and his brothers approached with Bryson and the other senior Celts and Rangers in tow. Seeing the large map he held in his hands, Carla got up and put her bowl down, straightening up as she tried to act professional: "I take it you guys have decided on the next campsite?" she surmised, "Yes, and it's a bit of trek: twelve miles north-east from here, on the northern-most side of the Danner mountains, just a few miles short of the Grey fells" Tyto replied, "I know that area well, my mother's family used to hunt up there regularly: there's plenty of cover, a stream, lots of dead-fall for firewood: and according to the map there's a stone circle just three miles east, in a cove on the side of the mountain, not far from the caves" Dakota explained.

"Caves?" Carla echoed curiously, "There's a huge network of caves that run all the way into the heart of the northern mountain: I remember my grandfather taking me up there to show me them when I was a boy; I reckon you could get a good few several hundred people in there, they're _that_ big" he added, "But then, why not camp there? Caves are excellent ready-made shelters" she suggested. "Anywhere else yes. But unfortunately those caves not safe for humans: every bear in that mountain range goes there to hibernate in the winter, and at this time of year the mountain cats use it to birth and hide their kits; we'd be much safer down in the forest, closer to the abandoned village on the main road" he replied. "We're going to start taking down the dreys in an hour's time: have everyone get their kits together and be ready to move out by two. Hopefully if there aren't too many titans about, we should reach our destination by early evening" Tyto stated, "You and Angel will be revealing Florence and Swifty in taking secondary point alongside Stormwing: alright?" Bryson informed her, to which she smugly waved off with a smirk, "Fine by me. You know how _we_ like to fly, right Angel?" she glanced up at the avian titan, who merely puffed her chest feathers out with pride, "Yeah, well?" Bryson couldn't help but chuckle, "If any titans show up, just remember to leave some for the rest of the guard team".

As the gentlemen left to see to other business, the twins came up alongside Carla and Angel, "We moving out yet?" Lucy asked offhand, "Not for another few hours: but you better make a start packing your things when you're done eating lunch, okay?" she smiled down at them, "Sure" they both nodded. As she turned to sit back down, Carla noticed both the twins smiling at her: "What is it?" she smiled back. "We were just thinking," they both exchanged a knowing look, before sitting down either side of her, "How well this suits you" Lucius picked up without skipping beat, handing her her lunch" _This_ , we mean..." Lucy motioned to everyone sitting in the clearing: the entire Hunt, "...You've really changed these last several months; we were thinking to ourselves just the other day, how different things were before. Back when we all lived in Shiganshina"

"...Yeah..." Carla sighed as she let her gaze drift upwards to the sky, "...Back then, I couldn't see myself doing anything _even remotely_ similar to this: watching you kids practise on the ODM gear used scare the hell out of me. I couldn't help but worry one of you might fall; never mind the idea of Eren flying on one of these things..." she smiled in nostalgia, as she lay her hand on the scabbard box of her gear. "And? Being here, carrying out this endeavour?" Lucy asked offhand, "I can't see myself doing anything else" she smiled, "...Flying through the air like a bird? Eren, Mikasa and Armin would've loved this"

"You know? Mum used to love watching us practise" Ashlyn interjected as she sat down alongside them with Hawk in tow: "She'd say the way we flew together? It was like watching the swallows and swifts dancing over the meadows,". "That's why you chose Swallow and Swift as your pseudonyms?" Carla realized, "Yeah: she'd have liked that" Hawk nodded, "But, you guys never told us why you chose Snow Bunting and Snow Finch as your names; does it have any particular meaning for you both?" he asked curiously. "Well?" Lucy hesitated a little, "Not really, it's just," they both pointed to their pale ash blond hair, "We've always had the 'winter look' going for us, and since Snow buntings and finches are winter birds (and they're cute to boot), it was kind of a no-brainer," Lucius deadpanned. "Seriously?!" Ashlyn chuckled, "With all the stuff you two know, I'd have thought there'd be some deep meaning as to why you chose them". "Nope: they're just our favourite birds is all" Lucy smiled: nearly falling backwards off the log as Angel nose-booped her and Lucius, "-And you too Angel! You're our favourite too!" she chuckled as she quickly scrambled back up onto her perch, pulling Lucius up by his sleeve.

As the others all chuckled and laughed: Stormwing, who was perched less than several meters away at the end of the log, simply rolled her eyes and shook her head as she let a small smile cross her pale icy lilac lips. **"Idiots"** she thought aloud, **"Yeah but they're** _ **our**_ **idiots: and they know how to keep up with you"** Hecate smirked, **"Only because the brat knows how to steal my updraughts"** the giant avian titan deadpanned as she shot a hairy eyeball at Elysia, **"You're just pissed because she knows how to dodge those sharp talons of yours:** _ **and**_ **she now knows to throw lightning bolts at your feathered ass"** Hecate teased, " **...Are you** _ **baiting**_ **me?"** Nyiera glanced over at her sister, narrowing her eyes dangerously, **"Maybe?"** Hecate smirked, **"...Heh-"** her older sister smirked, **"Nice to know some things never change"**.

Everyone made the most of their lunch break, for when it was time to pack up and leave, they knew it was going to be a long walk to their next destination. In the time it would've taken fifty Scouts to dismantle their tents, load up their supply wagons and saddle their horses, the Hunt were packed up and ready to move out in half the time; the fires were put out, the dreys taken down, the Deer, Elk and Bird titans had their saddles and packs kitted up and loaded, and everyone had replenished their gas supplies. Replacing their blades however, was never an issue: with Shadow's crystal pairing blades being virtually indestructible, everyone only had to carry two sets each, and since they never dulled there was no need for Shadow to make more (unless someone lost theirs by accident). Once the tasks of clearing away and tidying up were done, Shadow and the Tree titans set about covering up the evidence of the campsite. Holding up their hands, the Tree-titans markings glowed green as they commanded the trampled plants to regrow, shrouding the campfires in a thick blanket of green and flowers: the mosses and lichens on the branches and logs grew back into place, and Javorin recited a variation of a wind spell to remove all the smells of the humans and god-titan's; and just as inconspicuously as they came, they were gone just as silently, as if they'd never been there at all.

The trek to the next base camp was long and tedious, with half the journey taking them over the plains: which suited everyone just fine as it meant there were no steep valleys or rugged trails to traverse. Walking in a long column three titans wide: the Elk-titans carried the supplies as they were strongest of the four-legged titans, flanking them with their spears make of green crystal and wood, the Deer and Tree titans would keep the column safe from any regular titans that got past Stormwing. Shadow, Midnight and Boar usually took point at the front of the formation, while up in the air, the Bird-titans and their riders would circle the sky: keeping abreast of all the titan's in the area, and dispatching any that were wandering too close.

These long journeys between base campsites would be time-consuming, but it was decided that a slow and steady pace helps to conserve energy for when it would be needed in an emergency. It was quite the contrast to what Bryson had been used to in the Scouts: first rule of being in the titans territory; stay on your horse no matter what, and if you hear giant footsteps don't stop for anything. Walking at such a slow pace used to make him really nervous at first, as it seemed really counter-intuitive to the rule of relying on speed to stay alive. But with the Deer-and Elk titans acute hearing, the Bird-titan's keen eyes, and most of the Celt's sharp noses: detecting the regular titans from any direction was simple enough. On a day like today when the weather was in their favour: the average distance a titan could be picked up, would be as far as over twenty miles away; thanks mostly to Boar's super-sharp sense of smell.

As he stood on Shadow's shoulder alongside Bryson and Ariana, leading the column with the map in hand, Tyto glanced up, and froze in alarm: "Shadow, do you see them?". :I see them: he wrote back, before activating his powers and throwing up a concealment spell over the whole column. "EVERYONE STOP!" the Grey Owl elder bellowed, "What is it dad?" Ariana swung round to his side via one of Shadow's long bangs, "What's up?!" one of the Ranger's at the front of the column shouted back.

Squinting her eyes to try and spot the problem, Ariana soon spotted dust clouds amid the mirage on the horizon: whipping out her telescope, she focused in on the hazy clouds, and could just make out the shapes of horses galloping at speed with green-cloaked riders on their backs; there were many of them all fairly spread apart over a good kilometre and a half, and were soon joined by some that were trailing large items behind them, most likely supply wagons.

"SCOUTS!" Ariana shouted over her shoulder: suddenly, Angel swooped down to land at Shadow's side, and Carla stood up to report "It's okay they're heading straight south! They'll miss us completely!". "Very good..." Tyto nodded as he addressed the column, "Don't worry! They'll pass right by us! Everyone just remain clam and stay where you are!" He then turned back to Carla, "Tell everyone to get above the clouds and stay put until they're gone". Carla was about to reply, when suddenly something caught her eye in the far distance.

Everyone watched as several signal flares trailed red smoke up into the sky, and off some distance away, the outline of five large titans could been seen running after them from out of a large cluster of pines. A pang of cold dread ran throughout the whole column as they watched the lumbering behemoths close the distance between them and the edge of the Scouts wide-spread formation. A green signal flare then went up: and like a herd of deer running together as one, every Scout headed in the same direction the flair went; one by one they all disappeared beneath the horizon with the titans still chasing after them, eventually vanishing into the dust clouds and mirage.

No one moved or spoke as they watched the clouds and coloured smoke dissipate: for fifteen nerve-wracking minutes, the whole Hunt silently hoped and prayed, that somehow, the Scouts were able to escape their pursuers. Breathing a deep nervous sigh, Javorin closed his eyes, and recited a secret prayer for them:

 _Great All-Father, I beseech thee: bless the Scouts with the swiftness and strength they need to defeat their enemy, and guide them to safety along their dangerous path_

" **Why not offer up a sacrifice while your at it?"** Hecate glanced sideways at him, **"With the amount of titans we've seen this month, they'll need something a little stronger than a prayer to get them through"**

Javorin ignored her, and soon Tyto sounded the all-clear, and the column started moving again: "Wow, I think that's the first time I've ever seen the Scouts in action" Ariana realized. :What're you talking about? Have you forgotten that time I snuck you up onto the top of Wall Maria to watch them disembark on one of their expedition?: Shadow spelt out in mild surprise, "No, but that time they weren't getting chased by titans" Ariana pointed out. "It is just me or were they all spread out?" Bryson knitted his brows together in confusion as he hung onto Shadow's hair, "No, I saw it too: they were all spread about a hundred meters apart, and weren't being pursued from the rear" Dale replied as he folded his telescope away, repositioning himself on Midnight's shoulder. "And what were those plumes of red and green smoke?" Ash frowned, "Signal flares, we used them to communicate over long distances: though, I've never seen them used like _that_ before" Bryson replied in mild concern, "A new kind of long-distance communication perhaps?" Dale suggested, "And as for being spread out, maybe it's a new kind of formation or something?". "That _would_ be new" Bryson thought aloud, "Though, how that formation is supposed to work, I've no idea"

"TCH!-" **"Maybe they've finally started using their brains and figured out something?"** Hecate deadpanned, **"All-Father only knows they didn't have many when we were covering their asses"** , **"Who can say? Maybe there's a new commander in charge?"** Javorin thought aloud. Hecate was about to reply, when one of the look-out team's raven's flew down and landed on Eraman's outstretched arm: untying the small rolled-up parchment attached to its leg, Falken read it over, and sighed with relief. "What's up?" Tyto asked, "Just a note to say the Scouts got away: all five titans went down and they didn't lose anyone" Falken smiled. Hearing that, everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief, and could now relax: knowing they'd be okay (and knowing they wouldn't be passing by any fresh corpses). "Well in that case, See you guys later" Carla smiled as she sat back down: and without having to be told, Angel took off and rejoined Stormwing on her left wing as she glided overhead.

"...Hey, dad? ..." Ariana hesitated a little, "Do you think it might be worth, maybe 'unpinning' that idea about keeping an eye on the Scouts? You know? For information an' stuff?...". Glancing down at his daughter, Tyto knew what she really meant was 'protecting the Scouts from being attacked': breathing deep and letting out a vexed sigh, he replied "...We've talked about this before, and I've already told you: _not_ until something happens and we _need_ to gather information. For now, we keep our distance and let them do their job". Knowing it wasn't worth getting into tiff, Ariana grabbed one of Shadow's bangs and swung back over his collar bones to her perch on the other shoulder, sitting down cross-legged and folding her arms. Glancing back over, she saw Bryson leaning forward, and gave her a wink: "Nice try" he mouthed; she smiled, knowing he was just as eager to help them too.

As they continued their trek across the plains, the column soon passed by the now-skeletal remains of the five titans that were chasing after the Scouts, still evaporating in mid-afternoon heat: and by the looks of how they had fallen, several Scouts must have converged on them all in one go, as they were only spread out several meters apart. Several horse and wheel tracks indicted the direction the Scouts had gone: and fortunately, they didn't seem to veer in the direction of where they were going.

Several more hours passed by, and by the time the sun was starting to arch towards the horizon, the Hunt had left the plains behind and started traversing through the forest, following an overgrown main road to their destination. As they followed the road up a subtle incline, it was clear to many that there were a good number of regular titans in this area: as most of the undergrowth alongside the road had been trampled flat. Regular titans, despite having no real intelligence to speak of, were creatures of instinct: and one common instinct of many animals was to take the path of least resistance; according to the journal, titans (apparently) would usually walk on flat ground or downhill, seldom ever going up an incline unless they'd sighted prey at the top, and likewise with dense forests. Here, the giant trees and understory were spread out quite wide, creating large open spaces between each tree. A risky place to be caught out by a titan, but for now at least, none were nearby (although their scent indicted several must have passed by not more than a few hours ago).

Another hour or so soon brought them to the designated campsite, which was a spacious clearing that boarded the edge of a large village: a quaint little place at one time, complete with a small church, a few shops, and a tavern for weary travellers; now, abandoned and overgrown with some of the roofs caved in.

Once everyone had caught up and the whole column came to a halt on the road, the first item of business before anything else, was to titan-proof the area. Shadow, with his spear in hand, wandered over to a giant tree nearest the clearing, and crouching down by the vast tangle of roots, used the tip of his spear to carve the repelling charm into the bark. He then placed his hand over the mark, and upon activating his power, filled it in with his blue crystal: ensuring that the charm would hold it's power...

 _You, born of chaos and desolation with a taste for human flesh: I command you, heed this sign and do not pass this way_

He then placed his hand on the ground between the roots: and beneath his fingertips, blueish-green embers emerged out of the soil and wafted about, followed by an ivy that crept up the side of three, growing thick and wide as it completely covered the charm; following his hand as he trailed it up the bark. Despite the fact no one lived in Maria anymore, it never hurt to take precautions in covering your tracks, especially when the use of magic was concerned: there was no telling who, or what else might be out here. Thus, in every location they'd camped in, and every area of the forest they'd hunted and cleared of titans: Javorin always made sure the repelling charm stayed well out of sight. And since it could repel any titans over a twenty-five square mile radius (roughly three miles in any direction according to the journal), no one in the Hunt had to worry about constantly remaining on their toes all the time.

Without having to be ordered what to do, everyone immediately got to work setting up camp: the dreys and rope ladders were set up in the giant trees surrounding the clearing, a spot near the tavern was picked to be the site of the food preparation and storage area, another area near the church was made into the main gas-replenishing station, and another spot between two houses was set up to keep the Deer and Elk titans saddles and packs safe while not in use. With the weight finally off their backs, the Deer and Elk titans took a moment to stretch, bend, and trot around enjoying being free of their loads. High up above, most of the Bird-titan's flew down through a large space in the canopy, picking their perches to roost upon for the duration of their stay: each one of which was marked by a long length of rope tied around the branch, and decorated with a colourful pennant embroidered with various patterns and images: mostly the bird-titans themselves with their riders and totem animals.

By the time the camp was fully set up, the sun was low on the horizon and the air was slowly cooling as the forest echoed with the evening songs of the birds: the sun's rich golden light shone through the trees, casting long dark shadows and lighting up all that it touched in fiery gold. "Okay..." Pascal sighed with satisfaction as he finished his last chore and stood up, rubbing his hands in anticipation, "Now that we're all done: who's getting the first round?" he smiled as he headed for the tavern: several of the Rangers and Celts laughed as they followed him, diving through the door as they eagerly tried to sniff out any abandoned casks. "-Hold up!" West shouted as he brought up the rear. "Uh, what do we do if they're hungover in the morning?" Evrard asked offhand, "Simple, they'll be on camp-watch for the rest of the trip, and given a stern chewing out for drinking too much" Tyto shrugged, "It's been a long trip, and it's been a busy one this month: I think we've all earned a drink; you coming?", "'Course, someone needs to be on hand to peel you up off the floor" the red-headed giant joked, "I think you have that the other way round Evrard: usually, _I'm_ the one picking you up off your ass".

As most of the hunters lined up outside the tavern, the kids and younger hunters (who were too young to drink) were left to their own devices. Gazing up at the evening sky through the giant trees, Ariana shot her lines and flew up into the sea of leaves and branches: as the sun shone through them, the whole canopy looked like it was on fire, as everywhere was illuminated with golden yellow light. Flying all the way up until she came to the top-most branches, Ariana found one sturdy enough to take her weight, and climbed up above the canopy. With the open sky above her, she gazed all around at the breath-taking view of the three mountains to the south, and the ocean of trees that seemed to go on forever in every direction; even the plains were obscured from sight.

A view like this never failed to stir the free spirit in her soul: being out here in the wild among the vast trees, deep hidden coves, secret hollows, and easy-to-miss glens and dales; one could simply walk in and never be found again. For most who didn't understand it was a scary thought, but for her, she couldn't think of a more wonderful existence: heading into the forest and just keep going. There was no telling how far it stretched, it could be so vast that it could take days or even weeks to find its heart...

But then, she'd only find wall Maria, no matter what direction she went. But _beyond_ the wall? How big were the forests there? Did they go on forever? Were the trees as big as Yggdrasil maybe? Were there other secret lands hidden deep within the sea of green... Or perhaps? Did they lead to the ocean?

For as long as she could remember, it was the one thing that kept drawing Ariana back to the forest near Shiganshina, despite the risk of bears, wolves and criminal gangs. To everyone else, it was a dark and foreboding place: but for her, it was the gateway to many wondrous and mysterious places. Being part of the Hunt and being out here had rekindled that spark in her, as over the course of the winter and spring she'd gotten to see the rest of southern Maria. When she saw the plains for the first time, she was astounded at how there was not a single tree in any direction, and so much open space for as far as the eye could see. She saw the more well-off towns and villages that hugged the banks of the southern Marian river, and despite being abandoned, it wasn't hard to see why the closer one lived to the interior, the bigger and grander the buildings seemed to get. There were also places like stone quarries and mines, where enormous blocks of rock and stone were carved out of the ground for one use or another, creating artificial gorges and valleys that could hold whole towns and villages: and minerals or metals chipped out of long dark tunnels that snaked deep into the earth, and collected for various means. Never in her life had Ariana ever imagined that humans could shape the landscape in such drastic fashions: and it never failed to impress her, how vast and diverse the human world was. Even in the confines of the three walls, there was always something new to discover.

Feeling a familiar gust of warm wind at her back, Ariana glanced up and saw Shadow in his elemental form: hovering beside her while his updraughts blew her hair softly away from her face. Smiling down at her with that warm friendly smile of his, he gently cupped one and around her back, while he spelt out with the other :It's beautiful up here:, "Definitely" she smiled as she gazed up at the clouds, that by now were turning various shades of pink, orange and lilac as the sun began to sink beneath the tops of the trees. The western sides of the mountains practically lit up as the sun's dying light painted them in an orangey-pink, while up in the south-eastern sky, the evening star shone bright and clear: announcing the coming of night. "Looks like it'll be nice tomorrow" Ariana thought aloud: knowing that a pinkish-red sunset was indicative of good weather the following day, :It certainly feels like it: Shadow wrote back, :I don't know about you, but I feel like flying 'round about now:. "Me too" Ariana grinned as she glanced up at him.

Gently picking her up in his strong updraughts, Shadow shot up into the sky with Ariana safely in his grasp: stretching out her arms, Ariana smiled in sheer elation as the forest grew further and further away. Flying up into the clouds, they were soon joined by Angel, and as Carla stood up on her shoulder, she decided to join in on the fun: "Think you guys can keep up this time?!" she yelled over the whipping winds as she turned and did a backwards swan dive off the back of Angel's wing, flying down through the air, before Angel dived and chased after her. Chasing after them, Shadow and Ariana soon caught up as Carla flipped upright, and let Angel catch her with her own updraughts: flying up alongside them, she couldn't help but laugh as she barrel-rolled up and over, softly landing back on Angel's shoulder, before leaping forward, and twisting through the air in front of her; all the while Angel squawked and chirped with delight as she trailed a rainbow behind her, while Shadow whipped and whirled in a vortex around them, keeping them airborne as he chuckled softly.

Flying like feathers on the wind, dancing and weaving through the air without restrictions or anything to tie them to the earth: for these brief moments of joy and care-free abandonment, they could forget everything, and just be free.

Up here, Carla didn't even feel the cold, nor the blasting force of the air that could quite literally take one's breath away; in this endless expanse of blue and white, she could just be free and happy. And every once in a while she would catch a glimpse of Eren and Mikasa's faces in the clouds: smiling at her peacefully, and watching her as she flew. This was as close to heaven as she could get: to be with her children again, if only briefly, and to feel their presence in her heart. It filled her with such joy, that sometimes she couldn't help but cry a little.

They flew over the forest well into the dusk, before hunger and exhaustion forced Ariana and Carla to return to the earth, and to the campsite: where the smell of the beef left-overs sharpened their appetites. Sitting up on her perch next to Carla's drey, Angel couldn't stop smiling as she watched her human's aura glow with peace of mind and emotional tranquillity: it had taken her a long time to reach this point, and while she still grieved for her children in her moments of privacy; by and large, Carla had achieved a level of cohesion that enabled her to carry on, without the need to sate any need for revenge. She was healthier for it, and it showed in her mood and conduct: in a way she was much like her old self again, but now the task of being a titan hunter had instilled a greater level of confidence, courage, and more surety in her decisions. Although she was still green as grass when it came to being a team leader, there was no question that her resolve, tenacity and spunk made her one of the best hunters in all the Hunt: which was made all the more remarkable by the fact she'd had no prior experience in any hunting or fighting whatsoever. And with her motherly tenderness and sense of concern for all under her command, she was someone most special to everyone; and Angel couldn't be more happy for her.

The evening was spent at a leisurely pace: with only three day's left before they returned home, everyone was looking forward to getting on with the Hunt and wrapping it up for the month. After dinner and a keg of mead shared among the older hunters, the plans for tomorrow's hunt were discussed and each team were allotted their designated territories for the next three days: after which, as the full moon began to shine down through the canopy, everyone turned in for the night. The bird-titans flew up onto their perches to roost: Shadow, Midnight and Boar settled down in the clearing alongside all the other titans, and Stormwing perched up on the highest branch that could take her weight, and settled down to sleep. And as the voices of the campsite steadily died down and fell silent, the sounds of the forest soon began to echo through the trees: while the wind blew softly through, bringing a cold chill to the land.

* * *

Later that night:

Ariana woke up from a deep dreamless sleep: peeling her heavy eyelids open, she saw it was still dark outside, save for a slither of moonlight peeking through the smoke opening at the top of the drey. '...Why am I awake?' she thought offhand: lifting her head up, she could make out the forms of Belle, Gale, Poppy, Ashlyn and Shyla still fast asleep in their deer-skin sleeping bags, and as she gapped her mouth wide open to yawn, she felt her mouth was so dry, and her throat even more so. Reaching her hand out to feel around for the little bowl of water she kept next to her bag, she was dismayed to find it empty: huffing in annoyance, she crawled out of her bag towards the water bladder hanging up on the side of the drey; but was even more peeved off when she found that to be empty too. 'Damn-it Poppy! It was _your_ turn to fetch the water!' Ariana thought as her face contorted into a look of sheer annoyance: with no water in the drey, and her mouth dryer than a bone, it could only mean one thing; she'd have to slip into her harness, get her ODM gear on, and fly down to the ground to fetch some water form the stream.

Begrudgingly grabbing her harness, gear, boots, and the water bladder: she quietly slipped out of the drey and onto the branch, and got geared up outside so as not to accidental kick anyone. All around, the canopy was quiet and still, except for the soft rustling of the leaves as the wind gently blew through the trees, the sounds of the nocturnal animals echoing from all different directions, and here and there in all the dreys, a few loud snores could be heard; while down on the ground, the heavy breathing of the titans was unmistakable. Once she'd finished gearing up and slung the water bladder strap over her shoulder: Ariana shot her lines and flew down to the ground; she winced as she looked back up, hoping the sharp pop of the grappling hook pistons hadn't woken anyone up. After a tense few minutes, she couldn't hear anyone stirring, and breathed a quiet sigh of relief: but as she turned to head for the stream, she nearly jumped out of her skin as she came face to face with a now-awake Shadow, who had obviously heard her, as well as Boar, Midnight and several of the Deer and Elk titans as they all cocked their head up in her direction.

:I thought I sensed you waking up: Shadow spelt out, still blurry-eyed as he tried to focus on her, :Where're you off to at this hour?:. Huffing in annoyance, Ariana stepped closer and whispered "Poppy forgot to refill the water bladder and my mouth's dry as hell, I'm just going to the stream to refill" she pointed to the bladder at her side. :Okay, just don't make too much noise: he replied as he lay his head back down on the grass. Quietly tip-toeing around the clearing: Ariana made her way through the centre of the abandoned village, heading for the stream on the other side of the road. With her eyes now more adjusted to the dark, she gazed up and around at the decaying houses, and realized just how creepy the place looked in the dark and moonlight. It was strange seeing a place that was once full of people, and now empty and devoid of a human presence: there was something haunting about it, and made her quicken her pace a little. Following the sound of running water, she soon reached the stream, and filled the bladder by a wide shore of sand and rocks: a spot that must have been commonly used for watering horses and livestock at one point; once the bladder was full she turned to head back.

But as she reached the road, a noise off in the distance made her stop and listen...

It was quite a way off, a good three or four hundred years at least: and it was steadily heading this way. Straining her ears to analyse the sound, Ariana froze as she realized it was four sets of two legs: too small to be titans, and too big to be deer or wolves...

They were human

Turning around, Ariana nearly gasped when she spotted four figures moving through the undergrowth, heading straight for the village! Two of them were armed with bows and arrows, while the other two seemed to be armed with knives, as she caught sight of the blades flashing in the moonlight. It didn't look as if they'd spotted her, and quick as a whip, Ariana treaded softly over to one of the abandoned building's, slipping in through the open front door and disappearing into the pitch black of the shadows. Waiting in fearful dread, she listened as they came closer: their voices tired and filled with exhaustion as one of them breathed heavy, almost panting. As they came up upon the road, just out of sight from where she was standing, Ariana listened as one of them, a young man whispered: "...Are we certain this is the place?". A second replied, "It has to be, this is where the smoke was coming from"

Smoke? How could anyone see smoke rising from a fire in a forest of giant trees? Not unless they were up somewhere high enough to see it: Ariana then realized 'They were up on the mountainside?'; she gazed up at the mountains through the wide gap in the canopy above the clearing, and realized that's the direction in which they'd come from. "Wait a minute, how do we even know they'll be willing to help us? For all we know they might be criminals that managed to avoid the titans!" a third male voice nervously spoke: "For a whole year?! Come on Gregory be sensible about this!" the fourth male scolded, "It's either the Scouts, or one of our sister clans"

Sister clans?

Hearing those words, Ariana was even more taken aback when the four strangers treaded by the building and stepped into a patch of dappled moonlight: one of them was dressed in tattered clothing and a large leather jacket that looked to be two sizes too big for his frame, one was dressed as a Ranger, and other other two wore long hooded cloaks with Celtic animal masks over their faces.

'Celts?!' her eyes widened in amazement. Immediately, Ariana started raking her brain, trying to remember the secret Celtic greeting her father taught her: and as the words came back to mind, she grabbed their attention with a soft whistle. The tattered clothed man nearly jumped clear off the ground, while the two bowmen aimed right at her: "... Wh-who's there?!" the tattered man demanded. Taking a deep breath, Ariana threw caution to the wind, and recited: "...Who are you that would stand before me? Den-ath-dore? An-preemare-wylf-my?". The two Celts and one Ranger nearly flinched in alarm, while the tattered man merely gazed at the doorway in confusion: a tense moment of silence passed, before one of the Celts cautiously replied "...Myan-cal, inley-nynyon: he who has walked the hidden paths of the green places, and slept in the shade of the father-tree".

Breathing a sigh of relief, Ariana stepped forward into the moonlight: the four men stared at her in confusion, before the Celts took off their masks and kneeled down to meet her eye-level: "... I am Lupus, chief of the Blue wolf Clan, and this is Orin of the Mountain cat clan. This is Arton Dale, one of the Rangers: and this is our friend Gregory Schmitt" he gestured to the others, "Tell me child, what clan do you hail from?" Lupus asked. "I'm Ariana of the Grey Owls: where the hell did you guys come from?! And how the hell did you manage to avoid the titans?!" she nearly gawked. "Um? Well? You see-, that's a little _complicated_ to explain," Gregory nervously replied as he tried to keep his composure: "Listen, how we got here in one piece isn't important, the reason we're here _is_ : please, this is a matter of life and death!" Orin pleaded desperately.

"Oh really?" Tyto frowned as he slipped out of the darkness with his bow and arrow in hand: the arrow locked into the string and pointed downwards as he approached: this time Ariana didn't jump, she'd heard him creeping up behind the building just at the same time she darted into the doorway. And the unmistakable giant silhouette of Midnight's voluptuous frame and glowing violet eyes at the edge of her peripheral vision, hiding in the shadows nearby, assured her they were covered. "...Forgive me, but being discovered at this late hour in a place where no one else is supposed to be, rather puts us all on edge" Tyto added as he relaxed, and stepped beside Ariana. "No, it's okay: honestly I don't blame you: we've been rather edgy ourselves what with all the titans everywhere" Lupus assured him. "Indeed..." Tyto nodded as he changed the subject and decided a proper introduction was needed: "I'm Tyto Grey Owl: you've already met my daughter and I overheard your names, so what is this matter of life and death you speak of? And how can we help?"

"We're in trouble, us and others who're travelling with us: but first, there's something I need to confirm with you..." Lupus asked as he reached into his satchel and pulled out a large piece of rolled up hide, handing it to Tyto, "...Do you-, know what this is? And have you created one of your own, with the help of your 'friends', yet?" he asked hesitantly. Confused, Tyto took the hide and unrolled it: and as he read over the contents inscribed onto it, his eyes widened in amazement. Wondering what caught his attention so aptly, Ariana peered over, and gasped in amazement: "A Semitam?!"

"Ariana," Tyto frowned down at her, "Go back and wake everyone up: tell them we've got an emergency"

* * *

Ten minutes later:

" _Ugh!_ Someone had better be dying," Pascal grumbled as he slapped his cheeks, trying to stay awake as he and West lined up with the others on the ground. The whole camp had been woken up, and as soon as everyone was present, Tyto called the assemble to order: "Okay everyone listen up! This is Lupus, Orin, Arton and Gregory: they've risked life and limb to come down the mountainside to find us: so please, I want you all to give them your full attention!" Tyto introduced as Lupin stepped up into Shadow's palm so he could be heard and seen by all: "...Our Clans, along with the Bear, Badger and Red Fox clans, and our brothers and sisters of the Rangers and God-titans, have travelled far from our homes in the northern mountains of Maria, to escape the regular titans that have now invaded the land. We've been travelling for over four months now, following our Semitam's directions to try and find the Hidden Land. But then, two months ago, as we travelled with Wall Rose on the western horizon, we started coming upon freshly eaten corpses: not those of the Scouts, but ordinary people from within the interior..."

The whole clearing remained silent as everyone stared at him in a mix of disbelief and astonishment: no one said anything as Lupus continued, "...It was only a few dozen at first, but the further south we went we soon came across tens, then hundreds, and soon what had to have been _thousands_ of dead bodies: all littered across the open plains not far from the gates; the regions just beyond Trost were by far the worst, but unbelievably, there were survivors who'd managed to avoid the titans". Gregory then nervously stepped forward, and climbed up to join Lupin at his side: taking in a deep shaky breath, he tried to hold his nerve as he explained: "...F-Four months ago, the Royal Government announced that they would be initiating a plan to try and retake Wall Maria, and that they'd be doing it in force by conscripting civilians to aid the military in the operation"

A collective wave of gasps resounded around the entire group, even the god-titan's were shocked by this: but everyone remained in check as Gregory continued, feeling a little easier as he felt Lupin place a reassuring hand on his shoulder: "Many of the conscripts, including m-myself: were required to got out into Maria on foot, get to Shiganshina, and try to find a way to seal the breach-

"-WHAT?!" Rowan exclaimed in utter disbelief, as did many of the others who all incredulously voiced their shock: "Settle down!" Tyto ordered loudly, "... Please, continue Gregory". "Uh-, Th-thank you, Tyto..." he nodded gratefully, "... I can't remember offhand how many of us there were to begin with? I know there were hundreds if not maybe a few thousand people that went through the gate at Trost, elsewhere in the other walled cities? I guess there could have been more? ...Many of us were picked off by the titans within the first several hours of leaving the gate: those of us that were lucky enough to escape the first wave of attacks, managed to make it to the forest of giant trees; from there, we all just tried to avoid the titans as best we could. Some of us went our own separate ways, others stayed in groups for safety in numbers: but one by one we were all picked off. I, and a few lucky survivors made it all the way to the great forests that lie to the south: and that's where we ran into the Celts and Rangers, along with their 'god-titan's'"

Lupin then stepped in to continue, before the crowd had a chance to get riled up again: "Over the last two months we started finding survivors all over the place, hiding in abandoned towns and villages, hiding deep in the forest living off whatever they could find: many were at the point of starvation, dehydration, illness and or injury, and exposure to the cold. We helped as many as he could, but I'm sorry to say we lost some along the way: the survivors who're with us now are alive, but we fear without proper food, water and healers, they won't have long left to live"

"How many have you found?" Ash asked, "Thus far? Around five hundred men women and children" Orin replied, to which another wave of gasps resounded around the crowd, "Children?!" Carla stared at him dumbfounded, " _Please_ , between our own supplies and what the forest can provide, we're running out of time ourselves; will you help us?"

Everyone looked at one another, and with a collective sense of determination shared by all, someone called out from the back, "Show us the way!"

* * *

Some time later:

After the entire camp mobilized, Lupus and Orin directed the Hunt through the forest to the northern-most mountain: steadily climbing up the rolling slope, traversing through boulder fields and over a huge waterfall, until they reached an area that flattened out into a small plateau with a huge expanse of tall cliffs and vertical rock-faces on one side, and a sheer vertical drop on the other. The smell of humans and god-titan's was the first thing everyone noticed as they followed Lupin's directions across the plateau, until they eventually came to the huge opening of a wide jagged cave.

The faint glow of campfires could be seen flickering in the gloom, and the distant sounds of countless voices whispering in hushed tones echoing up from within; "...Great Gia" Dakota suddenly realized, "You used _these_ cave to take shelter?! But how did you avoid the mountain cats?", "It wasn't easy, but our titans managed to convince them we meant no harm" Orin replied as he jumped down out of Shadow's palm, as the god-titan kneeled down to let his passengers off. Following the four men into the thirty meter high cave, the smell of dried blood and infected wounds hit everyone, making them contort their faces into looks of disgust and repulsion. "We've done the best we can to keep the sick and injured alive, even with the god-titan's healing powers it's been a real uphill struggle" Lupin explained, some how keeping a straight face.

After following the passage down a small slope, the whole group soon emerged into a massive underground cavern some fifty meters high: how far it went back into the mountain was hard to determine, as the whole rear of the cavern was shrouded in darkness. But in the centre, clustered around dozens of small campfires were hundreds of people and animal titans: all huddled together for warmth and nestled up alongside the giants for protection. It was a staggering sight, and as the stranger's suddenly became aware of the Hunt's appearance (namely Shadow and Midnight, as they were still at the front of the group), a collective wave of surprised gasps and alarmed whispers echoed around the cavern, as those that could stand tried to move back further into the cave. "Please! Don't panic!-" Lupin held up his hands, trying to get everyone's attention, "It's okay! They're Celts and Rangers too! They're here to help us!"

Hearing that, everyone stopped and nervously returned to their fires, though many looked like they were ready to try and bolt if they could; "Great Sina..." Bryson breathed in astonishment: casting his eyes over the crowd, he could see many of them were dressed only in rags, some had no shoes, and many looked as if they'd been dragged head-first through a bramble patch and down the side of a cliff. While most were up on their feet, a good portion wore bandages, some were strapped to make-shift stretchers: and some, even had limbs missing. The Celts and Rangers that were with them had handed out what clothing and blankets they had, but they didn't seemed to have faired much better, as a certain number of them had sustained injuries too.

"...All these people... They survived the titans, for _two months?!_ " the former Scout stared at Lupin in dismay: "I know, we never would have believed it ourselves if we hadn't found them. We brought them with us and kept them safe-, well? Kept _each other_ safe really, surviving the regular titans is a real team effort: introducing them to _our_ titans wasn't easy, but they quickly realized they don't share the same taste for human flesh like the others do" Lupin gestured to the god-titan's scattered around the cave. The whole Hunt gazed in amazement at the menagerie of different animal titans: aside from Deer, Elk and Bird-titans, there were also wolf-titans, bear-titans, mountain-cat titans, and fox-titans; just like the ones that lived in the forests surrounding the lake of the Hidden Land. Then, a bedraggled-looking bearded gentleman approached the Hunt, and seemed to be both relieved and anxious at seeing Lupin's team again. "So, your search was a success then?" he smiled in relief, "I was beginning to wonder if we were the only one's to make it this far".

"Everyone, this is Doctor Samuel Jenkins: he used to be a physician in Wall Sina, and one of only five doctors we managed to find alive" Lupin introduced. "Wait-, a doctor from the interior?" Pascal frowned in dismay, "I can understand them using doctors from Maria for this 'retrieval op', but _Sina?_ ". "... I'm afraid the answer to that question is not so straight forward" the doctor replied anxiously, "But that can wait: listen, are you able to help us at all? We've done all we can with what we have to hand. But I'm afraid we're not going to last much longer without supplies"

"Tyto..." Evrard whispered discreetly as he placed a hand on his shoulder, excusing himself, Tyto turned and bowed forward a little as the giant red-head whispered "There's gotta be nearly a thousand people in this cave: we _don't_ have enough for everyone here, not to mention we've only got one other set of clothes each, and medical supplies for only _our_ number". Raking his brain to try and think of something, Tyto suddenly remembered: "Dakota, didn't you say there was a stone circle on the eastern side of this mountain?" he gazed over at the Rook Clan leader, "Yeah: come to think of it, it should be just over a kilometre from here," he realized. Hearing this, the two Celts stared at him astonishment.

"So I take it you have a plan?" Bryson smiled in relief, "What do we do dad?" Ash frowned in determination; turning and scanning over the Hunt, Tyto called out to one particular bird-titan and her rider " Florence! Swifty! Front and centre!", said bird-titan hopped to the front of the group with her rider on her back. "Yes Grey Owl?" she leaned down over the bird-titan's shoulder, as the bird-titan squatted down low: "You'll take Dakota with you and find that stone circle, get back to the Hidden Land and tell everyone what happened. Tell them to ready every scrap of food we can spare, every piece of spare clothing and every blanket: and tell Breck, Rosemary and the healers to ready the hospital, there will be multiple casualties arriving presently. Also, tell them to ready whatever empty buildings they can, they'll need somewhere to sleep" Tyto ordered. "Right on!" Dakota nodded as Florence helped him up onto Swifty's back, and together they quickly left the cave, carefully squeezing by the remaining crowd.

The Grey Owl elder then turned to address the doctor, "Samuel, do you think everyone is able to manage a kilometre walk, as well as an additional three miles?", "Those of us that still have strength yes, but there are many that cannot even sit upright they're so weak" Samuel worried. "I'll help you sort out who needs a ride" Gregory interjected, "And I'll make sure the rest know what to do" Arton added. "Okay," Tyto addressed the Hunt, "Listen up! I want you all to go with Gregory and Arton, and help ready everyone for the journey: lend your strength and your legs to those who cannot walk, and help in any way you can!"

Everyone voiced their acknowledgement before following Arton and Gregory into the cavern with their god-titan's in tow. Tyto was about to say something when Orin interjected, "-You've found the Hidden land?! _Actually found it?!_ ", " _And_ a stone circle?!" Lupin gasped, "Oh, I'm sorry, I probably should've said before hand," Tyto suddenly realized, "We found the Hidden Land nearly a year ago now: we and five other of our sister clans, along with all the Rangers from their regions" he clarified, "Why didn't you all come sooner?". Lupin and Orin glanced at one another sheepishly for a moment, before Lupin sighed in defeat, "...To be honest? We didn't think the regular titans would be able to get to us in the mountains. When word first spread of the breach in Shiganshina, all the regular folk retreated behind Wall Rose, and us in our foolishness, believed we had the run of the land. Then several months ago, we started finding titan tracks 'round the foothills of our mountain, another month later, our sister clan the Golden Eagles sighed several large titans ascending the slopes near the pass to the Isscal district. It was only then we decided to abandon our home-camp and follow the Semitam's direction's south, hoping to find the land our Grandfather's spoke of", "But we couldn't know for sure if our brothers and sisters in the east were aware of how fast the titans had advanced north, so we, the Blue Wolves, Mountain Cats and Bears headed west, while the Golden Eagles and Black Wolves went East, hoping to find them. That's how we happened upon the Badgers and the Red Foxes, hopefully they'll have had the same luck" Orin added.

Tyto gasped in alarm "-Wait a minute! Are you saying there're other clans still out there? Journeying to the Hidden Land as we speak?!", " _Hopefully_ , but we don't how well they've faired over the last few months: we know their god-titan's will have kept them safe, but if they came across any survivors from the failed retrieval operation, there's no telling how many titans they would've had to fight off" Lupin explained worryingly. But before he had a chance to explain further, Tyto turned to leave the cave, "All riders to your birds and follow me!" he shouted into the cavern in a booming tone: to which every bird-titan and their rider ran back and followed Tyto out of the cave, as he made a bee-line for Stormwing. The knowing look in her eyes told him she'd overheard everything, and with an affirmative nod, told him she knew what to do, "Alright listen!-" Tyto ordered as every rider nearly bumped into the back of him, while the bird-titans filed out of the cave mouth, "Lupin and Orin just told me there're other clans who headed out into the east to try to find our brothers and sisters, I want you all to take wing and fly out to find them! Fly all night if you must, but _we have to know if they're alive!_ Take the map of the stone circles with you so you can get back home fast, and use the lands between the districts of Chlobra and Wenrass as your starting point. Now go!".

Without another word the riders quickly mounted up, taking off as Stormwing opened her colossal wings and jumped up into the night sky. **"Good luck sister"** she heard Hecate's voice ring through her mind, **"You know I don't need it: not when a good finding spell will get the job done in half the time"** she smirked.

Heading back into the cave, Tyto was about to join the others when the Doctor nervously stepped forward to ask, "...Um? So, I haven't had time to ask anyone have it explained to me in full detail yet: but, where exactly is this 'Hidden Land'? And, what do these 'stone circles' have to do with getting there? Are they navigation markers of some kind?". Pausing a moment, Tyto knew there was no real way to answer him without making it sound totally fanciful, and so with a deep sigh of vexation, he replied "Trust me Doctor, it's probably better you see it for yourself..."

* * *

Later:

After Dakota, Florence and Swiftly returned from the Hidden land, the mass evacuation of the survivors began, and from the cave to the stone circle a quarter of the way around the mountainside, following Dakota's directions, the survivors followed one another in a long line several people wide. Flanked on both sides by Celts and Rangers carrying torches and lanterns, the more stronger hunters ensured no one lagged behind or tripped up on the more dangerous parts of the trail, while the rest and their god-titan's carried those who were too weak, sick or injured to move on their own. When they arrived at the stone circle in the cove, the 'regular folk' survivors were perplexed as to why they were there: deciding to transport everyone in groups of forty at a time, the god-titan's took it in turns to awaken the stone's power and take them to the Hidden Land. It nearly turned into pandemonium at first, when the first group disappeared into the swirling fog without a trace: but after being calmed down (at least enough to not try fleeing down the side of the mountain) and assured they'd be okay, the rest of the survivors would only go through if one of the Celts or Rangers went with them; it was slow going, but one by one everyone was organized into a group and sent through. Once on the other side, the mass rescue was led through the rich green forests towards the Gateway Mountain, all the way up to the giant stone gates, and through the long tunnel that went under the mountain. From the cave beneath the falls at the other end, Midnight used her water-powers to create vast thick ice-sheet so everyone could walk to the island.

From the moment they left the stone circle behind, the survivors were acutely aware they were now in a very different place: but was it somewhere in Maria? Or somewhere entirely different altogether? Their fear of the titans was momentarily suspended as they passed by the great standing stones, and noticed the strange patterns and shapes carved into their withered aged surfaces. The sight of the great stone doors made many hesitant, wondering what lay on the other side: why have doors so big? Unless something big was meant to go through them? The walk down the long dark tunnel was nerve-wracking, but once they stepped into the cave, onto the ice, and followed the Celts and their god-titan's over the sapphire waters of the lake, the sight of the island and the towering form of Yggdrasil immediately grabbed their attention.

Once everyone was on the island, the survivors were both perplexed and surprised to find a whole community of people waiting for them with food and water, clothing and blankets, bowls of hot water for washing, and just about everything but the kitchen sink. Organized in record time thanks to Miriam and Gustav, the islanders worked all night to see to everyone's needs: Breck, Rosemary and the healers treated everyone with the most serious injuries, using the various elixirs he'd created, as well as various medicines and herbal remedies he, Claude and Rosemary had stockpiled, while the 'healers-in-training' and those with a basic understanding of first aid saw to everyone with the least-critical injuries. Meanwhile, the god-titan's helped out where they could, providing a second pair of hands where needed and using their particular powers for whatever was required. Needless to say, Shadow was mostly growing fruit and vegetables while Angel and the other bird-titans were plucking their feathers and shedding their tears (thanks to a batch of particularly strong-smelling onions, courtesy of one of the gardeners) to brew up more elixir.

With over a thousand humans and a hundred and forty-something titans to see to, the community worked well into the early hours of the dawn, making sure everyone was comfortable, well fed, and at least able to get a few hours of sleep: the best they'd had in a very long time. The sun was just peeking over the mountains by the time everyone in the Hunt had managed to get some shut-eye and much needed food, while the rest of the Island saw to the injured: many of whom brought them back to their homes so that Breck could allot beds in the hospital for the most critical. By the time early afternoon had rolled around, the hectic chaos of the night before had finally died down to a more manageable pace, and everyone took some time to see to their own well-being.

After waking up, taking a shower and dressing into some fresh clothes, Ariana headed down to the kitchen where her mother was busy cooking bacon for her still-half-asleep brothers, who were all sat at the table: over in the corner by the stove, Falken sat dozing with Evernight nestled in his lap like a cat; while perched on the pot and pan rack above the kitchen table, all ten of Eraman's raven's roosted fast asleep. "...Morning" Ariana groaned as she yawned, "Afternoon," Freya smiled, "It's past half-two", "How long did I sleep?" she asked as she sat the table, rubbing the sleep from out of her eyes. "A good seven hours at least: after all the work you did last night you certainly deserved it" her mother replied as she took the bacon rashers out of the pan, served them onto three plates, and placed them down in front of her brothers. "Thanks mum" all three groaned: "You guys get much sleep?" Ariana asked offhand, "Yeah, just still exhausted from last night is all" Ash replied as he tucked into his late breakfast. Ariana was about to ask something else when another set of footsteps coming down the stairs got her attention.

"Morning" Carla smiled tiredly as she wiped her wet face with a towel, "Or, I guess it must be afternoon by now huh?", "You'd be right" Freya smiled, "Go grab a seat, I'll go see if we got any bacon left". "Carla?" Ariana frowned in confusion, "What're you doing here?", "Oh, sorry, you were asleep by the time I finished up with Angel at the hospital: I was too tired to climb up all those stairs to the cottage so your mum let me stay in the guest bedroom" she replied. "Oh, okay," Ariana nodded, still not fully awake, "Did I miss anything important after I finished up?", "Not really, your father woke up an hour ago: the council have called an emergency meeting to try and figure out how to rehome the newcomers" Freya replied as she came out of the pantry with several large rashers of colossal boar bacon in hand.

"Can't be any different than last time?" Ariana surmised, "Everyone got sorted out into a new home: surely there's enough to go around?"

* * *

Elsewhere, outside the town hall:

The circular hall was packed by the time Tyto took his seat alongside the other heads of the council, as well a select number of the other islanders, including a few of the god-titans (Shadow, Midnight and Boar being among them) who were curious to listen in. The meeting was to be held outside, as the Keeper had been requested to attend (much to the newcomer's amazement). Seated before them were the heads of the new Celtic clans and Ranger families, as well as a handful of the survivors from the retrieval operation: everyone else took a seat in the small circular amphitheatre outside the hall, with the god-titans seated at the top of the stone seats.

"...First of all, before we begin: I'd just like say thank you, to _all_ of you, for your charity and kind hospitality; it's-, been a very long time since any of us were treated like human beings, and to suddenly find ourselves in such generous company-. It's really left us lost for words..." Doctor Samuel smiled as he addressed the entire audience, to which Ratatosk replied courteously, "Please, think nothing of it: we too have survived the titan's relentless hunger to reach this place, and know first hand the horror of such a challenge. Suffice to say you were all most fortunate to run into our brothers and sisters when you did. We can _all_ relate,". A murmur of collective agreements went around the amphitheatre, before falling silent.

"And by the way Doctor, thank you for you and your colleague's help at the hospital last night: we wouldn't have been able to get through _nearly half_ the patients if it had just been myself" Breck smiled. "Oh it's okay" Samuel waved off bashfully, "I'm just relieved we didn't loose anyone else this time".

"Indeed. So," the Keeper spoke in his usual cool voice, getting straight to the point, "Who do we address you as? And how did you find yourselves out in Maria?"

"Well? You already know me and Gregory," Samuel replied as he introduced the others, "This is Peter Remmel, Ian Mallory, Deamond Fisher, and count Olaf Brenburn". "Brenburn?" Claude knitted his brows together, "As in, the Brenburn nobles from just south of Mitras?"; "Oh, have we met?" the count blinked in surprise, "Oh uh-, not formerly: I grew up in and around Mitras, I've heard the name circulated here and there. You too Mr Remmel: if I recall correctly you were a journalist that worked for the Royal Mitras newspaper, once upon a time?". "Wow, good memory" Peter smiled in surprise, "Though, it's been a good several months since I wrote anything that was published".

"And Mallory..." Bryson glanced over at said gentleman, "Wasn't that the name of a merchant company supplying high-end goods to the rich and nobles in Sina? I too grew up in the interior, and worked in Mitras for a number of years" he asked offhand, "That would be me indeed" Mallory nodded, "And if memory serves me right, the Fishers owned some of the biggest tracks of land in all of the interior" he glanced over at the other gentleman. "Is this an interrogation of some kind?" he frowned incredulously. "No, please forgive me: I didn't mean to come off like that" Bryson quickly apologized. "You'll have to forgive him, I'm afraid our time in the wild has 'sanded down' his manners a little bit" Gregory interjected meekly. "Please: don't worry, it's alright" Tarka assured them.

"But still..." Pascal raised an eyebrow while keeping up his poker face: although he wasn't on the council, he and the rest of Tyto's closest friends were allowed to sit in on the proceedings, "A count, a doctor, a journalist, a rich merchant, and an even richer farmer: kind of an odd bunch for a large-scale military operation, don't you think?" he smirked slyly, before donning a more serious expression. "And, when did you guys end up being arrested?" he glanced down at the ugly scars on their wrists, all still healing from having been shackled too tightly for too long, "...It strikes me as odd that even though you've all obviously lived in the interior your whole lives, you don't have that 'well-fed' look about you: the kind that only comes from being able to buy the best foods in all the three walls. So, while I can assure you all this isn't an interrogation: we're _all_ _quite curious_ as to how you found yourselves in such a predicament"

Sensing he was good at reading the situation, Samuel took a deep breath, and leaned on the table with his fingers laced together: "How-, we ended up in that cave is long and complicated, and it started last year, right after Maria fell to the titans..."

Everyone listened keenly as the doctor began their story: "...With all the refugees from Maria crowded into the interior, both Rose and Sina were under immense pressure to provide enough food to go around: it was decided that the farmlands would be worked over the winter to try and grow additional crops, at least enough to tie everyone over until the spring. But when the winter came, the ground froze solid and _nothing_ grew: hundreds starved with dozens dying in the famine's wake, and civil unrest began to boil just under the surface as a result; soon the public were demanding for action to be taken. And so before the spring, the Royal Government announced that a large-scale military plan called the 'retrieval operation' would be set motion, and carried out by April of this year: the goal was to march to Shiganshina, fending off the titans along the way, and somehow try to seal the breach. Many thousands were conscripted: the jails were emptied of all their inmates, the mental asylums 'relieved' of their patients, and many of the poor, homeless; and refugees from Maria were made to return. It was a massive undertaking, and one many were not prepared to go through with... Those lucky enough to have survived the titans rampage and cheat death, had to relive the horror of that day all over again. Only this time, they were being marched to their deaths by the very people they fled to for help"

"Many were led to believe the operation failed because it had been rushed and ill-prepared, but the truth is, it was a purge: an exercise in population control designed to relieve the stress on the remaining populous. The hard truth of the matter is that there simply wasn't enough food and resources to go around and the rest of the kingdom s _imply couldn't cope..._ It was either some of us, or all of us" Remmel swallowed hard, rubbing his palms to try and stop them sweating.

A wave of hushed whispers and gasps of astonishment echoed around the amphitheatre, before the Keeper spoke: "... As cold as it sounds: it's not illogical to conceive such a plan, given the circumstances and the dire nature of it. But what I fail to understand, is why families with young children were included in the operation..." he gazed out over the top of the amphitheatre, to the hospital where he spotted a young woman and her two children being seen to by Rosemary, while a mother and father were having their baby checked over to by one of the Celtic healers. "The old, the sick, the poor, the infirm and the guilty I can understand: but children? Either the conscripts were chosen entirely at random with no consideration given for age, or something else was at work here" he surmised in a sceptical tone.

"Y-You'd be correct there..." Gregory replied anxiously, before Remmel picked up again: "...The official story was: that only people over the age of twenty-five would be chosen for the operation, given a month of training to prepare for combat, and then outfitted with weapons and what supplies could be spared; the truth however, was _far_ from what the public were led to believe. While the Military Police oversaw the bulk of organizing the operation, and the Garrison supplied additional resources and back-up, it was the wall cult that controlled the whole thing"

"The wall cult?" Tyto frowned in alarm.

"Yes..." Samuel continued, "...It's no secret that the cult have had their hand in the government's official business for years now, and the fact they practically own the MP's is nothing new. But, even though they're essentially a criminal organization masquerading as a religion, to the many follower's who've succumbed to their hollow promises of eternal salvation: they are the one and only force that stands between us and extinction, at the hands of the 'demons' that lie beyond the walls. That's why, when the breach occurred, many thought this was the end for the cult: to know one of their goddesses had fallen would be _devastating_ for them, that it would tear them apart from the inside. But unbelievably, it had the opposite effect: instead of fleeing, many of it followers rallied to make a show of force. By the time the worst of the winter had come, the cult's numbers had swollen to nearly _double_ than what they were before: and with that many people at their disposal, the cult were now more formidable than ever"

"When the cult was first established a hundred years ago, it was done so with a view to ensuring humanity remained contained within the walls, that no one would look to venture outside, while maintaining the peace of society: and that's how it was for the better part of over sixty years. But when Judas Spencer succeeded as the cult's High Cardinal forty years ago, things changed for the worst" Mallory sighed.

"Spencer came off as a distant yet charismatic leader: reserved, resourceful, and well gifted in the art of telling people _exactly_ what they wanted to hear. To many he was a man who stood firm in the face of adversity, that knew how to handle any problem quick and efficiently. But the truth is he has no interest in working to help protect the peace of the walled kingdom: he was, and still is hell-bent on amassing all the power he can get his hands on; he's a man without a conscience and for whom the ends _always_ justify the means. Even extending his schemes so far as to using his family to do half his dirty work for him... A man like that, doesn't go about his business without making some enemies along the way," the Count explained. "... Spencer has only three ways of going about keeping his position, power and influence: either bribing those who he knows will be of use to him, blackmailing those he'd like to use but could turn against him without the 'proper persuasion', and making anyone who'll cause trouble for him to disappear entirely. This scheme has been used time and again to control everything from the government's policies to the military's jurisdiction: namely the MP's, since they're the one's who're in charge of tax collection and land distribution. And to ensure his cult remains loyal only him, he extents the same 'privileges' to a certain number of his pastors and more powerful, wealthier followers: forcing them to compete for his favours"

"Which is where _we_ come in," Samuel elaborated, "All of us are from the Interior, and yes we all lived and worked in and around Sina's more 'well off' end of society. But the one thing we _all_ have in common is that we could not be bought, blackmailed or bribed...Or in my case, simple had bad luck"

" _I_ for instance (unlike my contemporaries who were more interested in applying their wealth towards their own 'indulgences') was more interested in the well-being of my fellow man, regardless of their status and 'financial situation'. Do you recall, the hospital my father had built for the poor?" the Count glanced over at Claude, "Indeed: the Brenburn hospital and asylum" Breck nodded, "I spent a year of my medical training there, it was a nice place". "I also recall that you and your father were one of the main financiers for the Scout's expedition budget" Bryson glanced over at him. "Indeed: many said we were mad, that it was a fool's errand to throw money at such a fruitless venture: I and my father however, always believed that the progression of mankind would come from exploring the outside world, and finding a means to expand our boarders. It was a belief he held close to his heart, right up until his dying day" the Count stated proudly. "... Well then? I suppose a thank you is in order, for I _was_ one of the Scouts many a year ago"Bryson smiled offhand, "Oh, well uh, you're welcome..." the count bowed graciously, before getting back on track. "Anyway: my charity and philanthropy didn't earn me many favours among the upper classes of Sina; the only reason any of those dullards would pay me any kind of attention, was for the fact mine used to be one of the richest noble family's in all the three walls"

" _Used to be?_ " Pascal raised an eyebrow, "I was born an' raised in the interior too you know, and the last time I checked you guys had so much money you didn't have to work a day in your lives; _several lifetimes_ in fact. _And_ you had enough nephews and nieces to keep a few hairs and spares handy to make sure all that coin did end up being reclaimed by the king"

"True, but after Maria was breached, Spencer felt the need to expand his empire to keep his lackeys in his favour; for years the cult's popularity came from their sanctuaries and cornucopiam's, boarding houses that took in their more poorer and 'mentally impaired' followers and put a roof over their heads, and farms that specialize in growing produce only for their followers. But for that the cult needs land, and after the breach many joined them as a means of ensuring a meal and a bed to sleep in at night (which was understandable, and hence why their numbers doubled). To that end, the cult started paying the MP's to seize land from farmers, ranchers and merchants: and, in most cases, even turn a blind eye to human traffickers who would capture the displaced families and sell them into slavery; kicking up a percentage to the wall cult. But worst still, a good number of sanctuaries and cornucopiam's bought these slaves to be used as their workforce. The cult has lulled the public into believing that it's an act of charity and good will, that they 'freed' these poor souls to give them a chance to live their lives again; but the truth? Animals in slaughterhouses are treated with more dignity and respect. The cult treats their 'workforce' _appallingly_ , even to the point of working them to death..."

The Count paused for a moment as a wave of gasps and and horrified whispers went up around the amphitheatre, "Quiet down please" Warren knocked the gavel on the table, silencing the audience before Olaf continued in a more anxious voice: "... _I_ , was one such slave" he sighed; that got everyone's attention as he began his story. "... During the autumn of last year, the cult approached me with an offer for my family's estate and lands: promising to pay over _double_ than what it was already worth. Of course I vehemently refused, and that's when I realized they weren't asking; but regardless, I told them to leave...In retrospect that was a mistake, because one night the following week, I was awoken to the sounds of people entering my room: I tried to fight back, but got knocked out. And when I woke up, I found myself dressed in rags and shackled in irons, sitting in a large carriage alongside a dozen other people who were in the same dire straights. I demanded to know where we were going, and the driver told us we were heading north... _That,_ was the last time anyone talked to me with any kind of respect or courtesy: because from that day on, I was a slave assigned to a cornucopiam somewhere in northern Rose; far from Sina, and somewhere _no one_ knew who I was..." he took a deep shaky breath, holding it together as he continued "...I was forced to work in the fields alongside dozens of other slaves: working until our hands bled, trying to till the frozen earth. It was pointless to try and grow anything of course, and _that was_ the point. For the cultists in charge it was their sport: a sick game of betting on who could work the longing before dropping dead of exhaustion... Eventually I couldn't take it anymore, and one night I fled that god-forsaken place: I don't know how long I'd been running before fatigue finally got the better of me, but the dawn was breaking by the time I reached a small town, and headed straight to the local MP station. There, I told them what happened and what the cult did to me, and all the other slaves back on that farm: I _honestly_ _believed_ I was saved when they told me everything would be alright, and let me sit by their stove to warm up... But alas, that too proved to be a lie: not three hours later I was arrested and shackled, and then one of the pastors from the farm arrived; he took one look at me, and said to the MP's 'Get rid of this one, if he escaped once he'll only do it again: you know what to to do'...Later that night, the MP's put me a carriage with blacked out windows, and I was taken away: how long we travelled for I don't know, but it was still night by the time we arrived at my final destination. A huge jail of some kind that looked more like a fortress, dark and foreboding as it was build entirely from black stone: and the guards weren't MP's, but people dressed all in black from head to toe, and wearing these strange white masks that covered their faces..."

Every Celt on the council and in the crowd felt a pang of dread go down their spines, except for Tyto who remained calm as he knitted his brows together in intrigue: listening closely as the Count anxiously continued...

"I don't know who they were, but they led me away inside: the whole place smelt like death and decay, and there were rows upon rows of corridors that seemed to go on forever. At least six or seven floors high, all lined with these huge metal doors that turned out to be cells. There, I was shackled to the wall, and left in darkness...I'd never been more terrified in my whole life, and as I heard the cries of all the others locked up in the cells, I really thought I was going to die... I'd have lost all hope, if I hadn't met Mallory and Fisher" he smiled weakly.

"My cell was one side of Olaf's, and Deamond's was on the other," Mallory explained, "There were some cracks between the walls and ceiling either side of the cell that allowed our voices to reach through: and so when the guards were not patrolling past our doors, we-, talked to each other... _Believe me_ , it was the only way we managed to stay sane in that place". "Over the time we spent imprisoned together, I learned that Olaf and Ian's circumstances had been much like my own," Mallory explained, "I too had been approached by the cult, with an offer to sell my business to one of their wealthier followers. I refused, and the next thing I know I'm being dragged from my bed in the dead of night, knocked out cold, and when I wake up I'm being sold to a sanctuary somewhere in the far west of Rose, and being forced to wait hand and foot for a bunch of stuck-up cultists and pastors who expected me to be at their beck and call morning noon and night... I don't know what happened to my wife and sons: I can only guess they must have been sold to another sanctuary or cornucopiam: or someone else entirely? The place where I was sold was dark and horrible, but I could see there were a number of different people, not just cultists and pastors... Like Olaf I too tried to run but was eventually recaptured, and brought to the 'black dungeon'"

"How many times this has been repeated all over the interior I don't know, but the fact the cult were now targetting wealthy landowners and merchants was unheard of. If you weren't a cultist I can understand: but in the past, regardless of social status or 'religious' beliefs, if you had enough money to spare you wouldn't be hassled by the cult. But being strong-armed into giving up your land _and_ wealth? Knowing that you're well known amongst the farming community? At first I didn't understand how it could happen and no one not notice my family and I were missing? Until I realized, the cult must have either bought their silence, or threatened them and their families into keeping quiet" Fisher explained.

"Okay, so you guys had some serious coin and land: but what about you two?" Pascal glanced over at the doctor and Remmel, "What did you two do to end up being dragged out of your beds and being sold on the black market?"

"Well, unlike Olaf, Ian and Peter, our particular circumstances took a slightly different route, one that bypassed slavery altogether" Samuel replied.

"Like the Count said, a man like Spencer doesn't go about building his empire without making enemies: and suffice to say, I certainly qualified as one" Remmel elaborated: "I don't know if either of you used to read the Royal Mitras paper," he glanced over at Claude and the Leon twins, "Oh we did, and your column _always_ kept us going back to the paper stand: a man like you who knew how to 'stick it' to the caste system, was _always_ noteworthy in our books" Claude stated proudly. "Then you also must've realized that it was those same columns that landed me in this situation..." Remmel sighed, leaning on the table with his arms folded as he explained his side of the story, "...It's no secret I'm somewhat of a 'liberal' when it comes to talking about the government, MP's and the cult, and how their unfair policies underscore the people, particularly the farmers and merchants who supply our food and goods. For a number of years my column's popularity among the working classes ensured that if something happened, the public would raise a stink; and in my hubris I honestly thought that was the case... Then one day, I received a tip-off from one of my 'confidential' informants that they'd caught wind of an' incident' that took place over six years ago; one that the cult went to great length to keep quiet... The story goes, that apparently: in the central farmlands just outside Shiganshina district, the cult had 'acquired' a prime bit of farmland owned by some rich farmer called Hafer, who sold it to them and moved up to the interior. They tried to build a sanctuary on the site but kept running into a number of construction problems; then after one particularly nasty storm and flood they upped and abandoned the place. But apparently, Hafer was well known to everyone in the area, and everyone who knew him stated up and down that he _never_ made any mention of moving away, never mind selling his property. But more interestingly? There were rumours flying around that people used to see some strange things while the cult were in town, and that they were up to something... Deciding to see if there was anything to it, I travelled down to Shiganshina to investigate: over the month I spent there I talked to everyone who knew Hafer, and even the farmers who's property bordered the cult's land. What they had to say was... Well? Curious, and damn-right _strange_ at times: many claimed that the cult had moved some of their followers to the site to help build the place: and that apparently they were a bunch of real die-hard zealots; very aggressive to anyone who wasn't a follower and would harass them and their labourers regularly. Then, on the night of that storm, one of the farmer's who lived nearby swore he'd seen a couple of wagons go up the hill to escape the rising flood waters, and that when the cultists ran out to meet them, they grabbed the drivers and passengers and threw them into the flood waters... He said it was a mother, and her children..."

Tyto, Evrard, Falken, Eraman, Gustav, Bren, Derek, Pascal, West, Bryson, Breck and Claude all stared at Remmel in amazement: as memories of that night came back to mind with vivid clarity. As did Hecate, Javorin and Herne, all of whom glanced at each other in wide-eyed surprise. No one said anything, and everyone listened as Remmel continued...

"He told the MP's what he saw the next day, but whether anything came of it he didn't know. But, many people in the area claimed the place was haunted ever since: some claimed they saw the figure of a woman walking up the hill at dusk, only to disappear: and disembodied voices of children crying would be heard on moonless nights; all plaguing the sanctuary apparently, as people said they noticed many of the followers leaving the place soon after; and then one night, they all took off at once...But, during the course of being told one of these 'ghost stories', another interesting bit of information came my way. In the weeks following the cult's acquisition of the Hafer property, a number of people who lived in the forest bordering the land disappeared: and in some of the properties, dried blood had been found splattered all over the place. And ominous still: some foresters and woodsmen that lived in the vicinity, claimed they saw a group of men dressed all in black, riding big black horses and wearing white masks that concealed their faces... One night, one gentleman claimed he saw a woman who was lost approach one of these riders, asking for directions: he said the rider slit her throat with a sword, and took her body away with him; he never went poaching again after that. A number of other people disappeared on the roads and in the forest too: always at night, and their bodies never found; it was as if they were made to vanish entirely.

"So, how did this story get you in trouble with the cult?" Evrard asked curiously.

"When I returned to Mitras I decided to look into these 'mysterious dark riders' a little more: with so many people claiming to have seen the same thing, there _had_ to be something to it. First off, I tried searching for Hafer: but when I found the location he was supposed to have moved to; no one had heard of the guy. So with that being a dead-end, I got in touch with an informant who worked the rackets on the black market in Mitras: he wasn't involved with human trafficking or anything of _that_ nature, but he knew what went on behind the MP's backs, and knew people who had dealings with the cult's higher-ups. What he told me was a bit of a stretch, but apparently, something that's been floating around for nearly a hundred years now... When the cult were charged with protecting the walls by the king, they created a division of their order known as the 'Disciples'. The most devout of their believers who's loyalty was unquestionable, and would follow orders to the latter without a second thought. They were essentially the cult's own privet army, one that always worked behind the scenes, and who killed _anyone_ who laid eyes on them, even by accident; so as to protect their secrecy. For the better part of sixty years their role was to hunt down and eliminate anyone who wished to 'do harm to the goddesses': namely try to scale the walls or damage them in any way, and that was about the gist of it. But when Spencer took over as High Cardinal, he used the Disciples for his own means: completely disregarding their original mandate, and using them to carry out his crimes'...Needless to say, I didn't know what to believe, but apparently the Disciples have been one of the longest running rumours in the criminal underworld: and one that never seemed to go away, as every once in a while people would disappear under mysterious circumstances: all at night, and all travelling along a roadway somewhere remote. So, many figured there must be something to it...and by that time: I couldn't help but agree with them... At that point in the investigation I'd written up everything I'd found thus far, and had planned to take my investigation further. But one night, I was awoken by the sound of people breaking down my door: and just as I leapt out of bed, there they were: men dressed all in black and wearing white masks. I put up a hell of a fight, but one of them blind-sided me. Next thing I know, I wake up in a coach with blacked out windows, and find myself being delivered to-, _that place_... " Remmel explained as he wiped his brow and stroked his hair back. "...I thought I'd been left to rot in that hellish place, along with all the other people there: and to be honest? It was the first time I'd been truly scared through and through..."

"He was in quite the state of shock when they first brought him in," Samuel interjected, "But then, _everyone_ who was brought to that place had lost all hope by the end of the first first days; and if it hadn't been for that crack in the wall between our cells, we'd have never met" he smiled at Remmel, "...Like Olaf, Deamond and Ian: our conversations were the one thing that kept us from loosing our minds. We weren't in the same block as them, but it was nice to hear another human voice; even if they same position as myself" Remmel nodded ruefully.

"As for how _I_ ended in that dreadful place? I had the bad luck of incurring the cult's wrath, for simply for doing my job... I worked part time at Mitras's main hospital, but I also made house calls to the outlining districts around the capitol. My skills and experience had garnered quite a list of patients over the years: some of whom were of 'high-status', 'well-off' and some who were even influential in the government's business. One day, I was approached by one wealthy nobleman who's daughter had taken ill: he'd heard of my past successes and believed I could help her. But, he was seeing to her treatment in secret because her husband and his family were devout cultists: and as you know, science and medicine are not looked upon favourably by the cult. I attended the girl and found she was suffering a mild form of river-fever: easily treatable, but her condition had been made worse by the fact she was with child, and her body had reacted more acutely to the disease than it normally would have. But in any case I cured her of her illness, and her father paid me extra to oversee her pregnancy: all while keeping this from his in-laws, as he wanted to ensure the survival of his daughter and grandchild... Things were going well, but the night before she was due to give birth, the husband had somehow found out: I rushed to the house her father had kept her hidden away in, and when I arrived I -..." he hesitated as a look of horror filled his eyes: "...I-, found the girl and her father dead: their throats both slit by her mother and father, and the child-... _cut_ from her womb by the husband, and thrown into the fire by his sisters. All the while, their pastor was performing an exorcism: _in their eyes_ , the medicines I'd given the girl had made her and her unborn child 'unclean', and so they had to kill them, for fear my 'evil dealings and dark magics' would incur the 'wrath of the goddesses'... _I couldn't believe_ I was seeing this, what _they_ had done to their own daughter, _and_ grandchild: and worse, they blamed _me_ for her death. _I_ was the evil in their eyes; it was _complete madness!_ ...I tried to run to get help, but those black riders in the white masks had surrounded the house, and proceeded to beat me up to within an inch of my life. The whole family and the pastor came out to watch, and they just _stood there:_ smiling the way a cat smiles when it sees a mouse. Not even caring that I was pleading and begging for my life while bleeding all over the grass: but they didn't care; they just laughed as the riders threw me into the carriage... I must've passed out during the journey, and not for very long, as it was still dark out by the time I'd reached my destination... After being placed in that cell I'd resigned myself to the fact that I was going to die in that place: my conversations with Peter were the only comfort I had; knowing that at least, I was not the only one enduring that hell..."

The whole audience whispered among each other in a mix of shock and disbelief, even the god-titan's were at a loss what to believe. From reading their auras they knew they were telling the truth, but the sheer incredibility of their stories still made it hard to swallow. "Quiet..." Warren banged the gavel on the table, to which everyone hushed up. "...Look, I'll be straight will ya," Pascal huffed dryly, keeping his poker face in place "I was born and raised in the underground district okay? So bad shit happening to people is nothing new to me. I've heard of some pretty bad thing that go in in this walled world: but seriously? _This_ is kind of a stretch, even for me". " _Believe me_ , if none of us had experienced it for ourselves, we'd most likely never believe it either... And, the fact we have no real evidence to back our claims up doesn't help either" Mallory admitted sheepishly.

"True: under normal circumstances your stories would probably be taken with a pinch of salt. However, the fact I can sense your memories of your experiences, is the reason I believe you" The Keeper replied coolly. "Wh-what?!" Gregory gawked, "Seriously?" Pascal raised an eyebrow up the the blindfolded god-titan. "I _c_ an sense when someone is lying, remember? As do all my kin" the Keeper shot the former thief a dry look, "And needless to say: the truth in your words is most concerning" he glanced back at the panel. "...So? I guess we now come to the obvious question: how did you all come to be conscripted for the failed retrieval operation?" Bowen asked.

Samuel decided to explain, "One day, two months ago: there was a commotion going on in the 'dungeon', all the cells were being emptied and everyone moved outside. The 'masked guards' didn't say where they were taking us: they just piled us into these giant carriages with no windows and told us to stay quiet. Time had lost all meaning to us by that point so I don't how long we travelled for, and my legs were so weak I could just barely stand. There were many who'd been locked up in that place: men, women, children, even whole families: how many exactly I don't know, tens? Maybe hundreds? There was no way to keep track in all the commotion. Eventually, we arrived in Trost shortly before dawn: from what I could overhear of the MP's conversations, they'd evacuated the entire city so as to ensure no one would try to run or call for help. When we were herded out of the carriages, we saw the whole city was indeed deserted, and we were made to join a huge crowd of what must've been _thousands_ that was lined up at the gate. Up on the walls I saw more of those masked riders, and several pastors and MP's who were with them: we were each given blunt pikes, rusted swords, knives with dulled blades, and a small bag of stale bread and a bottle of water: barely enough to last a few days. We didn't know what was going on, until one gentleman turned to me and told us they were about to head out to Shiganshina to try and seal the breach. Realizing that would mean facing the titans, many of the prisoners panicked and try to run: but, the inner gate had been closed by that point, so there was nowhere for anyone to go. Soon enough, the outer gate opened and we were forced to move, or get shot by the masked guards...We all had no choice but to leave: some though, tried to run back, only to be shot on site...They were the lucky ones: because no sooner had he walked several miles out, the first titans came for us at full speed...The rest-...I don't think I need to say..." Samuel sighed as he leaned on the table, rubbing his tired eyes as he felt the horror of that memory weigh heavily upon him.

The whole panel sat in silence for an uncomfortable moment: knowing there was no need for them to relive the hell they'd survive; "... No, I don't think we need to go there" Tarka sighed anxiously. "...One thing I _am_ curious about though," Bryson leaned forward, "If all of you were locked up (presumably for some time over the winter and spring?), how did you come by all this information on the cult?"

"Between our time being incarcerated, and the last two months we spent together trying to survive: we swapped stories and formed a number of theories as to what had happened, and what was going on now; of course much of it was conjecture on our part, and only based on our experiences. But during my investigation, my research into the wall cult and their Disciples _was_ confirmed by several sources I know are legit... As incredible as it sounds: the King and the Royal Government are _not_ the true rulers of this walled world: not since Spencer came into the picture" Remmel sighed.

"So how did you end up with these guys? Were you locked up in this 'black dungeon' too?" Evrard glanced over at Gregory, who nervously replied "Ah-, no. Me and my family were farmers in south-east Rose: we weren't the wealthiest or most prestigious in the area, but we managed to keep the place running okay, and kept our labourers happy to boot. Like Olaf, Ian and Deamond the wall cult came for us too, but unlike them, the MP's suddenly showed up at our door one day with a couple of pastors in tow: they handed us eviction notices and told us to leave. _They claimed_ that the cult had brought our land from us fair and square, and that we suddenly went back on the deal and refused to give them the property. To say this was staggering was an understatement. We told them there'd been a mistake and that I'd made no such deal: but the payment papers and deed's to the property had _my_ signature on them; a signature _I knew_ was a fake! It wasn't even my handwriting! But the MP's didn't listen or even care, and gave us one day to gather our possessions and leave: and as if to rub salt in the wounds, we were required to pay a compensation fee to the cult for 'infringement of trading' for not honouring the deal in the first place... That payment was all the money we had: we were homeless, destitute, and had nowhere else to go. As we travelled the land looking for work, we came across a number of other farmers who'd been forced off their land by the cult, and had not a coin or note to their name. They'd gathered in camps at the fringes of the wilderness, hoping to stay safe from human traffickers by looking out for each other, and sharing what they could. It was hard-going but we managed to make the best of it: then one day two months ago, the MP's suddenly show up in force and arrest everyone in the camp for trespassing; which-, made _utterly no sense_ , as it was free land and owned by no one. They rounded up everyone and put us in chains, and I was separated from my wife and daughters as we were put into these large carriages, and led away to this huge jail in the nearby town: we were kept there for a few days, before being transported down to Trost... That, was the first time I'd heard of the retrieval operation: and it wasn't until we were ordered to the gate and given our weapons, that I realized what was about to happen. With what time I had before the gate opened, I searched desperately for my girls, but I never saw them again: then when the time came and the gate rose, we were ordered to move or get shot...I-...Pray my girls weren't there...But, I don't know what became of them?..." he explained in a shaky voice with tears running down his cheeks: Samuel gently patted him on the back, and the whole amphitheatre was on the verge of outrage, as half the audience discreetly wiped the tears from their eyes too.

"It wasn't just Gregory though, or Olaf, Ian, Peter, Samuel, or Deamond" Lupin sighed as he stepped in to say his piece, "The more survivors we found, the similar their stories were when they told us of their plights: while some were indeed old, weak, sick, infirm (and guilty of criminal acts in some cases), and theses _were_ the reason's they'd been chosen for this 'purge'. But the rest had been treated _appallingly_ by the very people who're supposed to protect them. Their homes and livelihoods stolen from them, their loved one's taken and sold into slavery: every manner of unjust cruelty that had been inflicted upon these poor people, had been carried out by the cult, or by those in their service or favour. Some for the sake of some wicked scheme, others, for the _pettiest_ of reasons: some of those that survived hadn't even done anything untowards the cult or MP's: they were simply considered an 'inconvenience' to be disposed of; without any regard for their lives..." he frowned in ire. "Brothers, I know it is not our way to concern ourselves with the dealings of regular folk: but _this?_ This injustice goes _way_ beyond the pale for us! After everything these people have been made to endure, we _cannot_ turn our backs on them!" he pleaded vehemently.

"And we won't," Tyto stated: "...The wall cult may have forced us to hide in the wilds of Maria for the last hundred years, but they _didn't_ force us to abandon our humanity. Our survival has, and _always will_ depend on the bonds we share as a family and a community. Small, and few and far between it may be: everyone relies on everyone else for their survival in one form or another; the rest of the walled world is no different... In many ways humans are like wolves: it's all well and good dancing to the beat of your own drum, but when times are hard and the going gets tough, we _all_ have to fall in line with the pack and do what's best for everyone. To go our own ways for the sake of protecting what meagre possessions we own, or what beliefs we hold, puts _everyone_ at risk; if that's the price you're willing to pay, for your own personal freedom...That's why, in this place: we will not turn _anyone_ away; regardless of who they are, where they come from or what they've done, what they own or what they don't have, _no one_ will be treated any differently or given preferential treatment... We are _all_ a one peoples in this land, and we are _all_ human..." he stated, before quickly adding "-And god-titan". Many of the god-titan's couldn't help but chuckle, even the Keeper couldn't hide his smile.

"...So? ..." Olaf changed the subject, "What now? Many of us had resigned ourselves to death before last night, but now? What do you intend to do with all of us?". "All who seek sanctuary are welcome to stay here: it is the Queen's decree that all who are without a place to call their own, may find one here, if they so choose" the Keeper stated, " _The queen?!_ " Gregory gawked, "There's a _queen titan_ here?!". "Yes, there is a queen, and very generous and hospitable she is too" Claude nodded. "While she maintains her charge as ruler of this land and guardian of the city of Omnes Scientiam, she has granted the council power to govern themselves and this community. And as the queen's representative, I was invited to become part of this council to speak on behalf of _all_ the god-titan's who dwell within this land"

"If you wish to stay that's not a problem: but we must warn you here and now, we do things quite differently compared to what your all used to in the rest of the walled world. For starters, money is not part of our culture: we trade goods the old fashion way and when you give your word you stand by it" Ratatosk stated. "On this island, trust, compassion, understanding and honesty are the wheels that carry this community: and take it from a fellow Sinian, you'll do _just fine_ if you keep your mind, and your ears open" Claude added in a positive tone.

"...Alright then" Olaf bowed respectfully, "You have my word as a nobleman and a gentlemen, I'll respect and abide by your laws", "Me too" Samuel nodded, as did Deamond, Ian, Peter. "...Of course. But what about everyone else?" Gregory asked worryingly. "They too will be extended the same invitation, providing they agree to follow the code of abidance laid down by this council" Dakota stated, "And if someone break's one of these 'codes?'" Mallory asked offhand, "Then there will consequences to face: but we don't believe in imprisoning or killing people for their wrongdoings. If something happens and the codes are defied, we will be diplomatic about it and handle it accordingly. We believe in finding peaceful solutions to our problems here" the Keeper replied.

"But what if someone wants to return to the interior? There're many people who still have families within the walls: families that should _never_ have been separated in the first place; would you stop them from leaving? Even if they swore on their lives to take the location of this place to their grave?" Gregory asked pleadingly.

The council all glanced at one another in concern, but the Keeper merely replied: "If anyone wishes to go back, then we will not stop them: we will ensure they return to their homes safely...However, before anyone wishes to go: I _will_ ask this question, and ask them to consider it very carefully... What would they do if they are discovered, and the authorities led to believe that they managed to sneak back over the wall somehow? What would the implications mean for them?... If their being here was due to the wall cult's doing, then what would they do if they were spotted by their captors? What would that mean for them and their families? ...This will not affect us as the location of the Hidden Land is well guarded, and cannot be found without the help of a god-titan: the likelihood of anyone within the walls finding this place in next to impossible. However, the Queen cares about the safety and well-being of _everyone_ in her kingdom, even those who're visitors from distant lands: and if our actions lead to the injury or deaths of innocent people, knowing that there could have been a way to prevent it in the first place, then this will be a tragedy shared by all, and the consequences for which, will lay firmly on _all_ our shoulders. As well as theirs"

"In other words," Pascal deadpanned, "Just let the interior think your all dead: it'll be easier for everyone all round. And if those death's ensure the safety of those who were blackmail leverage for the cult, then those loved ones will be better off for it"

"...Well?..." Remmel sighed in defeat, "When you put it like _that_ : it's not like we have a choice". "No, _you do_ have a choice: all we're asking is that you consider the consequences of what might happen if you go through with it" Bryson replied, before Pascal added "I mean, think about it. Someone who's supposed to be dead, suddenly showing up back at their home alive and well, after _somehow_ scaling the wall? Or walls _all by themselves?_ Take it from me bud' not everyone's a skilled liar, and considering the fuss the military will have been making over the Colossal and Armoured titan's attack last year: you can bet your ass they'll have been working long and hard to improve the wall's protection; if they catch anyone from the 'retrieval operation' back inside Rose or Sina, they'll smell a rat, and then what?"

"Don't get me wrong, I can see where you're coming from, and yes I agree going back _would_ create a lot of complications if we're caught. But there're a lot of us that don't feel the some way" Fisher pointed out. "...If it's not too much ask, would it be okay if we explained this situation to them? Try to help them understand what's best right now?" Samuel asked. "It's not too much at all," Tyto replied with an understanding smile, "If anything, it would help if they had someone they know they can talk to; someone they can relate to... Me and my family were only out in Maria for a day and two nights after the breach...I can't even begin to imagine what two, or even four months of that hell was like: and I won't insult any of you by pretending to know...If you wish to stay, we'll do all we can to help you adjust; you have my word"

"...Thank you, again..." Samuel smiled in grateful appreciation.

"Excellent. And now, " Ratatosk changed the subject, "If we may, would it be suitable to bring up the subject of 'rehousing'? Only, there's something important we must address-"

"-Actually..." the leader of the Bear clan raised his hand, "If its not too improper, there's something I'd like to ask: with regards to us staying here?", "Um? Sure, please continue" Tyto nodded. "Well? While we were helping everyone walk up that giant tree root last night, I happened to catch a glance of the mountain with that big stone king seated at the base," he pointed eastward, "There wouldn't be anyone already living out there in the forest, per chance? Only, I fear our bear-titans will be far too big for this island: not to mention our clan is quite 'sizeable' too, and needs quite a bit of space". "I have to confess, our wolf-titans will probably raise too much of a ruckus with their howling and whatnot's: I can't really see them getting along well on this little island" Lupin sheepishly admitted, "Our Mountain-cat titan's don't get on well with other titans either, they need somewhere they can be free to take off, and enjoy their own company when they want to; and they won't really have that freedom on an island I'm afraid" Orin admitted sheepishly, "And let's not forget the fox-titans, those oversized scamps will be raising hell every chance they get: chances are they'll be fur coats before the year's even out if their not properly handled. And suffice to say, all these different god-titan's are way too much of a temptation for them" the leader of the Red Fox clan threw in sheepishly.

"I guess, what we're _trying_ to say is," Lupin winced sheepishly, trying to put it as delicately as possible: "As much as we'd love to stay here on this wonderful island with all of you: we _really_ feel our particular clans will fair better on the mainland; in the giant forest on the slopes of that great mountain, where our brother and sister god-titan's can have the space to live comfortably, and we ourselves will not be an encumbrance upon everybody here". "I mean, let's face it: we're Celts, we can sleep, hunt and live just about _anywhere_ outdoors: but the survivors of the purge? They _need_ the houses on this island far more than we do: they're much too 'domesticated' to live rough and wild like us; they'd be much better off here" the leader of the Bear clan added sensitively: "So? If it's not too much to ask: may we be permitted to set up our new home-camps on the mainland?"

The council all glanced at one another in surprise for a moment, before thy all smiled: "...Actually? This is _exactly_ what we were about to propose" one of the Ranger elders smiled, "If you don't mind: you'd be doing us a big favour". "For one thing it'll save us putting a strain on the communal gardens to double their produce output, as well as all the other resources we got here" Derek commented, "Well, what's _left_ of them: we got a lot of work to do to regain our winter stockpile quota" Gustav pointed out. "Actually? We'll have to completely reset the required quota if we're to avoid starvation over the winter," Claude interjected, "While everyone was being seen to last night and this morning, I did a head count and crunched some numbers-

"-TYTO! Where's Tyto?!" One of the Ranger's shouted from the top of the amphitheatre, as he burst through the rear doors of the town hall, "Can't you see we're in the middle of a meeting here?" Evrard frowned up at the youngster as he came running down the central aisle. But the Ranger paid no attention as he jumped up onto the stone stage and stood before the Council and assembled guests. "I'm sorry for the intrusion: but we found them!"

"Found them?!" Lupin gasped, as did the audience, "You found the other clans?!". "When?" Tyto demanded, "Not half an hour ago, I went on ahead to relay the situation: the look-out's found the Golden Eagles and the Black Wolves just east of the Calhoss fens, along with the Heron, Silver Fox, Grey Squirrel, Sparrowhawk and White Owl clans, plus over fourteen Ranger families and their god-titan's" the Ranger stated. "How many's that?" Evrard raised an eyebrow, "Overall? Five hundred and ninety two humans, and around a hundred and ten god-titan's. Seven hundred and two altogether". A wave of astonished gasps went up around the amphitheatre: but this time the council paid no attention as Tyto stood up: "I need to go get the Hunt reassembled, they'll need help getting out of there: are there any stone circles near where they are?" he asked as he turned to leave, "The one I used is the nearest, it's about three miles south of their position: but Tyto, there're too many titans between there and their current position; Stormwing and the Look-out's are doing all they can, but they _need_ reinforcements on the ground to help clear a path" the Ranger stated worryingly. "You better go" Gustav waved off, "And don't worry about things here, we've got it covered" Derek stated as Evrard, Falken, Eraman, Bryson, Pascal, West, Shadow, Midnight and Boar all got up and left in a hurry, following Tyto as he led the way.

After watching them leave the amphitheatre, the newcomer's glanced over at the council in surprise: "So? I take it you have a 'rescue team' always at the ready for when you find more of your fellow Celts and Rangers caught out in titan country?" the Count asked. "Actually? That reminds me..." Remmel suddenly remembered, "I didn't get a chance to ask earlier: but, why were Tyto and the others out in Maria to begin with? And why were they kitted out with ODM gear?"

"Well?..." Gustav sighed as he ruffled his wild unkept grey hair, "It's a bit of a long story, but since it looks like we'll have some time to kill before they get back with the 'new lot': allow me to fill you all in on the 'major operation' we got going on here"

"By the way, this meeting is now adjourned, the new arrivals will be needing some help when they get here: so everyone please report back to your stations and await further instructions" Ratatosk announced to the crowd. **"That goes for all of you too"** Jarus addressed the other god-titan's, **"It looks like we'll be busy for the remainder of the day"**

* * *

Six hours later, at the Island hospital:

"...Well? I think we're just about done," Ariana sighed in exhaustion as she placed the tall pile of freshly-washed blankets on the bench: "Not even a few hours rest and we're back on duty with the _newest_ new arrivals" Rowan grumbled as he threw a bowl of dirty water out the window, making sure it landed in the undergrowth below the windowsill "If this is going to be a frequent thing: finding our fellow Celts and Rangers wandering the wild avoiding the titans, we should start including rescue and relief as part of the Hunt's protocol!". "Look on the bright side, at least we only had clean broken bones, dislocated joints, and a several lacerations to deal with this time: nothing that needed going under the knife for" Rosemary smiled as she entered the room, wiping her hands on a clean rag, "I take it the new batch of elixirs are done?" Ariana asked offhand, "Just finished the last one right now: the boxes are on the table and ready to be taken to the recovery ward" she replied, to which Rowan, Ash and Fox proceeded to said table in the room next door, and took the boxes to their destination.

"Okay, Angel's back up in her nest and thoroughly out of commission," Carla announced as she entered the room, "Poor darling won't be able to fly until tomorrow at least: what with all the feathers she had to pluck out". " _She_ had it easy; Old man Campbell was shoving onions in Blue-rain and Dusky's faces for half the afternoon just to get the tears Breck needed" Miriam stated as she walked in with two huge baskets of freshly backed bread tucked under her arms, "Hey, while you're on your feet, take these up to the recovery ward: the girls need these to go with the broth they're making for the over-nighters" she handed the basket's the Carla and Ariana, "Sure thing" the youngster replied as she followed the raven-haired woman out the door.

" _Holy crap_ , five hundred and ninety two more people" Ariana thought aloud, "I know: I don't even want to think about the headache Claude must be having, redoing the head-counts and reorganizing the figures" Carla sighed offhand. "You know, we must have the damn _luckiest of luck_ to not loose anyone," Ariana realized, "Never mind have enough room for everyone to stay here: specking of which, I saw dad meeting up with the heads of the new clans before coming over here, did you overhear anything?". "I didn't stay for the whole meeting, but he apprised them of what happened last night, and the 'living arrangement's' for the survivors of the purge: it seemed to go down okay? I didn't hear anyone object. At least, not while _I_ was there," Carla shrugged, "Well? I just hope no one raises a stink over it, we're hard-pressed for free space on the island as it is" Ariana sighed offhand.

Another few minutes walk soon brought them to the recovery ward, in which every bed was filled, and several auxiliary beds from the storage room in the basement had been brought up via the elevator. It was crowded but not chaotic, as everyone had been seen to and treated accordingly: now, one doctor was making the rounds and checking on everyone. Spotting Carla and Ariana as they made their way across the ward, he paused to greet them. "Oh, are you Mrs Jaeger? Only, Breck said you'd be heading over here to relieve Samantha and Rebecca". "That would be me" she smiled, "And you must be-, Arthur?". "Ernest, Arthur went on break a half hour ago and I agreed to cover for him" he corrected, "Ah, right: sorry it's-, been one hell of a day; first a whole load of new arrives, and now six new doctors to remember," She smiled sheepishly, before turning slightly more concerned, "Listen, you're not too tired are you? You've had a pretty hectic day yourself": "Oh I'll be okay, I feel much more at ease when I'm doing something: I find I can't let my hands be idle for too long or I go out of my mind with boredom" he admitted with a sheepish smile, "Besides, Breck certainly looked like he could use the extra pair of hands. I mean, running this whole hospital all by himself? How'd he managed to do it? I mean, he's not even been up here to review any of the patients yet". "Dunno, he just does" Ariana shrugged, "Oh-, You're Tyto's daughter: Ariana, right?" he asked, "That's me" she forced a smiled, "Now where're the girls so we can deliver this bread? I got a hundred other chores to finish up in here before I need to go back an' find my dad". "Oh, right: Amy and Robin should be in the kitchen," he hastily replied, Carla was about to ask something else, when one of the Celtic healers interrupted, "Excuse me? Doctor Tenmer? The lady in bed three's asking for you", "Alright I'm coming" he replied, "Sorry, but duty calls; nice meeting you both" he waved good-bye as he briskly walked away.

"Bye..." Ariana waved, before getting back to her conversation with Carla, "I thought he was Pepae for minute" she admitted in a hushed tone, "Me too, they do look alike" Carla nodded. "Maybe we should get everyone to write their names on their foreheads for the first few weeks" Ariana grinned, Carla was about to jokingly reply, when she suddenly stopped, and stared at something across the huge room. "Carla?" Ariana stopped as she noticed her change of expression: following her gaze, Ariana saw she was staring at an old man in one of the beds, his forehead bandaged and his left arm in a sling: sitting on a couple of stools by his bedside were two younger woman around Carla's age, one with pale blonde hair, the other black as her own. "...Joseph?..." Carla frowned in alarm as she slowly walked over to the bed: her face contorting from a look of confusion into a sudden look of horror, as she dropped the basket of bread and rushed to his side, "-JOSEPH!"

"Wha-, uh who're you?" the pale blond woman frowned in confusion. The old man stirred awake and gazed up at her in surprise as he tried to get his bearings: "Joseph?! Oh god Joseph! You're alive?!" Carla panicked as she gently gabbed his hand, "Carla?..." he stared up at her in equal shock, despite his fatigue, "...Oh my god..." he realized as he too recognized her, "... _You're alive?_ But-, how is this possible?!". "...Mr Arlelt?!" Ariana gawked as she approached the bed. "Ariana?!" the old man gawked at her too, "You're here too?!". "Uh-, excuse me but who the hell are you?!" the other raven-haired woman frowned in a defensive tone as she got up from her seat: both Carla and Ariana were caught off-guard by her aggression, but the pale blond woman stood up and grabbed her arm, pulling her back a little. "Darcy don't!-" she pleaded, "-Darcy it's okay, they're friends of mine!" Joseph grabbed her hand.

"You know him?" she blinked in surprise, "Of course we know him! We were neighbours when we lived in Shiganshina!" Carla stated defensively. "Wait-, _you're_ Carla Jaeger?" the blond woman blinked in surprise. "My grandson and her boy were best friends: they used to play together all the time, they lived five streets up from us" Joseph patted Darcy on the arm, "It's okay Darcy, _really_ : you don't have to worry about anything with Carla; she's a good friend" he assured her. Glancing back and forth between them, Darcy sat back down and turned her gaze away. "Joseph, _what the hell_ are you doing here?! How the hell did you get conscripted?!" Carla leaned down to meet his eye-level, while Ariana carefully climbed up onto the foot of the bed: "I-, I _had_ to go: they needed every able-bodied man for the operation" he replied weakly. "But Joseph, how did you make it past the titans?!" she pleaded. "Oh, you can thank Darcy and Drew for that: I wouldn't have made it this far south if it hadn't been for them" he smiled over at the two sisters. "Sorry for my sister's short temper: she just-, well, Joseph has been such a good friend to us these past few weeks. He's kinda grown on us" Drew meekly smiled.

"Was Armin with you?!" Ariana pleaded in a panic, "Please don't tell me he got conscripted too?!", "I-..." Joseph's eyes filled with confusion and hurt, "...I don't remember?...All I remember were those titans coming at us: running so fast we couldn't-" He pressed his hand to his forehead as tears welled up in his eyes. "His memory ain't been too good since he took that blow to the head" Darcy frowned, to which Drew then explained, "We found him lying in a pool of blood on the outskirts of the forest a few weeks ago: we honestly thought he was dead, until we saw him breathing. Luckily for all three of us there was small cave nearby: we hid in there and tried to patch him up as best we could, but he took quite a knock to the head. Honestly? we'd all be dead if the Celt's hadn't found us a day or so later. We tried asking him how he ended up where he was, but he can't remember anything before that: at least, not as well as he used to, I think?"

"But did you see Armin with him?!" Ariana pleaded desperately, "Armin's his grandson, he'd be about Ariana's age: blond hair, bright blue eyes, kind of small and skinny? Did you see a boy like that anywhere near where you found him?" Carla asked. The two sisters gazed at one another worryingly for moment, before Joseph suddenly let out a hitched sob, "...Armin..." he wiped his eyes with the back of his sleeve, "...He was-, _I don't remember_ : but I know he was there! He came with me and we-... Oh god _I wish I could remember!_ " he sobbed. Carla stared at him in horror, while Ariana ran off the bed and out the room; tears streaming down her face. "Hey!-" Breck yelped in surprise as she bumped by him, "Ariana?" he suddenly noticed she was crying. "Breck?!" Carla yelled out in surprise. "Carla?" the doctor ran into the room, wondering and worrying what was wrong, "Carla what-

He screeched to a halt as he suddenly recognized Joseph, "...Oh Sweet Sina..."

* * *

Later that night, back at the town hall:

"Holy crap..." Eraman sighed in wide-eyed amazement as he entered the hall, "...Did you guys hear about Joseph?!"

"We just got back from visiting him at the hospital" Evrard nodded, "Of all the people to survive this madness-, _how the hell_ did _he_ end up getting conscripted for the retrieval operation?!". "I've no idea..." Falken sighed in exasperation as he leaned back in his seat. "Old geezer like him? He's lucky to have made it as far as he did in one piece, even _with_ the help of his new friends" West thought aloud. Pascal was about to throw his two coins in, when the doors opened, and Tyto, Bryson, Claude, Derek, Gustav, Bren and Miriam stepped in, followed by all the other council heads. "The Keeper sends his apologizes, but he had to return to the city to inform the queen of the latest developments, including our new plan" Bren told everyone.

"New plan?" Evrard knitted his brows together in confusion: "We'll get to that in a minute, but first: we reached a consensus with the new arrivals," Tyto replied as they all took their seats around the table: "The Heron's, Golden Eagles and Black Wolves will be joining the Bears, Blue Wolves and Mountain-cats in the eastern forest, near the base of the great eastern mountain. The Silver Foxes, Grey Squirrels and Badgers will be joining the Red Foxes in the western forest, near the Gateway mountain, and the White Owls and Sparrowhawks will be staying on the island. They said they wanted to ensure the survivors got settled in okay: as well help them 'adjust' to all the new god-titan's on the island"

"Seriously? They've been tagging along with the clan's and their god-titan's for nearly two months, and all of a sudden they're worried the island god-titans are going to start getting the munchies?!" Pascal exclaimed in disbelief. "I know, but it's not that simple Pascal" Derek sighed, to which Ratatosk added "Many of them are still on edge and mentally drained from the long journey. It's going to take time for them to adjust: just thank Gia the Count and his friends were on hand to explain things to them". "A number of the Ranger families will be joining the clans on the mainland too: they've all yet to find suitable sites for their new home-camps, but they've assured us they'll be okay: they'll start scouting the forests first thing in the morning; and before anyone asks, _yes_ we did warn them about the water-snake titans and the marshes along the northern end of the lake" Bowen added.

"Now, to the main concern at hand, _and_ the new plan" Tyto stated as Claude read over the bundle of papers he held in one hand, "Gentlemen, lady" he glanced over at Miriam with a respectful nod, "I've finished totting up the numbers for our latest population boom, and altogether (including us), the Hidden Land's human population stands at over one thousand nine hundred and ninety six: and their three hundred and twenty eight god-titan's". " _One thousand nine hundred and ninety six?!_ " Falken exclaimed, "Oh my god..." West breathed in astonishment, " _I know_ " Miriam sighed in exasperation as she folded her arms, "And we got _a hell of a lot of work_ to do if we're to get in shape for the winter" Gustav grumbled, "Right now, our food stockpiles aren't even going to cover _a quarter_ of the new population: we don't have nearly enough clothing readily available to ensure at least _a third_ don't suffer from exposure, and while the hospital apothecary is stocked and able to meet the demand of the new numbers, nearly a quarter of the survivors from the retrieval op are lame, have limbs missing, are are incapable of hard labour due to their injuries, some of them can't even walk, and are likely to be bed-ridden for the rest of their lives". Derek then added, "I know we're not turning anyone out; but we've got a lot of work ahead of us if we're to accommodate everyone"

"To that end: we've approved the intuitive to collect the now-feral farm animals out in Maria, and keep them for food and other essentials" Ratatosk added, "That way, we and the clans on the mainland will still be able to hunt for _our_ food: and with a third of the five hundred survivors from the retrieval operation being farmers, we won't have to worry about figuring out how to become farmers ourselves" Bowen commented, "I talked to Deamond and Gregory about it, and both said they'll be happy to help out where they can". "Which brings us to the new plan: as of right now the Hunt is officially on hold, until we can gather _all_ the items on this list" Claude handed everyone the papers. "Another scavenger hunt? Big surprise there" Pascal sighed dryly. "Scavenger _hunts,_ " Clade corrected, "Between rounding up those animals and gathering the items listed, this is going to take more than a few trips, I can assure you".

"Claude, it's going to take at least _a month_ to gather everything on this list!" Evrard exclaimed, "We'd practically have to scavenge every town and village across the entire southern region of Maria to get everything we need!", "Granted, it's not going to be an easy task: But if everyone is to stand a chance of surviving, _we need to do this_. Lucile and Freya have already organized the sewers, seamstresses and spinners to get started on the first load of items, and Crystal is spinning her silk as we speak: but we need animals for food, hides and wool, chemicals and specialized formulas for medicines, machinery for weaving cloth, and everything else to make this community self-sustaining" Tyto stated, to which Claude added, "Either that, or we keep scavenging _three times a month,_ because _that's_ how many times we'll have to go out into Mariajust to keep on top of everything; and the titans will still be there. So it's it's ether a month of intensive scavenging and getting everything we need as soon as possible. Or we just throw caution to the wind, and risk incurring shortage's on a regular basis"

Everyone glanced at one another worryingly: they knew there was no other way around it, and knew it would only be a matter of time before problems would start to arise from a lack of supplies and resources. "... When do we start?" Evrard sighed, "After last night and today we're in no shape to go back out into Maria," Tyto stated as he stroked his long beard, "Our stockpiles as they are now will last us a good few weeks, so we're in no rush. I want everyone in the Hunt to take the next four days to rest up and get their gear in shape: we'll start the first scavenger hunt by the end of the week". "Do we have any idea where we'll start?" Falken asked offhand, "There's a few places we might get lucky: some of the more industrial towns near the river, and farming villages that lay between the forest and the plains. We've already exhausted Shiganshina and the surrounding farms near there, so we'll start just north of the central valley, on the west side of the river, and work our way up from there. Okay?"

* * *

Meanwhile, in the city of the Omnes Scientiam:

" **One month to gather all they need to accommodate the new arrivals: do you not think they are putting a heavy burden upon their shoulders?"** Quetzathena asked worryingly. **"Oh I've no doubt they can do it"** Jarus stated confidently, **"The Celts are anything but idle, and their friends certainly believe in taking the pragmatic approach. They'll get the task done"**

" **Of that I have no doubt..."** Aureia coolly replied as she gazed out over the city, from edge of the garden where the tree of knowledge grew. **"But still, the survivors recounts of their encounters with the wall cult have me deeply concerned"**

" **How far does the cult's influence reach, if they were able to organize this purge?"** Jarus nodded, **"I too have been pondering that. The purge itself I can understand. As cold and heartless as it may seem to many: if the remaining population within Rose and Sina were unable to sustain such numbers, then a cull of this nature was inevitable..."** he thought aloud, **"But it would seem the cult used it as a means to dispose of their enemies and 'undesirables': and the fact the military were compliant in allowing them to organize it has me concerned also"**

" **Are the military corrupt? And if so, how far and how deep does it go?"** Aureia suggested: though her cool fair poker face didn't show it, Jarus and Quetzathena could tell she was worried, **"...If there are no allies to be found in the military of this walled kingdom, then our endeavour will have increased ten-fold"** She turned to face them both, **"We need to ascertain who is beyond the cult's influence. We need to be sure our first choice of allies really are beyond their grasp"**

" **Is this your way of telling me you're approving Ariana's request to spy on the Scouting Legion?"** Jarus asked, to which Aureia smiled cunningly: **"...Maybe?"** she glanced back over the city, **"Tyto wishes to keep the idea for when the circumstances call for it...I have feeling those circumstances might come a lot sooner than he thinks..."**

* * *

One month later, June:

The cool summer winds whipped across the lush green pastures, bringing some relief to the relentless late afternoon heat: as the grasshoppers and crickets chirped and buzzed in the long grasses, buzzards, hawks and other birds of prey circled the clear blue skies, keeping an eye out for an easy meal. In the slow-running stream that cut through the sea of green, a heron stood motionless in the reeds as he watched the fish circle about: while nearby, feral cattle and sheep grazed around the abandoned farmhouse; lazily going about their day, unconcerned by the approaching column of visitors.

Many of the animals looked up from their grazing as Shadow kneeled down by the stream to scoop up some water in his cupped hands, and splash it over his face and the back of his neck: while Ariana flew down off his shoulder to drink up what she could, and wash away the heat from her face and neck too.

" **A little more cloud cover would be nice to cool down this heat"** he thought aloud, **"Sorry Javorin, you know that's not how it works"** Elysia smiled as she landed next to him: bowing down to let Carla, Ashlyn, Hawk and the Cooper twins off her back.

"Don't go hogging all the water now, save some for us okay?" Clay glanced up at Shadow as he and Hazel jumped down off of Boar's back, "HEY! We found the stream!" Hazel shouted behind them. "Coming!..." their father waved back. "This should be the place, right?" he called over to Tyto. Glancing down at the map for confirmation, Tyto nodded, "Yeah, this is it..." he turned to the column and called out, "Okay everyone this is the place! Go find yourselves a pitch and get the animals settled down: Shadow?"

"-On it dad!" Ariana called back as she splashed another handful of water over her face, "...Where're you gonna put the mark this time? There ain't any trees for miles around out here" she glanced up at Shadow, :Don't worry, the mark doesn't have to be on a tree to work. It just needs to be on a surface that allows it to stay in one piece: he spelt out with a smile, before reaching into the middle of the stream, and picking up a long smooth oval-shaped rock the size of a cart wheel, and carving the repelling charm into the underside: before filling it in with his blue crystal, and placing back where it had been under the water. :There, that'll do:. "Huh," Ariana blinked in surprise, "I always forget how easy that is: I don't know why I keep thinking there has to be more to it?"

"Magpie!" Tyto called out, "Coming dad!" she shouted back, "Well, time to get to work" she ran off to where everyone was setting up their tents.

" **Hey guys..."** Boar smiled as he approached the feral cows and sheep, **"How green's the grass this side of the river?".** _"Green, but not good my lord"_ one of the cow's replied in it's own secret tongue, _"The rains are late"_ one sheep replied, _"The grass grows thin"_ another added, _"And our young struggle to survive". "Life has been tough since the humans left"_ a young bullock declared. **"Well? In that case, would you like to come join us in** _ **our**_ **new home? It's a pretty sweet deal: lots of rich green pastures, humans to take care of you and your young in the winter, and you won't have to worry about wolves, foxes or bears troubling you. What'd you say?"**

Without uttering any reply, the animals all calmly followed the hunting god across the stream, and joined the huge herd of other animals that had been tailing the column. "...How's he able to talk to the animals like that?" one young Ranger thought aloud, "Dunno, it's just one of his particular powers, or so I'm told" his older brother shrugged offhand. "Uh, _all the_ god-titan's can talk to animals?" another Ranger deadpanned, "True, but Boar's the one who knows how to _really_ sweet-talk them" Clay grinned as he replenished his water bladder, "Am I right bud?". Boar simply replied with an affirmative grin and grunt; **"Damn right"** he thought aloud.

Within half the hour the tents were all set up and everyone was ready to call it a day. Standing atop Shadow's head, Ariana scanned the landscape to get her bearings and watch as the repelling charm dis it's job, warding off a few regular titans that were passing by over a kilometre from the camp. The edge of great forest lay some five miles away, jutting out like the point of a needle into what was wild open grassland and prairie for as far as the eye could see: with gently rolling hills and a few knolls here and there, there were only a handful of farms that bordered the wild expanse here, as well as a small industrial-looking town about a mile to south. "...What's that town over there?" she thought aloud. "That would be Grenvald!..." Lucius called up from Angel's back as he read his map, "Raven and his team are going over there to scout it out in a while,"

"Speaking of Scouting..." Tyto announced, "We need to sort out who's going where tomorrow". Hearing that, everyone gathered around the Grey Owl elder, as he lay the big map of the region on a large smooth bolder, and pointed to the spot where their camp was situated. "...We've done well thus far, and we've nearly completed the quota for our stockpiles: all we need is a few more lucky finds and we'll be done. However, our supplies for this trip will only last us a few more days, after which we'll need to head back to the stone circle up in the Alder-fall valley and go home. So to cover as much ground as possible, we'll split up into multiple teams and head out in different direction's" he pointed to various locations on the map, "Raven and his team will be using the remainder of the day to go check out Grenvald over there. Free-Wing's team will be scouting the village of Magden to the north, Black-Hawk's team will be heading for Gorsenn-town, and Red-Boar's team will be rounding up whatever animals they can find near Heron's hollow. I'll be leading my team northwards to Willowvale"

"What about this town here?" Carla pointed to a large looking town on the map, "It looks pretty big, is anyone covering that?" she asked offhand. "Let's see...Stinestadt..." he read aloud, before checking his list, "No, it doesn't look like anyone's scouting up there. Do you and your team want to give it a shot Dove?" he asked. "Well? It's big market town, and it has a rock quarry nearby, so there'll have been a lot of trade passing through back when it was occupied: it just seems a shame to not take a look at least" she explained. "A place that size is going to take at least five or six hours to comb through, not to mention it's a good four hour journey on foot" Evrard thought aloud as he gazed at the map, stroking his chin in thought: "Four hours on foot is hardly any time by wing" Ariana pointed out. "How about?" Lucy suggested, "We go fly there now, use the remainder of the day to comb through it, and if it looks promising we'll send Angel back with the good news"

"It's worth a shot" Bryson shrugged. "Okay then: Dove, you and your team gather your things and take Angel and Shadow with you; check it out and report back first thing in the morning" Tyto ordered. "Thank you Grey Owl" she smiled with a polite tip of the head, "Okay kids, go get your packs" she ordered her team, and they all rushed back to their tents to gather what they needed. "Stinestadt," Ariana thought aloud as she grabbed her pack and satchel, "Sounds like one of the industrial towns alright", "Which means we should find a good haul, right?" Gale smiled, "And we'll have the whole place to ourselves for the night!" Belle beamed, "Now now, let's not get carried away, we're looking for clothing, equipment, and tools: you'll have to work first" Carla teased. "Oh come on Carla: the town's abandoned and Shadow and Angel will be keeping the titans away; what could possibly go wrong?" Poppy shrugged.

After gathering their supplies and saying goodbye to everyone: Carla, Lucy and Lucius mounted Angel, while Ariana, Gale, Poppy and Belle sat in Shadow's cupped palms, and together they flew up into the sky. In his elemental form, Shadow fell into place behind Angel's left wing: riding her updraughts as she soared over the land, keeping the girls aloft as they caught a good tailwind and followed it north-east towards their destination. The journey to Stinestadt only took less than twenty minutes, but it was a scenic one as they passed over the green patchwork of farmland, grassland, prairie and forest: divided by dark green hedgerows, brownish dust roads, and greenish-blue rivers and streams that wound their way like snakes across the endless green of Maria. As the town came into view, the team were amazed by its size and scale: it was huge for a market town, with a good number of large buildings making up the centre, and many smaller industrial-looking buildings lining the perimeter; with many more houses lining the roads that fed into what was once a prosperous and thriving community.

As the two airborne god-titan's circled around, they saw a magnificent concentric castle situated at the north end of the town, sitting snugly atop a grassy hill-like island in the middle of a large lake, connected to the main road into town via a long stone bridge, with a drawbridge at the castle end. "Wow! Think we can camp there tonight?" Belle grinned enthusiastically, "I don't think anyone will mind!" Carla called over jokingly, before turning her attention to Angel, "Okay Angel, put us down in the town square" she ordered. With an affirmative chirp, Angel banked left and started descending down towards the middle of the town with Shadow close behind. Rematerializing, he landed in the town square with a soft sharp thud, keeping the girls softly cupped in his hands, while Angel glided down, and landed next to the huge three-tiered fountain. "Wow..." Ariana smiled as she gazed around at all the ornate black and white timber-frame buildings, "This was definitely a plush place before the titans took over".

"Okay, we've got about seven hours of daylight left so let's make the most of it: this is a big town with tall buildings and lots of streets criss-crossing one another, so any smaller titans could easily be hiding here somewhere; for that reason, we're all staying with Angel and Shadow" Carla ordered as she glanced up at said god-titans, "Sound good?" she asked, to which they both nodded. "Good: Shadow, you'll take Magpie, Yellow warbler, Flame-coloured tanager and Mountain Bluebird north and scout out the businesses around there, Me, Angel, Snow bunting and Snow finch will head to the south end of town; we'll meet up at the castle an hour before sunset. Understood?" she told the kids, who all voiced their acknowledgement. "See you guys later" Poppy waved goodbye as Shadow turned and started heading up the road.

* * *

Later:

The next several hours soon flew by as both teams scoured the town looking for the items on their lists. Fortunately there were no titans around, and with the towns various workshops and businesses having been abandoned in a hurry, there were plenty of easy pickings to be had. The smaller, easy-to-carry items wouldn't be a problem to collect and pack up, but larger items such a machinery, would prove to be a bit more of a logistical challenge...

"Okay," Gale smiled excitedly as she rechecked her list, "Between the tools and other items upstairs, I think this place has just about all we need: the weaving looms are the last thing on the list!". "That's all well and good, but how're we gonna get the looms out the front door?" Poppy pointed to said mechanism near the doorway. The building they were in was one small-scale textile factory and workshop that had specialized in weaving various fabrics, mostly cotton and linen: and had three floors lined end to end with large foot-treadle operated weaving looms; perfect for making cloth as it would be faster than weaving entirely by hand, the only problem was figuring out how to move them. "Just have Shadow demolish the wall and pick them out one by one" Belle shrugged, "And risk causing the whole building to come down?! No way! There has to be a safer option than that!" Gale sternly stated, placing her hands on her hips. "Look girls, we can figure this out in the morning: but right now we need to head on up to the castle" Ariana pointed to said castle through the window: "Huh, is it nearly sunset already?" Poppy glanced out the window; outside the sun was nearly kissing the horizon, as it lit everything up in a pinkish-orange glow, while the now deep azure sky radiated with pink, orange, golden and deep lilac clouds streaking across the sky.

"-Race ya!" Belle yelled as she threw open the window and dived out head-first, "-Wait up Bluebird!" Gale shouted after her as she, Poppy and Ariana gave chase. Rolling his eyes with an exasperated sigh, Shadow jogged after them, keeping a steady pace as girls weren't flying particularly fast on their ODM gear. "Sooo? I take it you guys didn't hear the news before we left?" Belle grinned teasingly, "News about what?" Ariana called over to her as they all rounded a corner, "Mabel's pregnant!" the zealous brunette beamed as she pulled a forward flip, " _Pregnant?!_ " Poppy squeaked, "How'd _that_ happen?" Ariana raised an eyebrow. "Well?" Belle winced in awkwardness, "When a guy and girl love each other very much, they can sometimes-, "NOT _THAT_ KINDA HAPPENED!" Gale retorted, "Seriously Bluebird we all know how _that_ works!" Ariana shot back, to which Shadow couldn't help but laugh out loud. "I mean-, how long had they been planning it?" she specified. "I don't think they planned it? It just kinda happened, or at least that's what aunt Lucile told me" Belle shrugged, "Granny's happy as hell that there'll be a new baby in the family to spoil rotten, and Derek's looking forward to unclehood". "What about Bren? How'd he take it?" Gale asked offhand, "Uh, kinda 'rough' at first? ...Okay he fainted, and then needed a few glasses of Freya's extra-hard brandy wine; you know, the stuff that makes you see four of everything? He took it a bit better after that. Well? Actually he was real happy, Aunt Miriam said he just didn't know how t handle it" Belle offered a sheepish smile, "Hmm, sounds about right" Ariana shrugged casually. "Seriously?" Gale blinked in surprise, "Well yeah, remember when we first introduced him and everyone else to Shadow Midnight Boar and Angel? He fainted when we got back to Pascal and West's old place". "Oh yeah! Right after Bryson passed out!" Poppy suddenly realized, "Wow, it feels like forever ago since that day". "...Yeah..." Ariana sighed offhand, as a nostalgic smile tugged at her lips.

Soon enough, they ran out of buildings to use their ODM gear on, and came to the bridge that spanned the lake. Perching on Shadow's shoulders, the girls indulged each other's silliness further: "I say good sir, would you be so kind as to accompany us to dinner at the castle tonight?" Belle giggled as she pretended to seat herself like a lady in an evening gown, :Why it would be my pleasure, my lady: Shadow spelt out as he strode across the bridge. "HEY YOU GUYS!" Lucy shouted out as Angel flew right over Shadow's head, and perched up on the drawbridge tower.

The castle was far more spacious that it appeared from above, albeit it was no longer used to ward off attacking armies: comprised of a wide inner ward with a courtyard that had once served as a decorative ornamental garden (now overgrown and badly in need of maintenance), and an outer ward with a curtain wall over twelve meters high. The whole castle sat some ten meters or so above the lake, giving an excellent view of the surrounding grasslands and prairie from every side of the concentric battlements, and especially from atop the roof. As the girls peered in through the windows, they could see the inside was just as fancy as it had been when it's former owners were in residence: only now, the red drapes and tapestries that faced the windows were faded, cobwebs covered every corner of the ceiling and furniture, and a thin layer of dust had settled on every surface. Despite being in need of a good spruce-up, it wasn't hard to imagine how refined and grand it had once been. "Huh, looks like they were worried about looters getting in" Ariana thought aloud as she turned the big locked handle on the huge oak door at the front of the keep. "Looter titans? That's a new one" Belle smirked.

"Technically, _we are_ looters" Carla frowned as she inspected the door, "And despite the needs of our new neighbours, it's nothing to be proud of". Kneeling down, Shadow tapped his digit on the handle, and a small blue spark flew from the tip of his finger into the wood: a loud thunk sounded on the other side, and the door swung open. "Thanks big guy" Ariana smiled up at him, "You guys go find yourselves somewhere comfy to sleep: we'll throw you some pillows from the windows" she joked. "Or use Angel as a pillow," Belle chuckled, to which Angel shot her a look, "-Ah come on Angel I'm just kidding!" she waved off playfully, "Still, your feathers _are_ so soft an' fluffy..." she smirked as she followed the others into the castle.

"So this is how the other half lives huh?..." Gale thought aloud as she and the others gazed up at the interior. lined with finely detailed tapestries, drapes baring the family coat of arms, paintings of various noblemen and their family members, and an assorted collection of weapons neatly displayed on the walls, plus ornately carved furniture and suits of armour flanking the doorways: it was certainly the kind of style one could expect from a typical nobleman. Grant and plush to the point of tackiness, and dripping with that old fashioned 'gaze upon the fruits of my wealth' gaudiness that only the snobbish nobles knew how to pull off. "...Kinda looks a little, over the top?" Ariana winced offhand. "Guess the folks who lived here liked to live it up a little?" Belle shrugged.

"Well? I'm going to go find the kitchen and get some hot water going for the tea: you kids don't go wandering too far now, and mind you don't break anything" Carla said as she walked off down the hall. "I'm gonna go check out the upstairs: by the way I call dibs on the master bedroom!-" Poppy grinned as she ran up the grand staircase, "Wait up!" the twins called after her as they gave chase. "Whatever, I'm gonna go check out the view from the roof," Belle smiled as she took off up the stairs, "I'll be checking out the ground floor rooms if anyone wants me" Gale waved as she turned to go down one of the corridors, leaving Ariana alone in the hallway: "I guess I'm exploring alone then..." she shrugged, before a loud rumble from her stomach convinced her to think otherwise, "...I wonder if there's anything good stashed away in the pantry?"

Outside the courtyard, in the outer ward below, Javorin and Elysia were trying to get comfy as the sky grew darker and a fat golden moon steadily skimmed over the horizon, while the sun slowly disappeared behind the western horizon. As she ruffled her feathers, trying to keep out the cold night air, Elysia couldn't help but smile, **"...I don't know about you, but I'm looking forward to when we can finally go home"**

" **Me too"** Javorin sighed as he turned on his side: glancing up, he noticed she had a distant look in her eyes, **"...What's up?"** he asked. Elysia sighed ruefully as she watched Carla through the kitchen window, **"...The day before we left for this last hunt, I watched one of the survivors sitting outside the Willum's inn; she was just a kid, probably no older than Lawrence is now; her parents had been eaten by a titan, and Bowen's family had agreed to take her in... Anyway, she came to return the food they'd handed her the day before, and when Miriam asked her why, she ask why were they being so nice to her?"** she gazed out over the prairie, **"...She told them no one had been nice to her and her family. That one day, some men dressed in uniforms and black robes showed up at their farm and told them to leave: they took them to Trost, and made them go out into Maria with the others..."** although she didn't cry, a pained angry look filled her ice blue eyes, **"...How the hell, could those MP's and pastors look that little girl in the eye, and throw them to the titans? ...How do humans like** _ **that**_ **sleep at night?"**. Elysia took a deep calming breath, as she added, **"...They're scared of us you know? The survivors I mean: Tyto and the other Celts and Rangers have assured them loads of times that we mean them no harm, but still-..."**

Javorin passed a deep heavy sigh as he replied, **"...It's going to take time for them to adjust: the trauma they've been through? it doesn't stop just because they're in a safe place. Their survival instincts have been engaged non-stop, and it's not going to be enough simply telling them everything will be okay. They'll have to learn it for themselves"**

" **And what about asking the farmers to look after all the animals we've rounded up? Doesn't it seem a little too inconsiderate? Asking them to suddenly get stuck in and rear them for us? When they've barely had enough time to settle in?"** Elysia frowned, **"It's a bit fast-paced I know, but we don't have much of a choice: the meat, hides and other parts those animals will provide will be as much for their survival as it will the rest of the humans. Winter in the mountains is never forgiving, and we have to be sure they have those commodities in place for when Gia starts to test them,"** Javorin replied, **"...Look, I know it's not the optimal circumstances for them right now: but then? When will** _ **any**_ **time be optimal?"** he asked: Elysia regarded him with a weird look as he explained, **"No one can predict the outcome (and suffice to say, this outcome of surviving the titans and making it to the Hidden Land is about as unpredictable as it gets). All you can do is be thankful for the opportunity to live the life you have, whatever that may entail, and try to make the best of it. Whether they'll be able to do that? It's up to them; all we can do is give them the opportunity... After all, we had to do the same when we awakened from our tombs"**

Thinking about it, Elysia passed a deep sigh as she gazed up at the evening star: she was suddenly stirred from her thoughts as she spotted Belle climbing out onto the roof via a small window under the eaves, **"Oh All-father, what's she up to now?"** she huffed, **"Taking in the view by the looks of it"** Javorin smiled as he watched her get out her telescope.

Back inside the castle, Poppy, Lucy and Lucius's laughter echoed down the grand staircase as they indulged in a game of tag through the corridors, while down in the huge kitchen, Carla was reading through a cookbook whilst waiting for the black pot on the stove to boil. "Holy crap..." Ariana stared around the room in wide-eyed amazement, "They must've put on _massive_ banquets with a kitchen this size!", "I know, and check out some of the recipes in this book," Carla smiled as she held up the book to show her a picture of a roast chicken dressed up in glazed fruits on a bed of roast vegetables, "Something like that would take at least _three hours_ to put together: I hope they paid the cooks well enough to go to all that trouble". "Yeah..." Ariana nodded as she looked around. Spotting a door at the far side of the room, she decided to go and take a look to see if it was the pantry, "Hey, let's hoping they got some good stuff to eat in here" she smiled as she opened the door, only to find a long stone staircase ascending down into a dark gloomy room filled with huge barrels and crates of wine bottles. "Wha-, no food?" she gawked. Coming over to have a look, Carla smiled, "Huh, a wine cellar". "Wine cellar? You mean like the one Miriam had in the basement under the Black Stallion?" Ariana realized, "Yep: the rich and nobles usually have their own wine cellars to house their own privet stashes: that's why you never used to see them going into Inns and taverns" Carla told her. "Huh, is that so," Ariana wondered aloud as she picked up one of the lit candles off the counter-top and descended the stairs.

As she reached the bottom, Ariana gazed around at all the various beers, ales, meads, wines and other spirits stored up along the racks. But as she held the candle up to get a better look, she noticed something through the gloom that stood out from the barrels and bottles. Approaching closer for a better look, she saw dozens of large crates, rectangle chests and large sacks lined up along the back wall: all with the Scout's wings of freedom crest stamped or branded on them. "...What the hell? ..." Ariana frowned in confusion.

Opening one of the chests, she saw huge a couple of spools of cables: the same kind that are used in ODM gear. Opening another box, the smell of yeast hit her nose as she saw dozens of loaves of bread all neatly piled up inside. Another box revealed ODM gear cable housing reels and other essential items, including the grease used to lubricate the device (that too had a distinctive scent): another chest revealed riding tack and some saddles; the scent of horse still intact on them, and a large chest contained several rolled up sleeping bags. The whole back end of the cellar was filled with these boxes, all neatly stacked up and facing forward so the Scout's crest was visible.

For a moment Ariana didn't know what this was: why would the Scouts put all this stuff down here? And then it suddenly clicked; "-SHIT!" she yelled in a panic, quickly slamming all the lids shut and dashing back up the stairs. "Magpie?! What's wrong? What happened!" Carla worried as she rushed to her, "It's a supply depot!-" Ariana suddenly blurted out, before calming down enough to explain, "-This castle is one of the Scout's supply depots! There's a whole load of stuff down there with the wings of freedom crest stamped on!". Blinking in surprise, Carla took the candle from her and rushed down into the cellar, finding the boxes in question, and gasped at the sight of the crest, "Did you take anything out of these?!" she called up, "No!" Ariana yelled back, "Good! Then put the fire out in the stove and get your things! We're leaving!" Carla ordered sternly as she rushed back up into the kitchen.

* * *

Up on the roof, Belle was enjoying the view as the last of the day's light faded away, and the moon lit up the sky as it steadily arched upwards, turning from gold to silver. Looking through her telescope, she smiled as she watched a family of foxes playing along the shores of the lake, before an owl flying by made her glance up in surprise. She was about to put her eye back to the scope, when suddenly, a loud bang echoed across the prairie, making her jump: it sounded quite a few miles away, and as she scanned the grasslands to see where it had come from, she spotted a plume of green smoke hanging in the air about three or so miles away...

" **Did you hear that?"** Elysia blinked in surprise as she looked all around, **"Yeah, that almost sounded like a flair going off"** Javorin replied offhand as he rubbed his heavy eyelids, sitting upright to see what was going on.

Gasping in alarm, Belle held up her telescope to look, and as she zeroed in on the base of the smoke plume, she could see movement: between thin clouds of dust, the Scouts were moving at full gallop, heading straight for the castle; "OH SHIT!-" she panicked, nearly dropping her telescope. "-SHADOW! ANGEL! WAKE UP!" she shouted at the top of her lungs as she ran down the steeply pitched roof and took a huge leap off the eaves. Spotting her just in time, Javorin nearly panicked as he shot up and caught her in his hands: he was about to give her a stern chewing out for pulling off such a reckless move, when the pulsing panic in her aura told him to hold off and listen. "-The Scouts are heading this way! We need to disappear an' get outta here right now!" Belle nearly yelled up at him.

* * *

"Guys?! What's with all the shouting?! What's wrong?!" Gale nearly panicked as she rushed towards the kitchen, as did Poppy and the twins as they came barrelling down the stairs. "This castle's one of the Scout's supply depots! We're leaving right now!" Carla ordered as she slung her satchel over her shoulder. "What?!" the twins exclaimed, "A supply depot?!" Poppy gawked "But-, do we really need to leave _now?_ I mean it's not like they're here and caught us red-handed" Gale reasoned. "They soon will be in a few short minutes!-" Belle shouted as she can running down the hall, followed by Shadow and Angel in their bird forms, "I just spotted them up on the roof! They're heading straight for here! There's no way we'll be able to get back to the town in time!". "What're we gonna do?!" Poppy panicked, "Okay everyone calm down!" Carla ordered. "Belle, close the front door and lock it: then get upstairs and come find us in the master bedroom! Quickly!"

Belle did as she was told, and ran back to lock the front door while the others ran up the giant staircase: "I trust you three found the master bedroom during your antics?!" Carla glanced over at Poppy and the twins, "Yeah, it's this way down the hall!" Poppy ran ahead, running to the very end of the corridor where a huge door led into a spacious bedroom with a giant four-poster bed. "Guys?!" Belle shouted from the top of the stairs, "DOWN HERE!" Gale shouted back as Shadow and Angel flew into the room and perched atop a huge oak wardrobe. Glancing out the window, the girls gasped as they saw the Scouts gallop across the bridge. "They're here!" Poppy squeaked in fear. "Okay, now's not the time to panic-" Carla ordered as she pulled out a blue crystal stone from beneath her blouse, "Does everyone have their concealment stones?". "... Holy shit, I nearly forgot about them!" Gale sighed with relief as she pulled her's out from beneath her shirt, as did the others.

The concealment stone was one of Shadow's more cleverer ideas: a handy magical means to let someone turn invisible and hide from both titan and humans alike. Made from his blue crystal, the concealment spell carved into the indestructible stone allowed anyone to use it by simply blowing on it: the only catch however, was that the user had to remain in physical contact with the crystal for however long they needed to remain invisible. It had a been a real hit and miss, testing different ways of keeping the stone in contact with one's skin, while also using the hands: jewellery proved to be impractical as bracelets and pendants could easily get snagged, and rings were too fiddly to remove in a hurry (and some could risk getting stuck on the finger altogether). Placing them on the sides of the ODM gear's handgrips didn't work either, as the users had to keep their hands on the grips while a titan was nearby: which was okay for engaging the titans, but less so when trying to keep track of one another. Finally, Dale discovered keeping the stone in the mouth proved to be the best method, as it could be slipped in quickly after blowing on it, and spat out quickly to turn visible again. So Shadow made the stones small (around half the size of a walnut), and curved with one side flatter than the other so it could rest comfortably between the tongue and roof of the mouth. Holding their stones: everyone blew sharply onto them, slipped them into their mouths, and vanished from sight.

To anyone who would have been standing in the room, the girls were totally gone from sight: but to those holding the stones, they could easily see one another; their bodies all appeared semi-transparent with a slight blue aura around their outline. "Okay, now what do we do?" Ariana asked, "...We'll wait for an opportunity: for now, just stay quiet..." Carla ordered as they all stood at the window, watching as the Scouts filed into the courtyard, and began dismounting...

* * *

Meanwhile, outside:

"Damn fucking titans!-" Oruo grumbled as he jumped off his horse and straightened his cravat, " _I swear_ , those oversized bastards get faster every time!"

"Will you quit it already? You're gonna embarrass yourself in front of the commander!" Petra shot him a dry look as she dismounted her light bay mare, and gave her a scratch up on the withers.

"Well it's not like _he_ doesn't feel the same way: we lost six good men getting this far today!" Oruo stated matter-of-factly, puffing out his chest in a show of superiority, "Fortunately for us the good captain had our backs the whole time, just as planned" he smiled boastfully, "Oh _sweet Rose!_ " Petra rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Well? It certainly seems like they're able to keep pace these days" Gunther commented offhand as he dismounted his dark bay stallion.

"Look alive you two, the commander's here:" Eld motioned over to the tall blond man atop the pale dappled grey, as he trotted into the courtyard and swiftly dismounted: followed by a much shorter man with a black undercut on a large black mare. "... Levi, did you happen catch sight of where Mike and Nanaba's team went?" he turned to the smaller man with a stony gaze, "They led the titans round the other side that hill near the river, just as we rounded for the castle" Levi replied in a cold tone, his colder steel-like eyes giving nothing away. "-Commander!" one scouts shouted as he rode into the courtyard, "We just sighted squad leader Zacharias approaching the castle, his team made it sir!" he smiled with relief, "And what of section commander Zoe?" the commander ordered; the scout hesitated a moment, before Levi let out a sharp "Tch!-, where do you think?"

"WOOOOHOOOO!-" a long loud happy shriek echoed through the drawbridge tower as a manic-looking woman with long messy dark brown hair and goggles rode into the courtyard at full gallop: the only scout behaving like a total maniac as she rode up to the commander. "You should've seen that twelve meter class Erwin! He was the very picture of magnificence!" she giddily exclaimed as she jumped out of her saddle and bounced up to him like an over-excited puppy, "And by Sina you should've seen _the teeth_ on that big boy! Best bicuspids found thus far! UHG!- I just wish I could've gotten a look inside that glorious throat of his! And I'd have had a chance too if _Mike_ hadn't thrown me back on my horse!" she glared over at Mike as he rode over to the commander's side and dismounted. "I trust the diversion went okay?" Erwin asked, totally ignoring the mad woman's ramblings, "Nothing we couldn't handle" Mike stated coolly with a respectful dip of the head. "Good..." the commander turned to head for the front door, "Hange, have your teams ready the supplies and get the rations out from the wine cellar: Mike, gather the items your maintenance team needs and have that wagon seen to," he pointed to said supply wagon, which was sagging on its rear suspension, "The rest of you see to your horses then come inside to eat; we've got a lot of ground to cover to make up for today!" he boomed, to which every scout bar the section commanders saluted "-SIR!"

* * *

"Did he just say they're going into the wine cellar?!" Ariana panicked as she face-palmed hard, "- _Oh hell!_ ". "-Hey, clam down Ariana" Carla assured her with a hand on her shoulder, "You didn't take anything, the boxes weren't locked to begin with and you shut all the lids: they won't know we were here, okay?", "Yeah, your right," Ariana sighed, trying t keep calm, "No one'll know we were down there" she told herself, trying to keep her head level. "Uh-, guys?" Gale pointed to the door as it creaked open, Carla was about to step forward to close it, when the sound of the front door opening made her freeze, for fear of making the floorboards creak. Ariana was about to try and careful tip-toe over to shut it, when the voices of the Scouts drifted up the stairs and down the corridor to the bedroom.

"WAIT!-" one older male voice sternly shouted.

Everyone froze, and held their breaths as they strained their ears to listen...

* * *

"...What is it Mike?" Hange blinked in surprise, snapping out of her over-excitedness as the tall blond man strode into the hall, and sniffed deep the air. Sensing something was up, Erwin and Levi both frowned as they came up alongside him. "If you're about to say a titan broke into the place-" "-Someone's been in here..." Mike interrupted Levi. Everyone stared at him in shock, "Someone?" Eld frowned in alarm, "As in-, _survivors?!_ " Petra gasped, " _All the way out here?!_ " Oruo gawked. "What can you smell?" Erwin pressed him, "...A woman," Mike replied as he walked further into the hall, sniffing the air like a dog, "... A woman: five younger girls and a boy, and-..." then, a certain scent made him stop in his tracks, "Covered in titan scent?"

"-SURVIVOURS WHO'VE HAD A CLOSE ENCOUNTER WITH TITANS?!" Hange nearly blew through the ceiling: "-Hange," the commander shot her a look, instantly shutting her up, before turning back to Mike, "How long ago were they here?". "Probably less than an hour ago, or..." Mike sniffed some more, before suddenly realizing, "...They might still be here"

* * *

Carla and the kids all gawked at one another: " _How the hell?!-_ " Ariana mouthed as she tried to keep quiet, "How'd they know we're here?!" Poppy mouthed in equal alarm, "Never mind that! How do _we_ get outta here?!" Belle frowned. Shadow flew down onto the bed, and with one wing stretched out, spelt out: "First, remain calm: we

"Hello?" a female voice nervously called up the stairs, "If anyone's up here, there's no need to be afraid: we're the Scouts, we're here to help you"

"We need to get down to the front door!" Ariana mouthed. :Okay, open the window and let us out, we'll be waiting for you outside: Shadow quickly spelt out. Leaning over to the window, Gale undid the latch: but as she pushed it open, the rusted hinges squeaked loudly, echoing down the corridor and making everyone wince, "I'm sorry!" Gale mouthed in a panic.

"What was that?" another male voice said, "Dunno, but I heard it come in here..." another female voice replied, followed by the sound of boots striding down the corridor towards the bedroom; "SHIT!" Belle hissed in a panic. Gale slammed the window on impulse and everyone quickly tip-toed across the room to the wall by the door, followed by Shadow and Angel as they turned themselves invisible and flew up onto Ariana and Carla's shoulders: right as two young Scouts entered the room and looked around with candles in hand. "That sounded like a window being slammed shut" the young man frowned in confusion as he strode over to the window, and inspected the latch, "But-, it can't have been, and besides: who could crawl out of a window _that_ small?" the young woman suggested. "Okay, let's go check the other rooms" the young man shook his head as he followed his partner out the door.

Deciding to take advantage of the sound of the soldiers boots stomping along the wooden floor, Carla motioned for the kids to follow, and in a tight line they followed her out. There were several scouts on the same floor, a few in each room, and as they opened wardrobes, checked under the beds and anywhere else that could hide a person, the invisible team tip-toed back to the grand staircase, being careful to check all around and behind them so as not to bump into anyone. After missing a couple of scouts coming out of one room, they snuck down the stairs, staying to one side as another few soldiers went up to the second floor.

Through the hallway they treaded quietly, narrowly avoiding more scouts briskly walking by, but as they approached the entrance, they saw there were five young soldiers all cluttering the doorway, leaving no room for them to squeeze by. "Great, what now?!"Belle whispered as softly as she could, "There's a huge drawing room through there, the windows are big enough we could climb out" Gale pointed to a large door off to the right side of the entrance. "Okay, let's go" Carla motioned for them to follow, and they quickly ducked in through the open door: Lucius then turned to close it every so gently and slowly, so as to make it look as if the door was tilted on its hinges and simply being shut via gravity. Fortunately, the scouts didn't notice.

The drawing room was huge with big latched windows, a couple of tall bookcases lining the walls by another door, a writing desk in one corner, and a large oval ornate table in the middle. Reaching for the latch, Carla undid it, but stopped as the sound of voices approached the other door, "-Shit!" she hissed, and everyone quickly fanned out around the room: pressing themselves right up into the corners while Shadow and Angel flew up onto the top of the bookcases, just as two gentleman and rather crazy-looking lady strode into the room; the same ones they'd spotted in the courtyard from the bedroom window.

"-To think! People who've encountered the titans and _survived!_ " the woman exclaimed ecstatically, "I mean-, _what're the chances?!_ If they have a successful strategy we don't know about, we need to find them and find out what it is!"

"Which is why we'll search for them before leaving for Trost: even if we don't find them tonight, we'll be sure to swing by this way on the return journey" the tall blond stern-looking man regarded her with his poker face, "Hange, have your teams on standby: we don't know what kind of shape they'll be in, so be prepared for anything", "Not to worry Erwin! I'll personally see to them myself!" she beamed. "Seriously though..." The shorter black-hair man spoke up in a cold voice, ' _Holy shit that guy's a grown man?!_ ' Ariana thought as she gawked, 'He could pass for a kid at _that_ height!'; glancing over at the others, they must have been thinking the same thing, as they too stared at the man in surprise. "A woman and her six brats surviving out here all this time with no horses and no ODM gear? In _the middle of fucking titan country?_ Something's off" he stated.

"Ahahahaha," Hange wagged her eyebrows slyly as she stepped over to him, "You figured they have some kind of 'special' strategy too, huh Levi?"

"No shitty-glasses," he shot her a cold reprimanding glair, to which she totally ignored, "I'm _saying_ something's not right with this picture: a family ripe for the picking, grabbed and then let go? I don't buy it: what can possibly force a titan to do that?". Erwin was about to reply, when another taller blonde gentleman with thick bangs and a thin dark moustache and a beard strode in, sniffing the air as he walked around the room, followed by four other soldiers as they stood in the doorway.

Carla and her team were now feeling _very_ trapped: _they knew_ he knew something was up, one wrong move and they were in trouble; and from where they watched atop their perches on the bookcases, Javorin was already thinking up several different spells to allow them some way out if the shit hit the fan, while Elysia simply tried to keep her cool, and kept her eyes on her Carla, as the taller soldier with the nose narrowly stepped right by her. ..

"...They hid in here for a while, and left through that window by the scent of it" he stated coolly, motioning to said window, which had it's latch undone. "But why leave through the window when the door can easily be unlocked from the inside?" the young red-headed girl asked as she stood in the doorway with the other three male soldiers. "... Because the door was not their main way into the castle" Erwin realized without even battering an eyelid, as he stepped over to the window and studied the latch, "They must've been here before: probably some time right after Maria was evacuated and everyone left in a hurry; there'd have been no time to lock up the place back then...They must've left the latch off so they had a readily available hiding place from the titans, and the few times we came here we must've missed it: they'd have seen us coming and going and knew we brought food and supplies"

"-Except," the taller gentleman interrupted, " There was a kettle on the stove wth the fire only just put out. And I could smell one of the girls had been down in the cellar, she'd touched the boxes and probably opened them but didn't take anything". "So they're looters!" one of the soldiers exclaimed: a slightly older gentleman with curly light brown hair styled in an undercut, "-They wait for us to leave and then sneak in and help themselves to _our_ supplies! What a bunch of thieving rats!". "Seriously? If she's a mother with young mouths to feed she's hardly going to pass up the chance for an easy meal!" the red-head retorted. "Its understandable, given their circumstances, but our crest on the boxes make it clear those supplies are military property: would she really think we wouldn't notice?" another of the soldiers threw in: a younger gentleman with a crop of dark brown hair slicked back to a point on the back of his head. "If their desperate enough then they're hardly going to care," the forth soldier at the door threw in, he had his long blond hair tied up in a bun.

"So we almost caught them red-handed," Levi surmised, "The brat was about to help herself to a free meal, when suddenly we show up and they're forced to hide somewhere in the castle. There's no way they could've gotten outside and back to the town without having passed us on the bridge"

"If they'd taken anything to begin with that might be the case," the taller soldier with the keen nose interjected, "As soon as I smelt that kid's scent near the ration boxes, I had Nanaba pull out the inventory for our last few visits here, and everything is accounted for. Nothing was stolen now _or_ previously" he stated, to which everyone bar Erwin glanced at one another in bemusement: he simply remained gazing out of the window, seemingly unfazed by this fact. "...But-, if they didn't break into the castle for food or equipment, why did they come in the first place?" the red-head thought aloud.

"And if they wanted help getting away from the titans, why didn't they just stick around and wait for us to show up again?" the dark brunette male suggested.

"You're _all_ missing the most important question here," Hange began to grin madly, grabbing everyone bar Erwin's attention: "... _Why_ did they choose to stay in Maria in the first place? _Think about it_ , Levi's right: someone without a horse or ODM gear wouldn't last a few hours out here, and yet, this mother has kept herself _and_ her six children alive for over a year; not an easy feat with so many giant hungry mouths all over the place. Even if they figured out titans are inactive at night, travelling in the dark is still an iffy challenge, given that not all titans sleep the same hours. Crossing the plains would be particularly dangerous: with not much cover about, being caught out in the open at dawn would be a death sentence. You'd think their first thought right after the breach would be to get to Trost and try to get the Garrison's attention, to pull them up over the wall to safety; and yet..." her smile grew wider, "We saw _no horses_ as we came in, over twenty titans on the way here: and yet, _this family are still alive somehow_ , and if they haven't been living here in this castle, then what've they been doing out here all this time?... Oooh this is _way too fascinating!_ " she cackled.

Carla and the kids all stared at her in a mix of confusion and complete bewilderment: they didn't know _what_ to make of her, she was either a complete fruitcake that _somehow_ passed basic training and, for reasons completely beyond anyone's understanding, _somehow_ was allowed to join the Scouting legion. Simply _watching her_ made the mind reel; but the team didn't much care for the rest of the Scouts here either. This unusually short man, this 'Levi' who looked like he was suffering bad constipation with a massive chip on his shoulder to boot, he had _bad news_ written all over him: those cold steely eyes of his made a sharp chill go down Ariana's spine, though he was a human, he had a wolf's look about him; something to be wary of and keep a safe distance from. But the one that had everyone on edge was the soldier with the nose: Ariana figured he _must_ have some Celtic blood in him somewhere: there's _no way in hell_ someone of 'regular' decent could have a nose like _that_ without having a Celt in the family.

"A fascinating mystery..." Erwin replied as he stroked his chin, turning to face Hange: the crazy dark brunette paused a moment, as did everyone that gazed over at him, "But the one question that sticks out to me, is how did they know we were coming? I don't recall seeing anyone up on the roof or battlements as we rode past the lake; at least, not at a close enough distance where a human would be easy to spot, _especially_ from the roof. Which would be _the only_ logical place to spot anyone approaching from miles away. But this castle has four floors: there's no way anyone could've climbed down from the roof, back in through the attic window, rush down all four flights of stairs to the cellar to warn their friend, and then go find somewhere to hide. The only way to reach the ground floor quickly would be to jump off the roof: and since we didn't spot any corpses lying on the ground as we came into the courtyard-

"-So they _DID_ have ODM gear?!" Hange burst out in a happy fit, "It _could_ be possible," the human hunting hound suddenly realized, "With the scent of all our ODM in this place, I could've missed that".

" _Unbelievable!-_ " the obnoxious male soldier exclaimed, "They pilfered the corpses of our fallen comrades for their gear?! What kind of sick twisted grave-robbing family are we dealing with here?!". Carla glared daggers at the man: if they weren't trying to stay hidden from him and the others, she'd have socked him right in the teeth for that remark 'Grave-robbing? _Do you mind_ ' she thought in ire. "-The kind who knows how to survive the titans like a bunch of bad-asses!" Hange cackled, "Erwin! We've _got_ to find them and have them join the Scouts! If they know how to use ODM gear we might have a valuable soldier to add to the ranks! Not to mention six fresh recruits ripe for training!"

"Not a bad idea," Erwin nodded, "Hang on a sec-" the soldier with the blond bun suddenly realized, "Mike, you said they could've been here less than an hour ago: what if they're already outside hiding somewhere in the castle grounds, and are waiting for us to go to sleep so they can sneak away? If this family knows how to stay hidden from the titans then it's highly unlikely we'll be able find them now"

"Hmm, a good point," Erwin agreed, "Levi, take your squad and post up in the drawbridge tower: if they're on ODM gear then your the one to stand a better chance of catching them. Hange, have a couple of your teams ready to move if they put any resistance, and Mike, have some of your teams ready one of the wagons, we'll have to keep them stowed somewhere for the remainder of the expedition. We'll search the castle for our 'visitors' tonight, try and flush them out if they're still here, and if we don't find them this time then we leave at first light; with any luck, we should reach Grenvald just before noon. Proving the titans don't give us too much trouble"

"What do we do if they don't want to join us?" the red-head asked worryingly. "Like they got a choice? The commander's 'power's of persuasion' can be hard to wriggle out of," Levi stated as he folded his arms. "I'll talk to them: at the very least I'll make sure they have somewhere to stay in the interior. Even if they are born survivors, this is no place for a mother to raise her children" Erwin stated.

"That's certainly true" the dark brunette male sighed.

"...Go get something to eat first, and then get to work: we'll carry on as normal, but be discreet about slipping outside; they could be watching from anywhere, so stay alert" Erwin ordered: as the others all turned to leave, Levi was the only one who remained in the room; shutting the door behind Hange as she left, he turned to the commander and asked frankly: "...So what're you _really_ thinking?" "...I'm thinking there's something that doesn't add up here..." Erwin frowned as he turned to gaze out the window, "...I'd rather not say, for now: I'd rather have some facts in place, rather then get lost in theories and ideas". "Fine," Levi sighed as he turned to leave, "Just don't spend too long waiting for something to pop up".

The commander gazed back at the latch, and without another word, turned to leave through the door by the entrance, very nearly tripping over Gale's foot. After he closed the door behind him, everyone breathed a quiet sigh of relief, being careful to keep their concealment stones in their mouths. " _Holy shit_ that was _way_ too close _!_ " Belle whispered in a panic, "They're heading for Grenvald?! _Tomorrow?!_ " Poppy realized, "We gotta warn dad!" Ariana glanced up at Angel, "-You gotta fly back tonight and tell them to leave! Even if it's four hours away on the ground they still need time to pack up and put some distance behind them!", to which Angel nodded furiously with a serious coo.

Carefully peering outside, Carla gazed around to check the coast was clear: luckily, the scouts that were still outside had hitched their horses to the stable posts on the other side of the courtyard, and seeing to the wagons in the same area: well over twenty meters away. Carefully opening the window, she looked out and around, and once satisfied no one was glancing in her general direction, she beckoned Angel down off the bookshelf. Landing on her outstretched hand, Carla moved to one side to let her hop down onto the windowsill, and told her, "Don't worry about us okay? Shadow will look after us, and we'll look after each other: you just concentrate on getting back to the camp, now get going!"

With an affirmative nod, Angel flapped her wings and took off: flying straight up into the night sky, and turning herself into a white owl as she passed over the rooftop. "Okay, that's dad and the rest of the scavenger hunt sorted, now how do _we_ get out?" Ariana turned to the rest of the team, while Shadow flew down and perched himself on her arm. "We can't leave via the drawbridge, even if they can't see us they'll hear our footsteps" Poppy pointed out, "And turning back into your titan form to lure them outside won't work: they'll loose their shit and swarm like angry hornets, probably raising the drawbridge" Ariana glanced down at the hawk: "And swimming back won't work either" Gale realized. "We need to get out _somehow..._ " Lucius pondered aloud, "Our ODM gear usage is very limited, we can't get out via the drawbridge or over the battlements; so our only other option would be to rely on Shadow and his wind powers to fly us back to the town. But there's no wind out tonight, and a sudden gust would appear very odd". "So? As long as no one see's us _or_ Shadow, it's just a bit of freaky weather, right?" Belle shrugged, "But what if that Mike guy smells us? Even if he can't see us I'm not willing to gamble the possibility he could track us; he could _smell_ Shadow's titan scent on me! On _all of us!_ " Ariana stated. "Magpie's right" Carla agreed, "Right now, _he's_ the one we need to get past". "Okay, so what do we do?" Belle shrugged. :Actually, I have half an idea, it might be a bit of a gamble, but if it works I'll be able to get you all to one of the farms on the east side of town. _And_ keep the scouts from following us: Shadow spelt out with an outstretched wing. "You make that sound as if they're going to see us; what've you got in mind?" Ariana asked worryingly, :Do you trust me to keep you all safe?: Shadow asked, "Of course" Carla replied, :Then pay attention, I'll need your help if we're to pull this off without getting caught:.

* * *

An hour or so later:

The castle had fallen silent and the ground floor windows darkened as the scouts slept soundly in their sleeping bags: packed all together in the main banquette hall, the sounds of breathing and snoring echoed off the ornate wooden panel walls, as fatigue kept the scouts soundly in the throws of slumber.

...For the most part.

Outside, up in the drawbridge tower: Levi and his squad sat still and silent as they kept their eyes trained on the courtyard, battlements, outer ward and steep grassy slope beyond the outer wall; not uttering a single word to each other, not even breaking concentration. While in a few other places around the castle grounds, Hange and a few of her squad's members lay in wait: keeping their eyes on the blind-spots at the rear of the castle keep. By and large, the majority of the castle grounds was covered: trying to slip out would be quite near-impossible.

As she kept her eyes on the courtyard, Petra heard the hollow rushing of the wind as it moved through the sky high overhead: the silence of the plains, save for the wind in the grass and the sounds of the nocturnal animals was kind of eerie: but with the full moon shining bright overhead and lighting up the whole landscape in silver, there wasn't much to be scared of.

Suddenly, a small sound nearly made her jump, and drew the attention of the rest of the squad: it was the soft creek of a window opening. "...Down there" Gunther whispered as he pointed to the left side of the keep, the side the was shrouded in pitch black shadow. Straining their eyes to try and penetrate the darkness, the whole squad couldn't see anything, and no sounds of footsteps could be heard either. "...Where are they?" Oruo thought aloud, "They're staying the shadows to remain hidden" Eld realized, "In which case..." Gunther thought aloud as he noted the direction in which the keeps shadows fell, "...They'll try to get out via the left side of the tower"

As they watched and waited, the ghostly figure of a lady dressed all in white seemed to melt from out of the blackness, and seeming drift across the courtyard like a ghost: followed closely by six smaller figures, children, all dressed in darker clothing; also seemingly floating, without making a single sound. The unmistakable outline of ODM scabbard boxes could be seen hugging the sides of their thighs, but they didn't make any sound either: at least, not the typical muffled clunk-click of the boxes tapping the leg with each stride. This was weird, and eerie as they watched the ghostly figures move across the courtyard to the base of the wall, disappearing back into the darkness.

"What the hell? ..." Oruo frowned, "Is it just me? Or did they not make a single sound?!" he whispered, unsure what to make of it. "Damn light on their feet is all" Levi replied as he grabbed his handgrips from out of their holsters. Then, a cloud obscured the moon from sight, plunging the whole land into darkness: a few minutes of silence passed, and then the moonlight reappeared. But as the squad scanned the ground below, they were perplexed to see two of the children standing near the middle of the courtyard, seemingly staring up at the tower; "What the hell?" Eld frowned. But then, the children raised their arms and pointed up at the tower, right to the spot where the soldiers were stationed: "Shit! They spotted us!" Oruo hissed. "Guess we're gonna have to do this the hard way," Levi huffed as he stood up and opened the window, "Move in!".

But just as the squad jumped out the window and shot their lines into the tower wall to abseil down, another cloud plunged the castle back into darkness, and the children vanished from sight. Quickly running over to where they'd been standing, Levi reached out to grab them, but his hand only grasped at thin air. "What the-" the captain blinked in surprise, "Did you get them?" Eld asked, but as the moon reappeared, the whole squad were dismayed to see no one was there, and the entire courtyard was empty. "What? How the hell?-" Gunther gazed all around, "How'd they disappear like that?!" Petra exclaimed in a whisper.

Suddenly, the sound of children laughing echoed off the stone walls near the hitching posts, and several of the horses could be heard whinnying softly, as if something had woken them up. "The stables!" Levi realized as he took off with his squad on his heels: scanning their eyes over the horses, they saw no one amongst them: then, another little giggle sounded from behind one of the wagons; but as they rushed around to try and catch them, they saw no one was there either. "Now they're just toying with us!" Oruo huffed. Suddenly, more laughter echoed down the walls, and a roof tile fell to the ground and smashed on impact, nearly making everyone bar Levi jump. "Tch!- Damn shitty-glasses!" Levi grumbled, "Wish she'd be more quiet!". "I am most of the time," Hange grinned as she and one of her team mates stepped out from their hiding place behind one of the stables, "But enough about me, what're you guys doing here?! You're supposed to be up in the tower!"

Levi and his squad stared at her in surprise, "Wait a sec-" Eld realized, "Hange, if you and your team are down here, then who-". Another tile falling drew their gazes up to the roof, where a flash of white darted away out of sight. "They're up on the roof!" Gunther frowned. Moving as one, the Levi squad shot up the side of the castle like a flock of swallows: but as they landed on the edge above the eaves and ran up and over to the other side, they saw no one was up there. "...How?" Petra was at a loss what to think. "Look! Down there!" Eld pointed to the drawbridge, where the ghostly white woman and her children were running hell-for-leather across the stone bridge, heading for a huge fog bank that concealed the other end of the bridge and whole town from sight. "Where did that fog come from?" the red-head thought aloud, "After them!" Levi sternly ordered as he shot his lines and flew down to the ground.

The bridge was too small to use the ODM gear on, so once they were through the tower gate and across the drawbridge, the Levi squad had to run the rest of the way. The woman and the children had a good head start as they were over twenty meters ahead. But regardless, the squad didn't slow down as they watched them disappear into the thick fog, "They've still got another thirty meters before they hit the town!" Eld called out to Levi, "Don't worry guys! I've got this!" Hange shouted as she galloped by on her horse. "Hey! Wait up! We didn't get the chance to say hello!" she called out strangers, but to no avail. As she followed them into the fog, the moon's light dimmed considerably, and before long the crazy scout was forced to stop as the fog only grew thicker and thicker; to the point she couldn't even see her horse's head. "HELLO?! She shouted out, "PLEASE! WE DON'T MEAN YOU ANY HARM! WE JUST WANT TO TALK!"

Hearing the Levi squad run up behind her, the four soldiers and one captain came to a halt as she turned her horse to face them: getting a general idea of their location via the sound of their footfall through the dense fog. "There's no way we'll be able to catch up to them in this fog Levi, even using the ODM gear in the town would be dangerous!" Hange exclaimed in despair. "Dammit!" Oruo hissed, "They can't use their gear in this fog either" Levi told them "We'll follow them on foot". The sound of galloping hooves made them glance back in the castle's direction, in time to see Mike ride by: and quickly turning as he spotted them through the pea-soup. "Figured you guys could use some help" he stated as he pulled his horse up alongside Hange's. "You got their scent?" Hange asked. Sniffing the air, Mike suddenly paused and his eyes widened in surprise; he turned around, and seemed to be staring at something through the fog...

"...Uh? Mike? What's up?" Hange asked in concern.

"-Shhh: be quiet, or he'll hear you..." a female voiced whispered.

Caught off guard, everyone turned in the direction the voice had come from, the same direction Mike was staring in: and as the moon pierced through the thick veil of fog, the ghostly lady in white reappeared, standing several meters away. "Don't move, and don't make a sound, or he'll spot you for sure" she whispered again.

The Levi squad was about to give chase, when suddenly, the one sound no scout ever wanted to hear, slowly started coming towards them. "-Shit! Titan!" Oruo hissed, his hackles raised alarm. The lady in white seemed to walk backwards, disappearing into the fog again: and as the scouts readied themselves for a fight, the titan's heavy footsteps came closer and closer. Not being able to see the giant had them all on edge, and as the fifteen meter silhouette of the titan melted out of the darkness only several meters away, everyone was just about to make their move: when suddenly, the giant stopped. The scouts watched as the behemoth glanced over to the spot where the lady had been standing, and with a low gravely groan, turned and started heading in the direction she walked backwards in: as they watched it vanish into the fog, everyone remained still as a statue, and held their breath so as not to make a sound.

"She distracted him" a young boy's voice whispered a few meters away, "But it won't be for long" a young girl added. "You need to get back to the castle" another girl's voice whispered from behind them. Glancing all around, the scouts couldn't see a thing as the fog closed in around them: they couldn't even see their hands at the end of their arms as they reached out to try and grab the children; "Why don't you come with us? We'll keep you safe" Petra whispered loudly,

"You're the ones that need to be kept safe" another girl's voice whispered back, "We'll be okay, don't worry about us" the boy whispered, "Now get going, or he might hear you" another girl added.

The moon shone bright as the fog parted slightly, and the outline of the castle could be seen not too far away: little by the little, the fog began to move across the plains in a giant column ascending hundreds of feet up into the night air, leaving the scouts where they were standing on the town-side of the long stone bridge. Looking all around, they saw no one was anywhere to be seen: but a couple of hundred yards away, the steaming corpse of a fifteen meter titan lay motionless at the edge of the plains. "What?-" Eld stared at the giant in slight dismay. "How-, who killed that titan?!" Petra gasped in surprise. Galloping over to the corpse for a closer inspection, Hange glanced over at the nape: but instead of the usual sliced flesh made by a set of pairing blades, there was a deep puncture wound over five feet wide right in the centre of the nape, as if something huge had stabbed it clean through. Staring at the fatal wound, Hange sat on her horse in confusion for a moment, the cogs in her brain turning at full tilt: before a look of unbridled glee began to light up in her eyes. "They _figured out_ how to kill titans!", she quickly turned her horse and galloped back to the group, but before she had a chance to share this new discovery, she noticed the look on everyone's faces as they watched Mike turning his head back and forth.

"I don't understand?" Mike blinked in surprise as he sniffed the air, "They were practically right behind us". "What's wrong?" Hange stared at him in confusion. "The scent's gone" Mike replied bluntly, "Which doesn't make any sense, there's no wind to carry it"

"Then-..." Eld glanced over at the giant column of fog, as it continued to drift across the plains, moving further and further away from the town. "How is that fog moving without any wind?"

Everyone glanced at one another in confusion: what the hell just happened? Who were those children, and that woman in white? Who or what killed that titan without making a sound? And what was with the fog? How did it suddenly appear out of nowhere, and move without any wind to push it away? These questions and more raced through everyone's brain as they tried to make sense of what just happened; Hange in particular, was beginning to brim with curiosity, as her crazy smile returned and she started to get jittery again. "We better get back; it's obvious we're not to catch them" Mike stated, "This time, at least" Levi frowned: he _hated_ not being able to get a job done right, and being outsmarted by a mother and her children was certainly an annoyance, "Fall back," he ordered as he turned to start walking back to the castle. "I gotta get this down on paper! This is _definitely_ going in the expedition report at least!" Hange grinned as she took off back over the bridge at full gallop.

"...What just happened?" Gunther glanced over at his team-mates as they fell into step behind the captain, with Mike bringing up the rear, "We got outsmarted by a bunch of brats and their mother, that's what!" Oruo huffed in frustration, " _And_ they managed to somehow kill a titan without making a peep? In the middle of some fog? I tell ya, that's rubbing it in our faces!". "Being able to kill a titan practically blind is an impressive feat" Gunther thought aloud, "But _how_ would you learn to do something like that? Training whilst blindfolded?". "But we didn't hear _anything_ , not even ODM gear being used, so how'd they do it?" Eld threw in. "I couldn't care less" Levi flatly stated in a cold tone, "They got past us and we couldn't catch them: end of story"

The team fell silent for a moment: whenever the captain used that tone, it was usually his way of stating the discussion was over; but for Petra, something about the encounter compelled her to speak up. "...They said we're the ones that need protecting" she frowned as she pondered those words, "Why would they say that if they were trying to get away from us? And why distract that titan as well? ...Did they really go out of their way to save us?"

"Who knows?" Mike glanced over his shoulder at the dead titan, "...But it's clear we're dealing with individuals who _chose_ to stay out here, for a reason"

As the scouts walked back over the drawbridge and through the tower gate, a giant fifteen meter titan with long hair, strange markings, and dazzling blue eyes watched them from the other side of town: invisible to human eyes, and once they were out of sight, he turned and silently walked away.

* * *

The next morning:

As the sun creped up over the eastern horizon, Carla and her team watched as the scouts rode out on to the open prairie and fanned out into a wide-spread formation, with the supply wagons bringing up the rear. As they disappeared out into the sea of green, the team stepped out from the barn they'd been sleeping in, and walked across to the fence that marked the farm's boundary. A shadow appeared across the grass as Shadow turned visible again, and knelt down beside the humans.

"Well? That was an interesting night" Belle thought aloud, "Kinda cutting it a little fine weren't we?" she glanced up at Shadow with a sceptical gaze. "Yeah, but then how else were we supposed to save them from that titan? We had to make sure they didn't get eaten!" Poppy reasoned. Folding her arms as she leaned on the fence, Carla gazed up at Shadow with an unreadable look. "So? What was the purpose of us talking to them? I thought the plan was to get away totally unseen?"

Passing a sigh, Shadow held up one hand and spelt out, :We knew when we started the Hunt, our paths would cross with the Scouts sooner or later; if last night is to be the start of more encounters to come, then we might as well make a good first impression:

"Okay, fair enough: but you don't think they're gonna come after us again, do you?" Gale asked offhand. :Hard to say?: Shadow shrugged, :For the time being they think its just you six. Maria is a big place, and it'll be like looking for six needles in a giant haystack for them. I hardly think they're going to divert manpower and resources just to go off on a wild goose chase:

"That's true" the twins both nodded in unison. "But not for lack of trying if that crazy-lady is one of them" Belle huffed as the memory of 'Hange' came back to mind, "I mean, either she's a _complete nut_ , or she's got something to offer if she's allowed to be one of them!"

"So? You're a bit of a nut at times and you've got _loads_ to offer" Ariana chuckled jokingly, "She must be good at something, or else why let her lead her own team; right?"

:Granted, it's a very unlikely bunch: Shadow nodded, :But I didn't sense any dysfunction amongst them; whoever they all are, they're all capable soldiers, and know how to handle themselves: he told them. "Yeah? Well I'll believe _that_ when I see it; that 'Levi' guy looked like trouble" Belle folded her arms, "I wouldn't disagree with you there Bluebird" Carla concurred in a serious tone, "If I really were your mother, I'd tell you all to avoid him like a plague". "Yes mum!" the kids all chuckled.

"...Hey, look who's back!" Ariana pointed to the dazzling white form of Angel as she came souring down, and landed in the field before them: "Angel!..." Carla climbed up and stood on the fence as her best friend cooed happily and nose-booped her on the head, "I take it they got the message?" she asked. Unfolding one wing, the avian spelt out :They packed up and left as soon as I told them. They relocated to the forest, and Midnight cast a special concealment spell to hide their scent, so there's no way that Mike guy will be able to track them once he and the scouts get there: she smiled with a happy chirp. "Oh well done!" Carla smiled as she hugged her face. "Look, we got company," Lucius pointed across the field, to where a long line of elk and deer-titans came walking towards the town with their Celt and Ranger partners, followed by several bird-titans and their riders as they flew overhead. :Oh yeah I nearly forgot! I told everyone about all the stuff we found yesterday, so Grey Owl dispatched half the Hunt to go pick it all up. He reckons between the stuff they found in Grenvald and all the stuff we found here, we should be done with the scavenger hunt by tomorrow!: Angel spelt out. "Even better!" Belle smiled.

"You better go and give them a hand, they'll need to know where to find all the items" Carla told the kids. "Sure thing: race you guys!" Belle grinned as she jumped the fence and started legging it towards the town, "Hey slow down!" the twins shouted as they, Poppy and Gale took after her. "Well? I guess we better go find somewhere to put the repelling charm, right big guy?" Ariana smiled up at Shadow, who smiled back with a nod as he offered his hand for her to climb up into. But before she turned to leave with him, Ariana glanced over at Carla with an unreadable expression. "What's wrong sweetie?" she asked as she jumped off the fence. "You _do_ know dad's gonna want to know about what happened last night, right?" she thought aloud.

"...Yeah" Carla sighed with a look of disappointment in her eyes, "Hey, you didn't do anything wrong: you did great as a team leader" Ariana assured her, "-It's just, we didn't know about the castle being a supply depot is all". "But it makes me think," Carla realized, "How many towns and villages have we passed through this last month, that might have had other supply depots hidden away somewhere amongst them? There'd be no way to tell from the outside, and it's not like we saw anything in the castle to suggest someone had already been inside"

"That's a good point," Ariana concurred, "Which is why I'm gonna ask dad about spying on the scouts again: at the very least, we need to know where their supply line is and how far into Maria they've managed to go. So when we resume the Hunt again, we can avoid them". Thinking about it for a moment, Carla then nodded, "That's not a bad idea actually" she offered with a smile, "And I'd be willing to back you up on that". "You would?" Ariana blinked in surprise, "Well yes, even if running into them again is only a matter of time: it would be better if we stayed out of their way for as long as possible, and we'd need someone to keep track of their movements in that regard" Carla reasoned before turning serious, "Though, that being said. I take it _you_ still want to be the one to do it?", "Of course," Ariana smiled cheekily, "I _am_ the stealthiest Celt in my clan, remember?". "And how long are you going to keep milking _that_ excuse?" Carla folded her arms with a mother hen look, "For as long as I don't get caught!" Ariana chuckled as she backwards-flipped into Shadow's palm, and held onto his thumb as he stood back up, "'Later Dove!" she waved goodbye.

Letting out an exasperated sigh as she rolled her eyes, Carla mounted Angel as she bowed down to let her climb on, "I swear Angel, I don't know how Tyto does it," the woman huffed as she stroked her feathers. "Well? We better get to work if we want to finish up by tomorrow: let's go" Carla sat down, and held onto her hackles as the avian titan jumped up and took off into the sky, joining the flock of bird-titans as they circled above the town.

* * *

 **Welp! This officially marks the point where scout-spying hilarity and titan-chasing shenanigans are sure to ensue, with Hange taking point in the craziness of course XD I love Hange, she can be such a bouncy and animated character at times, but she knows how to be serious when necessary too; which is a good balence in my books; BTW, I know in the manga Hange's gender is left ambiguous, but in this AU they're a female. I think she works better as a female anayway, it ceratinly seems to work in the anime *shrugs* but hey, that's just me. And of course let's not forget Levi and his squad XD, with his attitude and hard-to-please personality, Midnight's going to have loads of fun teasing the shit out of him! XD I made a little comic strip of one such antic, it's up in my Devientart gallery if you want to go check it out.**

 **Hope you enjoyed this chapter, and hope you stay tuned for the next one :) We will be taking a look at island life here and there, and Claude and Derek's research into the titan-shifters will get a look in eventually, but for the foreseeable chapters at least, we'll be focusing on the Scouts, and their 'discovery' of the 'mystery titan hunters'. It promises to be one wild ride! :D**

 **Happy reading, and see you all next time!**


	18. Chpt 17: First Impressions

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

The Awakening

Chapter 17: First Impressions

847, May, Trost:

"Hey sir? I can't find the wad screw"

"Huh? Isn't it in the chest?"

The senior Garrison soldier stepped over to the side of the cannon where the two new recruits were busy cleaning out its bore, glancing over the younger man's shoulder into said chest, he huffed in frustration as he picked up said wad screw from beneath the pile of other tools, "Seriously? At this rate you two are gonna pass for lousy gunners!" he reprimanded, "Next time check the chest more thoroughly, and don't waste my time!"

The soldier huffed again as he walked away, gazing out over the wall across the city of Trost, as he continued his inspection of the new rookie's performances.

The morning was crisp and clear as the sun steadily climbed up into the bright blue sky, as all along the wall, the Garrison were busying themselves with the care and maintenance of their canons: while down on the ground below, the fortifications around the outer gate were in the final stages of their construction. Three deep wide trenches surrounded the immediate area in a huge semi-circle, stretching from bulkhead to bulkhead, with only a single wooden bridge allowing access to the gate. Between each trench, a series of large wooden reinforced barricades stood firmly rooted to the spot, facing the gate: designed to minimise the amount of flying stone and debris, should the colossal titan ever decide to reappear.

The Garrison had not been idle over the past two years: the severity and shock of the titan's attack was enough to shake things up, and forced the military to reassess its defensive measures and procedures. Every walled city in wall Rose had been required to fortify their walls with additional cannons, to build 'anti-titan trenches' around their outer gates, and to implement a city-wide evacuation plan for if a second attack were ever to occur: thus ensuring the safety of the citizens. However, these new defensive measures were not welcomed by everyone: a number of merchants complained of the evacuation drills interfering with their businesses, and the wall cult raised a ruckus over the new cannons atop the wall. But their outrage fell on deaf ears, as most would rather have a safe means of escaping a second titan attack. By and large, humanity was slowly recovering from the fall of Maria: it hadn't been easy, and it was still a struggle to regain some sense of normality; at least, enough to carry on with life and meet the demands set forth by circumstance and happenstance. But little by little, everyone within the walls was adjusting and adapting: albeit slowly, and with a pinch of salt. For there was no telling, if lightning might strike a second time.

As the soldier turned his attention back to the cannons, he couldn't help but stop and listen, as he caught part of a hushed conversation between three young rookies, all of whom had their back to him...

"Where did you hear _that_ from?" one young boy asked in surprise.

"From my older brother, he's stationed up in Chlobra: he said he saw it moving across the plains heading into the wind; and the way it moved? He said it almost looked alive. Like it had a life of its own" the second boy replied.

"Oh come on, seriously?" the older girl folded her arms as she eyed him dubiously.

"But that's not all," the boy continued eagerly, "He said: that as it passed by, he and the other soldiers could hear some kind of weird sound coming from inside it, like it was singing or something. And get this, every titan in the area, even the one's around the wall all started walking _into_ it, like they were being lured in. And as it moved up towards the hills and away from the wall? All the titans that walked into it were lying dead on the ground. _Killed by something inside it_ "

"Now you're just bullshitting us" the girl scoffed, "I'm serious!" the boy pleaded, trying to keep his voice low, "My brother, his captain and several other Garrison soldiers all saw it! And since alcohol's been prohibited, they can't say they were drunk and just seeing things!"

"That's true" the first boy concurred. "I'm telling you guys, something _really strange_ is going on out there. I'll bet my rations the top brass knows about it too, and they're just not saying anything so as not to cause a panic among the citizens" the second boy surmised.

"-What are you three gossiping about?!" the older soldier sternly interjected as he made his presence known: after nearly jumping out of their skins (and very nearly off the wall), the three rookies all scrambled to attention and salute "SIR!". "It was just idle gossip sir!" the first boy stated nervously, "Nothing to worry about sir!" the second boy concurred in equal anxiousness, "We were just slacking off sir!" the girl added, half worried they were going to be reprimanded. "Slacking off eh?" he eyed them sharply, "You know that kind of behaviour is no longer tolerated right? Maybe two years ago when things were slow and easy, but now, you'll have to slack off on your own time!" he reprimanded. "SIR YES SIR!" they all yelled in unison.

"Oh, don't be too hard on them soldier..." a friendly laid-back voice interjected: turning around to see who interrupted him, the soldier nearly jumped out of his own skin as he quickly saluted, "Commander Pyxus?!". The Garrison commander and his escorts approached, and stopped before the three recruits: "A little idle chatter doesn't hurt to while away the hours, so long as it doesn't distract from the task at hand: right soldiers?" he glanced over at the three nervous rookies, who were now doubly anxious as they realized they were standing in the presence of the commander for the entire southern region, "Uh-, yes sir, of course sir!" the second boy swallowed hard. "Very good. As you were," he waved off with a smile, before continuing to walk along the wall, with every soldier saluting him as he went along.

"Uh-, commander? To what do we own the pleasure of this visit?" the soldier nervously asked, "Oh? No particular reason," Pyxis smiled as he pulled out his hip-flask and downed a swig, "I just came to see how our new recruits are doing, and to enjoy this lovely sunny day" "Sunny?" the soldier raised an eyebrow, "Why yes, there wasn't a cloud in the sky when we left headquarters this morning" he remarked as he gazed up at the blue sky. "Um? Well? Not anymore sir..." the soldier pointed behind him, "It looks like we got fog heading this way".

"Hm?..." Pyxis turned around to look at where he was pointing: and there, an enormous bank of thick white fog was slowly creeping its way across the grassland and patchy copses, moving parallel to the wall just under a mile away. Towering a few miles up into the sky in a tall swirling column, and stretching several hundred meters across, the fog was so dense that everything it passed over disappeared in a matter of seconds, shrouding the land in a grey gloom that almost seemed to drain the colour from everything, and exude a strange eerie feeling.

"How odd," Pyxis smiled as he watched the uncanny weather front slowly approach, "Can't say I've ever seen weather like _that_ before"

As the strange fog came within a quarter mile of the wall, the soldiers all stopped what they were doing and watched as every titan in the area started walking towards it: even those that were scratching and clawing around the outer gate suddenly stopped, and turned to start lumbering towards it. "Hm? _That's_ never happened before" Pyxis thought aloud, "No sir" one of his aides concurred in equal surprise. "...What's that sound?" one of the female soldiers frowned in confusion. "...I don't know? It almost-, sounds like someone, humming" the soldier next to her replied.

Sure enough, as they all strained their ears to listen, everyone could hear a strange sound echoing out from the fog: it almost sounded like a low thrum, or a hum. Or many people all humming together at the same tone: deep and high-pitched simultaneously; it was so weird, and haunting, like nothing anyone had ever heard before. As the fog moved closer, the entire wall was shrouded in a dense pea-soup and the sun was completely blotted out: it was so grey and dark that it could've been mistaken for dusk, and no one dared to move for fear of accidental wandering off the wall (never mind the fact they couldn't see the ends of their outstretched arms). The strange humming was closer now, and coming from somewhere down on the ground some couple of hundred meters away: but over the constant droning, other sounds could be heard too. The hiss and pops of ODM gear in action, the thundering of enormous hooved animals moving at a galloping speed, the soft booms of titan footfalls striking the ground as they ran; and the unmistakable sound of pairing blades striking a titan's nape, followed by the booms and thuds of multiple titan bodies hitting the ground.

"Is that-, the Scouts?" one soldier thought aloud, "Can't be, they're not due to leave for another week or so" another soldier replied, "I didn't see them down there to begin with, did you?" a third soldier added tentatively. "What should we do sir?" one of the aides asked the commander: "Wait until the fog passes: it's too dangerous to use ODM gear practically blind" he replied with a nonchalant shrug.

Another several minutes passed before the fog started to move on, creeping along the wall as it headed eastward: still remaining in one huge bank that towered into the sky. But as the sun caught the edges of the cloud and lit it up in a blinding silvery-white aura, the solders caught a glimpse of something moving up and down very fast through the vapour; something, that almost seemed to resemble the tip of a giant bird's wing. But as quickly as it appeared, it vanished in the blink on an eye.

"What the-, oh my god!" one of the soldiers exclaimed as he glanced down at the ground, "Sir! Look!" another soldier pointed in the same direction, on the Maria side of the wall. Stepping over to the edge: the commander, his aides, and all the other soldiers were met with a most startling sight. Stretching for at least two miles out beyond the wall, numerous steaming titan corpses littered the ground: their napes slashed and cut. There were too many to count offhand as the steam began to fill the air, and the furthest ones began to fade from sight.

"...Who did this?" one of the aides thought aloud as they scanned their eyes over the many bodies that were quickly turning into embers and steam, "Or _what_ did this?" the other aide added. "Hm..." Pyxis scrutinized the scene carefully: glancing over at the fog that was now gaining ground as it headed for the eastern horizon, "...Very curious" he thought aloud to himself. Despite his laid-back demeanour, his aides could tell the cogs in his head were turning at full tilt, as he turned, and carried on walking along the wall.

As the three young recruits watched the fog move along the wall in a mix of confusion and surprise, the second boy then elbowed the girl with a smug look on his face, and smiled to her "I told you it was real".

* * *

Three days later, at the Scouting legion headquarters in Trost:

"... Seems like forever since any of us could just pause for a moment, and take stock of what's around us" Pyxis thought aloud as he strolled through the central courtyard of the military base, with the commander of the Scouts at his side, "Every day that familiar fear continues to linger, reminding us of that terrible day. In a way, one could say it's almost become like an unwanted acquaintance: never welcomed, but not able to leave, (for the obvious reason of course)". "The days of idle musings and carefree abandonment have always been numbered: it was only a matter of time before the titans would reminds us why we hid behind the walls in the first place," Erwin replied stoically, his unwavering poker-face not giving anything away, before a small polite smile crossed his lips, "But you didn't come here to muse over days long since past: to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?".

"What? Can't a couple of old friends catch up on old times?" Pyxis chuckled as he took a swig from his hip-flask, "... I hear you've been making some real progress with the supply route of late. The titans don't seem to have been much of a bother, from what I've heard" Pyxis glanced over at Erwin with a cunning smile.

Erwin immediately picked up what he was hinting at, and obliged "The last several expeditions _were_ more expedient that initially predicted, and our casualty rate seems to have been steadily dropping over the last year. This spate of good luck proved useful in securing our budget for the next five years, and with the new funding we can finally prepare for the second phase of the battalion route" he stated. Though at the back of his mind, his instincts were telling him it could be something more than just a random spate of good luck.

Ever since the strange encounter at the castle in Stinestadt a year ago, the Scouts began to notice a steady decrease in the number of titans along the designated supply route. Even with the long-range scouting formation ensuring they avoid as many titans as possible, confrontations and fatalities seemed to be steadily going down with each new expedition: no one was complaining of course, as the mission was starting to go more smoothly. On the surface, one could brush it off as just being lucky, that fate was finally starting to smile upon the Scout's endeavours: but deep down, Erwin couldn't shake this feeling that something else was at work. Thinking back to the first several months following the breach, simply trying to set up the first few depots had been hell: before the attack on Shiganshina, the scouts losses averaged at about ten percent per expedition; but now, with so many titans all over Maria, the scouts lost between twenty to forty soldiers per expedition. A grim statistic, and one that seemed to test even the veterans to their limits at times: this macabre reality seemed to have become the new way of things, until last year when they stopped off at the castle in Stinestadt...

The strange encounter with 'the lady in white' and 'her children' had been a real head-scratcher for everyone concerned: it certainly didn't make straight-forward reading in the expedition reports, and while the military top brass knew Erwin wasn't the kind of man to exaggerate or be prone to chasing shadows, the unusual nature of the encounter left the higher-ups wondering what had actually happened that night. On the one hand, Erwin had no evidence to confirm the encounter took place, but at the same time the statements of his squad leaders all backed up what he said, as all of them claimed to have seen the same thing too. In the end, the sighting was taken with a pinch of salt: it wasn't dismissed as a fluke, but it didn't present enough of a concern to warrant further investigation. Some woman and her family got lucky in avoiding the titans, and for reasons unknown they didn't want to be rescued. Since then the Garrison had been instructed to look out for anything unusual, that could indicate the presence of survivors out in Maria: and Erwin, with his priority being the establishment of the battalion route, carried on with said mission.

However, the thought of that woman and her children had intrigued him, and every once in a while he wondered if they were still alive: still out there somewhere in the wilds of Maria, avoiding the titans. Who would wish for such a life? Whatever their reasons were for staying out there, it was known only to them.

"And I take it you still haven't run into your 'lady in white' again?" Pyxis asked offhand, "Unfortunately no," Erwin stated plainly, "Wherever she is, we can only hope she and her family have managed to survive". "Hm, maybe some of their good luck rubbed off on you and your troops that night," Pyxis joked, "And speaking of strange encounters, I take you haven't heard the news?"

"Of what? I only just got back from the capitol last night" Erwin glanced at Pyxis with his brows farrowed together in concern. "Huh, well that explains why you didn't pick up on it sooner then," the Garrison commander shrugged, before explaining "Three day ago I was up on the wall inspecting the cannons, when virtually out of nowhere, this huge fog rolls in and shrouds the entire wall in a thick pea soup; a clear sunny day with not a cloud in the sky, and this fog just shows up totally out of the blue", "If you're seeking my advice on the nature of the weather then I'm afraid you're out of luck" Erwin smiled offhand. "If that was all it was I would've just brushed it off as some odd fluky weather. But when it covered the wall, something else happened..." Pyxis glanced over at Erwin with a serious look in his eyes, "A strange noise could be heard on the ground below: something, I can only describe as a choir humming and singing at the same time, all at the same pitch and without discernible words or a tune; it was quite spooky in a way. Now I know what you're thinking, and trust me I wasn't hearing things; at least thirty other troops heard the same thing. But that's not the strangest part...". Both commanders stopped walking as Erwin listened with intrigue, "As the fog drew closer, all the titans in the vicinity started walking towards it, and disappeared inside: the way they were gazing up at it? It was like they were being hypnotized, or something of that nature. And when the fog finally moved on, there were dozens of dead titans everywhere. From where we were atop the outer gate we counted about sixty five corpses: fortunately, that day we were also running some maintenance tests on the cranes, so we had some horses available up on the wall. I ordered some of the troops to follow the fog and see if anything else happened. They followed it for about six miles before it veered south-east and headed off over the plains: the fog remained visible for up to ten miles before it dissipated and vanished, the two riders reported seeing over forty eight dead titans left in it's wake; a hundred and thirteen in total... And to add to the mystery, not a single titan has approached the wall in that area since, it's as if they're staying clear of the whole area. Quite a strange occurrence wouldn't you say?"

Erwin simply gazed at Pyxis with an unreadable look: although his expression didn't give anything away, Pyxis could tell he'd piqued his curiosity; gazing out over the courtyard, Erwin simply replied "... Strange indeed: but stranger still, since when does the commander of the southern Garrison personally conduct an inspection?"

"Heh, Nothing gets past you," Pyxis chuckled as he took another swig, "Truth be told: this isn't the first time that fog has been sighted, only the first time _I've_ laid my eyes on it. For the past year I've been hearing strange rumours of a 'titan-killing fog' that's been seen sweeping across Maria: strange singing heard coming from within it, and luring the titans away from the walls to be killed in large numbers. Everywhere from the Chlobra to Karanese districts, and even as far north as Nedlay and everywhere in between, the rumoured sightings had been circulating for months without letting up. And the thing about rumours, is that they seldom ever go away unless there's an element of truth to them. So, three days ago I decided to go see if there was anything to it: needless to say I wasn't disappointed"

Scrutinizing Pyxis up and down, Erwin then asked "I take it you haven't told the top brass about this yet?"

"And say what? That a giant singing titan-killing fog is trying to out-do the Scouts? One word of this gets back to Mitras and they're going to think the whole Garrison is drunk (again). There may be no such thing as a mass-hallucination, but it's still going to be too incredible to believe; the 'lady in white' was one thing, but this is something else entirely; hell, even _I_ didn't believe it to be true until I saw it for myself" Pyxis sighed as he downed another swig. "...Say I do believe you, and that this 'fog' really does exists. What do you want me to do? Between establishing the battalion route and the rest of our assigned duties, I don't have the manpower to spare for an investigation" The Scout commander stated. "Ah I'm not asking anything of you Erwin: I'm simply here to ask that when you embark on your next expedition, keep an eye out for anything unusual," Pyxis replied, before stating frankly "...I don't know what it is we saw up on the wall, but all I know is that my troops are wary, and worried, that there may be something else stalking the wilds of Maria. _Something_ , that is able to kill titans with relative ease: and no one knows if that's a good thing, or a bad thing"

Pausing for a moment as he watched his Scouts go about their duties in the courtyard, Erwin then turned to Pyxis, and respectfully dipped his head in acknowledgement, "Well? If we do see something, you'll be the first to hear about it upon our return"

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Lodge on the island of Yggdrasil:

"Hey dad! Where're the spare cables?" Dale shouted down from the tree, "In the box by the front door!" Tyto shouted up as he helped two of the Ranger's move some equipment to the edge of the training ground: while all around the Lodge was bustling with activity, as everyone was gearing up for this month's Hunt.

From where she watched the Celts and Rangers preparing everything they needed, Ariana was preparing for her own mission: as she rechecked the contents of her hip-bag and pack, she looked around the room to make sure she hadn't missed anything, "Okay, that _should_ be everything..." she mumbled to herself, before suddenly remembering "-Oh! Gotta go over the maps with Shadow". She grabbed her ODM gear, suited up, and took off for the southern end of the island. As she sailed through the giant canopy, Ariana glimpsed down at the town below, up at the arboreal neighbourhoods scattered throughout the trees: and couldn't help but be both amazed and impressed with how much the place had changed over the past year.

Ever since the five hundred survivors of the failed retrieval operation took up residence on the island: the community had grown in more ways than one. Taken in by many of the Celt and Ranger families, the survivors had gone through a period of adjustment as they tried to get back on their feet, and try to fit in with their new neighbours. It wasn't easy, as the harrowing memories of those two long months out in the titan-infested wilds had left some with deep scars: lingering nightmares that deprived some of sleep, and a constant sense of alertness that refused to be put to rest easily. But as the Celts and Rangers helped them back to some sense normality, many found it was an opportunity to start anew: to live their lives as they saw fit, and to not have to live in fear of the Wall Cult or Royal Government.

With many of the survivors having been farmers, a good number were able to chip in by caring for all the farm animals that had been rounded up for the purpose of feeding and clothing the now nearly two thousand strong populous. On the western side of the lake, where the deciduous forests bordered vast expanses of wild meadows and grassy fields: many of the cows and sheep were kept on a series of small farms that sat alongside the Silver and Red fox clans home-camps, along with several of the Ranger families who had close ties with said clans. Further south, the Badger and Grey squirrel clans resided with another handful of close Ranger families in a small village: in addition to hunting, they would help protect the livestock by ensuring bears, wolves and other predators stayed away from the pastures, in return for the best cuts of meat, fresh milk, and wool.

On the eastern side of the lake, the Black and Blue wolf clans, along with the Bear, Mountain cat, and Golden eagle clans and over a dozen Ranger families had made their home-camps on the slopes of the great eastern mountain, all within sight of the great mountain god-titan, King Freyr. There, their gigantic animal-titans could roam free with all the forest they could ever need. The Heron clan and their close Ranger allies, who also lived on the eastern shore, chose to make their home-camp further north alongside the marshes, which were home to the water-snake titans: who had become quite tolerant of them being there, since one of their animal-titans was a water-snake titan by the name of Emerald (so called because of her rich green scales). As for the Island of Yggdrasil, the Sparrowhawk and White owl clans helped to settle many of the survivors alongside their kin and god-titans. With so many people now living on the island the communal gardens had to be increased in size, and several of the larger ground-based buildings had to be expanded or renovated in order to accommodate the new cotton and wool mills, as well as make room for a new indoor market square, water pumps and fountains, and additional pumping stations for the newly expanded indoor plumbing, as well as part of the boat yard getting an upgrade. It was a real community effort on everyone's part, and a good number of the survivors were keen to help; if anything so they could have hot running water and lavatories that didn't stink.

But plumbing and building were not the only skills some of the survivors were able to offer. A small number that had worked in the interior as blacksmiths, engineers and even machine workers for the industrial city, put their skills to use in Gustav's forge and machine shop: catering to all the needs of the community, as well as providing additional help for the Hunt whenever they needed their ODM gear servicing. Some had worked in the mills and factories along the Marian rivers, and were skilled in most industrial crafts: from weaving cloth and spinning wool, to building carts and wagons, throwing clay to make ceramics, carving stone to make building blocks, turning and carving wood to build furniture and other useful appliances, and even making tools and equipment to make other practical items. It was a wealth of knowledge the Celts and Rangers could never have anticipated: learning the ways of the regular folk and learning how to better understand what made a town run and function. And on the flip side, the survivors learned how to live in harmony with the forest through the Celts teachings and ancient wisdom, how to trade and get by without money like the Rangers, and how to get along with the god-titans that lived in the Hidden land, as well as those the islanders considered part of their families...

Learning to live alongside the Hidden land's more bigger neighbours proved to be a slightly different kettle of fish: on the one hand many were quite taken with the god-titans, and through the Celts and Rangers they learned to respect and abide by their new giant magical friends. Some of the farmers were highly impressed by their power to grow all manner of plants, and were most eager to work alongside them in the communal gardens: others, particularly those who used to work as fisherman and bargemen on the rivers, were amazed by the lake titans and their ability to herd whole schools of fish into their nets; it made for a very easy working relationship.

But on the other hand, the trauma of surviving the regular titans had left some deeply scared, making them wary: most would go about their daily business out of sight of the god-titans, walking the paths and trails hidden from above by thick foliage, and instinctively taking cover whenever the larger god-titans walked by. Their fear was understandable, and the god-titans respected their space: the pain and terror they experienced would not go away just because some new type of titan proved to have a destain for human flesh. Even if Queen Aurora gave her word that no regular titan shall ever find the Hidden Land; but many could agree, being accidentally stepped on was a far more easier hazard to live with, than to have to run the gauntlet of being eaten.

But by far, the one thing that left the greatest impression on _all_ the survivors, was the city of Omnes Scientiam. As curiosity got the better of them, little by little various groups and sometimes whole families would go on the barges into the mountain: the survivors were blown away by everything the city had to offer. From the giant crystal cavern carved from the heart of the mountain, to the great tree of knowledge that crowned the tiered city: the beautifully lush gardens that lined the outside of each tier, and the assortment of ornate titan-sized buildings and their endless labyrinths of archives, libraries and museums. It was a feast for the senses, and one that no one person could ever hope to completely experience in a single lifetime. For those of a more academic and curious nature, that found pleasure in the pages of a good book, it was paradise without end, and a certain number of the more educated survivors were eager to join Claude and Derek's titan research team (if only to experience the city on a daily basis). While others were happy to help out on the 'floating libraries': bringing a regular rotation of books to the island and mainland, so that everyone could experience the city's vast knowledge of the outside world, and the history of mankind prior to the coming of the titans.

Despite the ups and downs of the past year, the town was now starting to feel much more like a veritable close-knit community: most people knew each other on a first name basis, many were willing to help out and not demand anything in payment, and everyone had come to trust one another, and abide by their fellow human and god-titan. Overall, Ariana and her whole family couldn't have imagined it would turn out like this: what started out as just them, the first to witness and survive the titans attack; was now a little kingdom in its own right. Ruled under the care and command of Queen Aurora, and shepherded by the counsel and the Keeper: in this place, everyone was allowed to be themselves (within reason of course), no one would be punished for speaking out against the wall cult, government or king, or even the council or queen. No one would be taxed or forced to pay for the privilege of living here, people were allowed to keep their property and homes without fear of being forced out for disobliging reasons, and neither would they be forced to conform or bow to another's personal or cultural beliefs. Everyone abided by each other, and though the Celts and Rangers ways were a bit of a culture shock in places, it was taken with a mix of curiosity, humbleness, humiliation, and forgiveness.

The restitution of freedom was as long as it was complex: but here, in this land that had been hidden from the world for goodness knows how long, it was as plentiful as the leaves of the great tree, and though it was a tiny kingdom, it was _their_ kingdom, and one they could be both proud of, and grateful for.

As she approached the treeline, Ariana flew down to the ground and travelled the rest of the way on foot. Here, at the southern end of the island, covering an area over four and a half square miles wide: instead of thick giant forest there were rolling meadows with solitary trees peppered here and there, and filled with a myriad of wild colourful flowers. This was the home of the fairest and most beautiful of the god-titans, what everyone had affectionately come to call the 'flower-titans': three to six meter class female god-titans with radiant and fair complexions, skin as flawless as pearl and eyes as green as emeralds, with elfish pointed ears and long flowing silky-soft hair dressed in garlands of flowers and other creeping plants. They were the most tender and gentle of the god-titans, true innocents with a particular fondness for growing flowers, and filling the island with colour. As she walked over a small knoll, Ariana smiled as she watched a trio of flower-titans playing with several girls from the Red Squirrel clan, letting them sit on their knees as they grew garlands of daisies into their pleated hair. Rounding another hill, she saw three boys playing hide and seek with another flower-titan, who had magically disguised herself as a large flower-covered grassy mound, with only her radiant green eyes watching them: and on the other side of the same hill, a larger flower-titan was showing off her magics to a small group of mothers and their little ones, bringing smiles all round as the children reached out to grab the rapidly growing flowers.

Near the south-eastern cliffs, overlooking King Freyr's 'throne' and the entire south-eastern mountain range, there stood the tall crumbled ruins of a huge series of buildings: the god-titans said it had once been a monastery, dedicated to an order of monks and nuns that worshipped the great tree; now long since gone, with the building falling into ruin shortly thereafter. Ariana remembered first coming across the ruins not long after first arriving on the island: one of many discoveries she, her family and friends enjoyed exploring, though not being able to get very far on account of all the brambles and stinging nettles that covered the ground in and around the stone structures.

But with the expansion of the communal gardens, it was decided this would be the site of a new garden: and after five months of back-breaking work to clear out all the weeds, tilling the soil and arranging the beds, the ruins were now the largest of the communal gardens, and the one which boasted the most variety of fruits, vegetables, herbs and medicinal plants. It had just about everything a gardener could ever want in a working garden: an irrigation system drawing water from the island's hot springs, an apiary for wax, honey and pollination, an orchard full of various fruit trees with a pig pen next door, so as the pigs could graze the fallen fruits as well as provide a steady supply of pork. There was also a large pond and small fenced-off meadow for the ducks, geese and chickens, which were useful for keeping the slugs and other pests in check as they were allowed to roam the various plots, as well as provide eggs, meat and feathers. The island's native wildlife was also drawn to the plentiful garden, and the gardeners had been careful to leave some of the plants aside for them: particularly the birds that specialized in feeding on berries and fruits (though the thrushes were good at disposing of the snails). And taking care of the larger pests like rabbits, rodents and deer wasn't a problem either, as the god-titans simply told them to feed elsewhere. Overall, a remarkable achievement, for a garden that had only been put together in less than six months.

As she followed the little dirt path that cut between the squash beds and the brassica beds, Ariana spotted Shadow with several of the gardeners, growing a new grape vine up the wall of the decayed tower: one of several parts of the ruins still largely intact. Watching him, she couldn't help but smile as he stood back to admire his work: being the benevolent soul that he was, she knew this was one of his favourite enjoyments; growing things and bringing life to the land. Sure he was a formidably strong and skilled titan hunter, but it wasn't a job that brought him joy or pleasure: he considered it more like necessary pest control that had to be carried out; quick and clean with minimal fuss. But here, on the island and around the Hidden Land, helping everyone and watching the community flourish was what made him happy.

Turning around as he sensed her approach, he smiled warmly as he crouched down to offer his hand to her, :I thought I felt your footsteps approaching: he spelt with his free hand, :So what' up?:. "Nothing important, I just need to go over the maps for the next expedition. But, if you're still busy here I can come back later?" she offered. :It's okay, I'm just about done here anyway: he spelt back as she climbed into his palm, and let him place her up on his shoulder.

"Going so soon?" a familiar voice cheerfully called up to her, "Sorry Mr Arlelt: official Hunt duties" Ariana called down to him as Shadow stood back up, "Very well, I won't keep you then; be sure to give my regards to your mother for that lovely brandywine of hers!". "Will do!" she waved good bye as Shadow carefully stepped over the garden fence, and strode across the meadow towards the treeline. "How's he doing?" she asked discreetly in a concerning tone. :Much better. Breck said he hasn't had an lapse for over three months now, I think the new elixir is really doing some good: Shadow replied, "That's a relief" Ariana smiled weakly, before sombrely thinking aloud, "... That whole memory loss really took a toll on him: not being able to remember half your life? What a horrible thing to endure..."

Armin's grandfather had been one of the lucky five hundred to survive the failed retrieval operation: though for a time things were bleak, as the extent of his injuries became apparent, and his chances of pulling through were fifty/fifty. But with the help of Breck and Claude's healing elixirs he managed to make a full recovery: albeit his memory was never the same. After researching memory loss through head injuries in the city's medical library, Breck and the other doctors were at a loss how to help, and the god-titans couldn't do anything, as manipulating one's memory (even in an effort to get it back) was forbidden by their laws. Joseph's memory was sketchy at times: he could remember most his life in Shiganshina and all that happened there, but the day of the breach and everything after that was a patchy blur he couldn't make sense of. And every time he tried to remember, it only caused him distress or to feel faint: and sometimes, would cause his memory to lapse altogether, creating 'momentary amnesia' that would last for several hours.

For everyone who he called his neighbours and friends in Shiganshina, it was a bittersweetness having him back. Gustav used to enjoy laughing over a pint with him in the Black Stallion while Miriam would reprimand them both for behaving like a couple of fools: and they still did, albeit they tended to reminisce on the good old days, with Gustav filling in the blanks. Bryson, Breck and Claude used to enjoy talking with him about all kinds of things, from their lives up in the interior to the local gossip circulating the street, now the 'Sina trio' were usually filling him in on all the new things they discovered in the city, and how the Hunt was progressing . And for Carla, who enjoyed his company and his council: having to be both parents and grandfather hadn't been easy for him after Armin's parents left, and there were times she'd help him where she could. But now, with the memory of Armin's fate blurred out by that head injury, it had left a painful scar that didn't seem to heal: not knowing what happened to Armin was painful for Joseph to remember, and for everyone else, it was like watching him being stuck in some kind of suspended limbo.

If Armin had died in the jaws of a titan that would be one thing: horrible and painful, but at least they could lay him to rest in their memories. But if by some chance he'd survived the breach and made it to Wall Rose, what happened after that? Did he become one of the conscripted, sent back out into Maria alongside his grandfather a year later? Or worse, did he get captured by human traffickers and sold into slavery? Or to one of the wall cult's cornucopiam's or sanctuaries? The thought of seeing him in chains, all skin and bone beneath dirty rags with dead eyes devoid of life and hope: it was a worse fate than the titan's hunger. For Ariana, it was like loosing him all over again, and with no way of knowing what happened for sure, there could be no closure. If he was still alive, she would have Shadow fly her over that wall, and she wouldn't stop circling the skies until she found him and brought him home: or, if he was dead, she'd bring his bones back to burnt into ashes, so that on the day mankind finally reaches the ocean, she could set him free; letting him become one with the wind and the endless salty waters forever.

In her heart, she had a feeling that's what he would have wanted: he'd have liked that.

Ariana took in a deep breath as she wiped away the tears at the corners of her eyes: thinking about it always hurt, but she learned to get on with life. Pushing it aside and focusing on the task at hand, she smiled up at Shadow "...But, it's okay: at least he's happy here, right?". :Indeed, as are all the other's who've come to call this place their new home: he smiled as he gazed around at all the tree-house's, and the people going about their daily routines.

"Finally! Where've _you_ been all afternoon?! Tyto's been searching half the island for you!" Pascal shouted as he flew by on his ODM gear, "He's been in the southern garden, where else?" Ariana called back, "Yeah well just get your chiselled ass back to the lodge, the boss-man's waiting for you two!" the former thief added before speeding on ahead. Picking up the pace, Shadow strode through the forest until the Lodge appeared through the trees: Ariana shot her lines and jumped off his shoulder, landing on the front porch , walking in through the door, and headed upstairs to the meeting room where everyone was gathered. "Sorry we're late, did we miss anything?" she apologized: but stopped when she saw only Bryson, Carla, the Cooper twins and her father sitting at the huge oval table.

"Actually you're early, the meeting's not for another fifteen minutes: but since your particular assignment is pretty straightforward, we thought we'd get that out the way first..." Tyto smiled as he unfolded one of the large maps and laid it out flat on the table: "Uh? Sure," Ariana replied offhand (making a mental note to remind Pascal not to be so uptight about keeping meeting appointments), taking a seat next to him, as he pointed to a small town on the parchment. "Okay, this month, the Scouts are estimated to make Stonestead the site of their new supply depot, it's pretty close to the river but quite removed from the forest: so you'll have to find cover on the outskirts of the town if you're to keep an eye on them" he told her, before addressing the others, "As you all know, the titans have been pushing them around all over the place these last few months, throwing them off course and forcing them to take the long way round to their destinations" he glanced back at Ariana "But thanks to your diligent efforts, their fatalities have been steadily decreasing". "It's not been easy, but we've managed to help keep them on track accordingly," Ariana offered, trying to sound professional.

Since their close encounter with the Scouts in Stinestadt last year, the Hunt decided to convene to decide what to do, should such an encounter were ever likely to occur again. Since the Scouts had been chosen as the likeliest candidates to aid the god-titans in their endeavour to restore humanity to the world, the Queen and the Keeper were both keen to know more about them. Bryson's own knowledge had been insightful, but being out of the Scouts for twenty odd years meant he'd been out of the loop for quite a time: and from what Carla and her team described of the new commander, 'Erwin', and his squad leaders, Levi, Mike, and Hange (or crazy-as-shit-four-eyes Hange as Belle described her), it sounded like quite a lot had changed. But regardless of whether the Scouts were likely allies or not, their mission to lay the ground-work to take back Shiganshina and eventually seal the breach was something the whole walled kingdom was relying on right now: setting up a supply route was crucial in allowing a much larger force to advance south: so it made sense to try and help them where they could.

But at the same time, the Scouts need to be observed and studied: their movements, protocols and procedures taken note of, and who was who among the ranks. From what was described of him, this 'Erwin' fellow sounded like a real tactical genius, or at least, someone who wasn't a fool; one who knew how to think on his feet, and knew how to stay one step ahead.

To that end, it was decided they'd act on Ariana's original proposal, and have someone watch over the Scouts and study them: to follow them on their monthly expeditions and gather every bit of information they can on them, with the help of a god-titan for back up and support: and where possible, help them to their final destination. Of course, Ariana was the first to volunteer (seeing as it was her idea in the first place, she claimed she got first dibs), and after much debate (and stressing out on her father's part), it was decided she was the more logical option anyway: since Bryson trained her one-on-one 'scout style' in the use of ODM gear, she knew all the Scout's basic manoeuvrers, as well as their rules and regulations; and the fact she was the stealthiest of all the Celts meant she could get really close to them without arousing their suspicions. Having Shadow to back her up was the only thing that gave her parents (and everyone else) peace of mind: though it did mean the Hunt would loose one of it's best ambushers. But this didn't turn out to be too much of a hindrance, as members of the Bear, Blue wolf, Black wolf, Mountain cat, Golden Eagle Sparrowhawk, Silver fox, Grey Squirrel and White owl clans, along with about a hundred and fifty of the new Ranger families, volunteered to become part of the Hunt: and with their particular animal-titans making up the ambushers and look-out's numbers, the Hunt got a major boost in the number titans they were able to kill, as well as the range of ground they could cover on every hunt.

Since then, for the past year, Ariana and Shadow would go out with the hunt into Maria, and then head off to locate the Scouts: judging from the locations of the supply depots they'd found, they knew the Scouts were staying within range of the southern Marian river, following its path as it wound its way towards the Shiganshina district. The only problem however, was that there were places where titans would linger, sometimes in sizeable numbers, and then push them off course: forcing them to retreat to one of the depots, or camp out in a safe location and wait until the danger had passed. With half of Maria consisting of open prairie and grassland, tracking the Scouts or even finding cover was a real challenge at times. But both Ariana and Shadow were resourceful in their abilities to hide, even staying down-wind of Mike, the human hunting hound (who everyone was convinced was a Celt, or had Celtic heritage at least)

"...Speaking of routes, where's the Hunt heading to this month?" Ariana asked offhand, to which Bryson explained "Between the plains below Whitefall and the hills near Goldale, the ground rises and falls quite high in places up round there, so we'll have plenty of cover. However, the cliffs next to Whitefall are going to be a major blind-spot for the titans up there; we won't be able to clear out both the plains _and_ the forest at the same time. So we'll concentrate our efforts on the open ground, and put some chimes up in the forest for next month's clean-up sweep"

Tyto then added, "Stonestead is over twenty miles to the west of our route, so we won't have to worry about running into the Scouts" Tyto handed Ariana a smaller map, "Here's the map of Stonestead and the surrounding area: be careful, and watch where the wind blows"

"Seriously dad? a god-titan who can command the wind as my back-up?" Ariana dryly thumbed over to the window, where Shadow was listening in. "I know, but even Shadow has to sleep at some point, and if the wind changes direction what will you do?" he frowned in concern, "You may have been doing this for a year now Ariana, but that's no excuse to start getting complacent: don't forget, we don't know if these Scouts are trustworthy or not. It'd be best to stay out of their way"

"I _know_ that," Ariana huffed in annoyance, "But it's _not_ easy. This Erwin guy, he hardly gives _anything_ away, even his own squad leaders don't know what he's thinking half the time. And Shadow can't get a good read on his aura because he's so ambiguous and guarded: he doesn't make it easy, he _knows_ how to stay one step ahead, even unconsciously"

"That's why we're here," the twins both spoke up in a chipper tone: "Since we're two of the coordinators and tacticians for the Hunt, we thought we'd lend you a hand, and check out commander Erwin for ourselves: granted our first impression of him was-, well? You know," Lucius sheepishly smiled, allowing Lucy to pick up "It never hurts to have a second opinion, and after nearly a year since our last 'encounter' with him, we figured we're ready to try and check him out with an impartial set of eyes", "or _two_ sets in our case" Lucius added. "Plus, Angel's weather magics can provide some fog if finding cover gets a little dicey out on the plains" Carla suggested.

"I don't have a problem with you guys tagging along: hell if you two can pick up something we missed that'd be great..." Ariana smiled at the twins, before turning to her father with a more serious look, "And speaking of fog: I heard Silvester's team ran pretty close to the wall by Trost three days ago: on that secondary clean-up sweep? I know he's been doing this for a while now, but don't you think that was a bit reckless on his part? Even with a fog bank to hide them from sight: did he really have to do it on a bright sunny day with no other clouds in the sky? Even if the Garrison troops didn't see anything, they would have been close enough that they'd have heard the hummers and ODM gear"

"I did have a word with him about it, and he's promised me he won't go so close to the walls next time. He _did_ manage to place a repelling charm by the outer gate, but I know that's beside the point. From now on, any hunting near the walls is only to be conducted at night, and with the use of a concealment charm only, no hummers allowed. It's risky I know, but we have to be sure the titans stay away from the walled cities; if the armoured and colossal titans ever come back, it might be the only thing standing between the people of those cites and certain death" Tyto explained.

"I _get_ that," Ariana sighed in irritation as she leaned back in her chair, "But what if word about the fog and all the dead titans left in its wake got back to Erwin? He's _not_ going to ignore that". "Maybe not, but from what you've gathered on him: he doesn't strike me as the kind of guy to simply drop everything to go chasing smoke and shadows. He doesn't seem to make decisions based on rumour and conjecture: therefore, I don't think he's going to veer off course unless he's got good reason to" Bryson surmised.

"That maybe, but even so. He's _still_ going to be curious," Ariana frowned as she folded her arms: sensing there was something weighing heavy on her mind, Tyto and the others all glanced at her in concern. "What's wrong magpie?" her father asked. Deciding there was no use in hiding it, Ariana spoke what was on her mind; what had secretly been vexing her thoughts for a long time now: "... I just-, can't help but wonder how long this is going to go on for, before we're finally sighted..." she gazed up her father with a dubious look, "You keep saying we've got to stay out of sight of the Scouts, that we don't know if they can be trusted or not: well? If we're going to find out if they _really are_ up to the task of helping us with the god-titan's endeavour, then we're going to have to get much closer at some point. Maybe even close enough that we'll _have_ to talk to them: and you can't keep working by the whole 'let's put a pin in it for when it come up' strategy forever. Maybe out in the wild trying to out-think the titans it may work? But these are _human beings_ we're trying to stay ahead of, and with a guy like Erwin leading them, it won't work for long. We've _got_ to come up with something more substantial, more organized if we get stuck and need a plan B"

Everyone gazed at her in slight surprise for a moment: even Tyto had to take stock of her words, for he knew she was right: but that didn't mean he had to like it, "I know I don't have to remind you that I'm a hunter, _not_ a military strategist: but I'm doing the best I can under the circumstances. I have the Hunt to oversee, as well as your assignment: which by the way, still keeps me up at night" he told her matter-of-factly. His tone told everyone he wasn't angry or upset, just frustrated by the situation. "I know" Ariana sighed in an apologetic tone, "But it feels like you need to do more: I know I haven't been able to gather much on Erwin's train of thought or what makes him tick: but I _do_ know, that from what I've seen of the man, we're going to need a plan in place for if something happens, and he starts to suspect he and the scouts aren't alone out in Maria. You told me once that no matter what, always _always_ trust your gut instinct: well? My gut is the only thing I have to go on with Erwin, and it's telling me he's _seriously smart_ "

Tyto paused for a moment, and folded his arms as he leaned against the table, "...Okay, just for the sake of this discussion: what do _you_ reckon we should do?"

"...I don't know? I'm not smart like Dale or the snow twins, or cunning like Pascal and West: I just know that we've got to start taking extra precautions: Erwin may be be smart, but truth be told? They're _all_ smart in their own crazy ways...Kinda like us," she smiled offhand, to which everyone blinked in surprise. "Back in the day, before the breach: we took a few crazy measures to ensure Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel wouldn't get caught. And we also took a few crazy risks in the name of unravelling their mystery...I don't know if Erwin's trustworthy or not, but _I do_ know he kinda thinks the same as we do, he's not afraid to take risks if the pay-off is worth it, and he's not afraid to think outside the box. Remind you of anyone?" she smiled over at Bryson, who was a little taken aback; to which her father couldn't help but smile, "I think you and he would get along quite well you know?" she mused aloud.

"Um? Thanks" Bryon smiled sheepishly, "...Actually, from what you've described: he _does_ sound like someone I'd be interested to meet"

"That's another thing," Ariana continued, "You may be the Hunt's resident titan expert, but you're also _our_ resident Scout expert. Everything we know about the Scouts comes from you, and I think you should be on board with this assignment: I know you haven't been in the military for a long time, but I still believe you've got a lot to offer Bryson" she paused a moment, before glancing back at her father, "There's a couple of other things I think you can do too: but overall, I just think it wouldn't hurt to discuss having something in place for if everything goes to hell. Castle Stinestadt was a close call, but what if one day, our luck finally runs out?"

Tyto contemplated her words briefly for a short moment, before nodding in agreement: "...Alright, we'll discuss the matter when we get back, but for now, let's just get this month's hunt out of the way". "On that note then, do you want me to go with her on the assignment?" Bryson asked offhand, "Of course, _duh!_ " Ariana deadpanned, "I'm okay with it: we can go a hunt without you" Tyto assured him. "Great, then I guess we're all set for the assignment?" Carla asked offhand. "With you guys? Yes, Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to get ready for the main meeting" Tyto excused himself as he stood up and turned to leave for the room next door, "Oh and, Ariana? Don't go taking any liberties" he deadpanned. "What me? _Never!_ " Ariana waved off as she stood up and left via the other door, followed by the others, "You know I'm good for this dad!". " _I know..._ " he sighed.

"Seriously, you _don't_ go taking liberties, right?" Carla asked in concern, "Carla, it's called _jesting_ : as daughter of the master hunter it's my job to make sure the ol' grey owl keeps his wits about him," Ariana smiled slyly "With Ash, Rowan and Dale on his team, he needs to stay sharp". "That's certainly true" the twins agreed as they followed her outside.

As Ariana and her new team went around the side of the Lodge to where Shadow was sitting cross-legged on the ground, a couple of familiar faces brought a smile to their faces: "Mabel! Bren!" Carla beamed as she strode over to meet them, and inspect the little bundle Mabel was holding in her arms, "I didn't think you guys would be finished 'till later". "Miriam gave us the rest of the afternoon off, so we thought we'd surprise you guys" Mabel smiled as she handed the bundle over the Carla, revealing it to be the latest addition to the Fitzsimmons family, "And how's Lily today?" Carla smiled at the baby as she carefully took her in her arms, "Fussy and restless, so we thought some fresh air was in order" Bren smiled as he glanced over the team, "I take it you just got your orders for the next assignment? Where're the Scouts off to this month?". "Stonestead," Ariana replied as she looked all around, "Hey, where're the girls?"

"Oh, no idea where they could've snuck off to?" Bren shrugged with a smile. Glancing up at Shadow, the god-titan turned away and pretended not to know: everyone knew this little hint by heart, as it was Marigold, Phoebe and Clemmy's favourite game. Deciding to indulge the girls in their fun, Ariana glanced up at Shadow's neck, and tucked behind one of his long thick bangs, she caught sight of Marigolds smiling little face; trying her best to hide. "...Oh really? ..." she smirked as she went around Shadow's side, and silently climbed her way up his arm and into his thick mane of hair, "Are you sure they're not, HERE!" she pounced on the girls, making them jump out of their hiding place with giggles of glee as they purposely tumbled over Shadow's neck into his cupped hand, where he ticked them gently with the tips of his fingers, while Ariana assumed her usual perch on his shoulder. "You girls are going to have to find a much better hiding place than that if you want to beat Ariana!" Bren called up to them, "I wanna play hide 'an seek daddy!" Clemmy laughed as Shadow set his palm down on the ground, "Then why don't you go and pester Josefa and Jaye for a game, huh?" Bren smiled as he helped the girls down out of the god-titan's hand, and let them run off to where the Raven twins were talking with the Willum sisters.

"Hard to believe they've grown so much," Carla smiled as she held baby Lily, gently stroking her cheek with the side of her finger "And _you_ young lady, not two months old and you're getting so big already," she cooed: utterly smitten by her sweet little face. With her pale ash blond locks, rosy cheeks and bright blue eyes, Lily took after her father with his eyes and jawline, but her cheeks, ears and smile were undoubtedly her mothers. Leaning down for a closer look, Shadow let out a low soft purr as the baby smiled up at him, and waved her chubby little hands around with a giggle of excitement: "Oh, you want to say hello to Shadow? Here you go..." Carla smiled as she gently placed the baby in the god-titan's cupped hand. She was absolutely _tiny_ compared to him, like a newborn baby mouse: as she gazed up at the giant in excitement, he smiled warmly as ever, and with a gentle wave of his free hand, summoned a handful of butterflies to come and dance around her; much to everyone's delight.

"Oh, we must ask Poppy to sketch a picture of this" Mabel smiled as she lost herself in the cuteness of the moment, "I think we already have one with her and butterflies. Or am I thinking of the one with the humming birds?" Bren thought aloud. As baby Lily continued to giggle and wave her arms around, trying to catch one of the butterflies, Bryson couldn't help by feel his own heart flutter a little: not out of fear for the baby, but out of ceaseless wonder for how such an enormous and powerful being can be so caring and gentle; it never failed to instil a sense of awe, and he couldn't stop smiling over it.

"Sorry we dawdled," Lawrence announced his presence as he, Drake, Brendan, Brendis and Bren came around the corner of the Lodge, with Bemadette, Gustav and Claude bringing up the rear, "-But _someone_ had to take their sweet time stacking the books in our room" he gave Brendis a sharp look. "I already said I'm sorry! How was I supposed to know you arrange them by colour?!" Brendis shot back. "Oh, and we picked up some additional travellers along the way" Lawrence thumbed over his shoulder at Bemadette, Gustav and Claude. "Thank you Lawrence" Mabel smiled as they approached, "Long time no see ol' chums! Time certainly flies when you get stuck into a good book," Claude beamed as he adjusted pince-nez "With a whole city full of them, I'd have thought you'd be getting bored of all that reading by now" Bryson teased, "Me? Bored of a book? Bite your tongue!" Claude playfully punched him on the shoulder: "So I take it the research slacked off early today, seeing as you're back so soon" Carla surmised, "Eh, we've made some good strides this week, and I figured it would be nice to get back during the daylight hours for once" Claude shrugged. Seeing Lily in Shadow's hand, Lawrence climbed up onto the god-titan's wrist and gazed up at him, "You remembered to wash your hands?" he asked dubiously, :Of course, cleanliness is next to godliness after all: Shadow smiled at him, letting him take Lily out of his hand, and giving her back to her mother. "So, I take it Miriam gave everyone the day off if you two are here" Bryson smiled, "It's Friday?" Gustav raised an eyebrow, "Oh yes that's right, Miriam said she was going to put a pig on the spit tonight" Carla suddenly remembered. "A whole pig?!" Clay and Hazel suddenly appeared out of the tree on Shadow's left, "If it's the chops you two want you better get going, Red and his brothers are already fighting over who gets first dibs" Gustav thumbed over his shoulder: without another word, the two siblings took off on their ODM gear at breakneck speed, making a bee-line for the Inn.

"Aren't you gonna try and beat them to it?" Drake asked offhand, "Hell no, let 'em fight it out and sneak the best cuts when they're not looking: besides, chances are it's one of the colossal boars, so there'll be plenty to go around" Ariana replied as she crossed her legs. "So, did you boys have another good day in the city?" Carla smiled, "It's a city full of books and weird stuff, what's not to like?" Lawrence shrugged dryly. "I think what Carla means is, did you find anything new today?" Mabel sheepishly suggested. "-Ohohoh! We found this giant flying machine up in the engineering museum called a blimp! It's absolutely huge! And it floats in the air using a gas called helium!" Drake excitedly bounced up and down on his heels, "Oh heaven's yes! Quite an extraordinary feat of engineering! You _have_ to see it to believe it!" Claude added in equal excitement, "In fact, I wanted to have a word with you two about it" he glanced over at Gustav and Bemadette, "YOU WANT US TO BUILD YOU A DAMN FLYING MACHINE?!" Gustav exclaimed in utter disbelief, "Really?!" Bemadette's eyes lit up as she clasped her hands together in eager anticipation. "Uh-, heh, no not quite: I was actually wondering how you two might feel about a little 'restorative' work," Claude sheepishly clarified as he beckoned them to follow him, "Catch you all later!" he bid farewell, before explaining more in detail as he led the two blacksmiths in the direction of the Willum's Inn, with Drake trailing close behind on Claude's heels.

"Well? I dunno know about you guys but I'm gonna go get first dibs on the pig!" Brendis smiled as he took off after them, "Hey wait up!" Bren and Brendan took after him, trying to keep up as he disappeared into the thick undergrowth of the forest: "Don't push if you get stuck behind someone in the queue!" Mabel called after them. "Hm, boys will be boys," Carla sighed with a small smile, "You know Eren was just-..." She paused a brief moment in slight hesitation, before continuing in happier nostalgia, "...He was just the same: always restless, and always unable to stay still long enough". "You know? I think he'd have been a good companion for the boys: he certainly would've had the energy to keep up with them" Mabel grinned; "And then some" Carla couldn't help but chuckle. "Say, do you want to help me give Lily her bath? We've hardly had time to talk this week, and the pig won't be cooked for another hour or so" Mabel suggested as she handed Lily back to Carla, "Oh, really?" she smiled in delight as she got the baby comfortable in her arms, "Certainly, Bren's got the girl's covered: well, as covered as he's going to get if the Raven twins are joining in the fun" Mabel smiled as she watched her husband try to hide behind a large tree stump, only to be pounced upon by Marigold, while Lawrence tried to brush some leaf-litter off Clemmy's dress. The two woman continued to chat as they walked back towards their home-tree, laughing and gossiping all the way until their voices faded amongst the trees.

As she watched them wander further and further away, Ariana couldn't help but smile, "...She just love's spoiling Lily huh?", "Why not? She's a sweet little thing: and as a mother herself she can't help it" Bryson smiled, "For sure: I'll just be glad when the whole 'crying at night phase' is over" Ariana thought aloud in slight weariness, "Amen to that" the twins concurred as they shot their lines and flew up onto Shadow's other shoulder, followed by Bryson. "But aside from that, Mabel certainly did a good job: and she's an excellent mother" the former scout added, "That's certainly true: and I think Bren's over the worst of the whole 'am I gonna be a good dad?' thing" Ariana thought aloud. "Fatherhood is no easy task: its a lifelong commitment you dedicate the sum total of your heart, energy and time to; and for what it's all been worth, I think Bren has surprised himself" Bryson replied as he watched Bren chase the girls around the training ground, followed by the Raven twins, Ashlyn and Hawk, : he certainly knows how to have some fun along the way: Shadow smiled.

After watching their antics for a little while, Bryson changed the subject "...Well? I guess we'll be the one's finishing up the prep-work then?" he smiled. "Looks that way," Ariana glanced up at Shadow, "What'd you reckon bud? Shall we go home, get the rest of our gear together and get Angel ready? Just don't tell her Lily's taking a bath or we'll never get her away from Bren and Mabel's place"

Shadow nodded and carefully stood back up, steadily making his way back to the Grey Owl home-tree. As they walked through the forest, Ariana glanced over at the twins and Bryson on Shadow's other shoulder: and wondered offhand, if this new team arrangement was going to work out okay. Working virtually solo for a year had been a good way to not have to worry about anyone else's safety: she only had herself and Shadow to worry about, but with others in tow, there was always the possibility for something to go wrong. Not that she doubted Bryson, Carla, Angel or the twins, she knew they were all good at what they did, and knew how to hide themselves well: but still, the knowing that you can never predict the final outcome made her wary...

She made a mental note to check everyone had their concealment stones before leaving.

* * *

The following week, mid-morning somewhere in Maria:

"Is it just me? Are we damn lucky today?" Oruo called out to Gunther as they galloped across the open prairie, "Two hours we've been out in the open, and not a single titan in sight!"

"I have to admit" Gunther replied, "It is a bit strange"

"Don't say that! You'll jinx it!" Petra reprimanded Oruo, "Oh? I didn't peg _you_ for being the superstitious type Petra dear?" he raised an eyebrow with a smug grin, "Remind me to find you a rabbit's foot in the market place upon our return". "Ha! You can keep it!" Petra shot back, "You need it way more than I do: especially for if you keep flapping your jowls like that"

"Like wha- GHA!" Oruo nearly lost his footing in the stirrups as he accidentally bit his tongue, much to Petra's amusement; while the captain simply kept his eyes on the horizon, paying his squad no attention.

Indeed, the morning had passed without incident as the legion headed south in their long-distance scouting formation: spread out for over kilometre in their various positions, the Scouts were making good time as they passed by scattered villages and solitary farms. And as the edge of the great Marian forest began to loom on the horizon, Erwin turned to Mike, as the squad leader held the map in one hand: "We can't be too far off the main south-western road by now?" he called to the human hunting hound, "About another few miles give or take," Mike replied, "Stonestead should be near the river town of Bargeton, beyond a wooded glen: we should see some windmills come into view before then". "Very good," Erwin replied as he scanned the horizon, keeping his eyes peeled for the slightest hint of trouble...or anything else.

The Scout's commander was not a superstitious man, nor one to indulge in outlandish rumours: it was true he was unorthodox by his peer's standards, and certainly not one to give orders sitting on his ass. But when certain threads of information came his way which pertained to the scouts appointed duties, he wasn't one to ignore something that piqued his curiosity. It came as quite as a surprise when, just the other week commander Pyxis approached him with a story about he and his garrison witnessing a 'singing fog' roll past Trost, leaving over a hundred titans dead in its wake, and leaving the witnesses completely dumbfounded. If it had been anyone else, it would be considered the ramblings of some drunken old fool: but Erwin knew Pyxis well, and despite his eccentricities, the man was not one to go telling tall tales (even when drunk). But something about the whole thing didn't seem straightforward: why would Pyxis approach him with such an unbelievable story in the first place? Even if he didn't believe him, it was still a risky thing to do: if the top brass ever got wind of it there would be questions raised pertaining to the commander's state of mind, among other things; ergo, Erwin kept the conversation strictly to himself, even his squad leaders were not informed of their meeting.

Erwin didn't know what to make of the incredible story, and so had pushed it to the back of his mind, and concentrated on the expedition. But still, Pyxis's words wouldn't leave him be, and it was a vexation that refused to let his mind be still...

 _...I don't know what it is we saw up on the wall, but all I know is that my troops are wary, and worried, that there may be something else stalking the wilds of Maria._ _Something_ _, that is able to kill titans with relative ease: and no one knows if that's a good thing, or a bad thing_

The titans were one thing: but something that could bait and kill them? _That_ would be something indeed... But would that something, whatever it was, be approachable, or dangerous?

"Hate to break it to you guys, but it looks like the titans might have other ideas for us!" Hange pointed to the red signal flair shooting into the sky on their left. Within seconds, several more red flairs went up, and soon the thunder of titan footsteps could be heard steadily approaching from beyond the rise of a low-lying hill. Taking a deep breath in through his nose, Mike confirmed it: "Eleven of them, and it smells like they're coming straight up from the south-east"

At the back of his mind Erwin cursed his luck. "But-, that's right where we need to go!" Hange realized, "Indeed, but we have no choice" Erwin replied as he took his flare gun and shot the green smoke westward, steering his horse in that direction. Soon, every Scout in the formation fired a green smoke signal to confirm the change in direction: and as the titans appeared over the hill, Erwin turned to Mike again, "On this current heading we'll reach the forest in less than a hour, are there any roads to Stonestead from there?" he asked as he saw the forest steadily come into view: "Not really," Mike studied the map at a glance, "This is one of the more remote areas of Maria, hardly anyone lived out here. The only village near to our current heading is Whitefall, just a few miles south of here: there's a road leading out from there that might just take us to the main south-western road; albeit the long way round," he then glanced at Erwin with a look of disappointment, "But I'm afraid it'll be too far to reach Stonestead by nightfall from there"

"...Alright," Erwin nodded as he fired another signal flare, telling the whole formation to head south, so as to follow the tree line: rather than risk going into the forest and being split up, as well as confronting any titans that could be hiding in there...

* * *

Meanwhile, somewhere deep in the Marian forest:

The forest was bright and bold today, as the 'Scout watchers' made their way through the maze of giant trees. To their left, a stunning view of the open prairie and grasslands fell in and out of sight as Shadow walked parallel to the nearby cliffs, using his blue crystal spear as a walking stick. Through the trees to their right, at least a few hundred yards or so away, a couple of titans could be seen lumbering by: dazed, as if in a trance, and completely oblivious to their presence.

"Well at least the baiting chimes are working," Ariana thought aloud as she watched another hypnotized titan wander on by, also completely out of it, "Silvester and his team will have a good clean-up sweep next week"

"For sure" Lucy agreed, "You know? I can't believe how many titans we killed yesterday: this month's tally is sure to be the highest of the year thus far" Lucius thought aloud from where he sat on Shadow's right shoulder alongside his sister, "Definitely, I lost count after thirty two" Ariana replied from Shadow's left shoulder, "I got about twenty" Lucy replied, "Nineteen for me" Lucius threw in. :Glad we stuck around to help out with the spotting too, it got pretty crowded down on the prairie: Shadow thought aloud, "And making sure everyone got to the first base-camp was a good call, that bolder-field below the treeline was some pretty tough terrain" Lucy added, "Yeah, but now we're going to have to fly to Stonestead to make up for lost time: as soon as we get back to Whitefall, you guys hitch a ride on Angel while me 'an Shadow take point, okay?" Ariana replied, "Sure thing!" both twins smiled with a nod.

Lucius was about to say something else, when Shadow abruptly stopped: with their ODM gear's grappling hooks embedded into his skin the kids didn't fall off, but as he glanced to his right, they realized something was up: "What's up Shadow? Is it a titan?"

:No: he spelt out with a look of concern on his face, :I can feel horses hooves approaching from the north:

"What?!" Ariana gawked: knowing right away who it was.

High above the trees, Angel soared in a wide circle as she kept an eye on Shadow and the kids below, while Carla and Bryson scanned the edge of the forest several miles away. As the white bird-titan banked left and came around to face the north, both humans spotted something rather disconcerting: several green smoke plumes shot into the sky in a westward direction, and although the shooters were obscured from sight by the trees, it didn't take a genius to figure out who it was.

"The scouts?" Carla blinked in surprise, "But-, they're supposed to be over ten miles to the north-east!", "Looks like they had to avoid a few titans: they must be going the long way round" Bryson surmised as he watched the smoke dissipate on the wind, "But, if they continue to head along the edge of the forest, they'll-

"-DOVE! FREE-WING!" Ariana shouted as she and the twins flew up in Shadow's cupped hands, hovering on his updraughts as he flew alongside Angel in his elemental form, "Shadow just picked up the scouts horses! They're heading west along the treeline!", "We know! We just saw their signal flares!" Bryson shouted back over the rushing sound of the billowing winds. "Whitefall's less than five miles ahead! The chimes we put up in the forest are less than a mile from the village, and all the dead titans will still be evaporating! What're we gonna do?!". Thinking about it for a moment, Bryson had an idea, "...We'll split up into two teams, Dove and the snow twins will go with Angel to keep an eye on the chimes, and I'll come with you and Shadow to watch over the scouts". "But what if they take the chimes? When they see what they can do, they won't just dismiss it as a fluke!" Ariana shouted back, "Then let them take them, we can just make another set: it's not worth getting caught for the sake of one concealment spell: we'll just take a wait and see approach, and report back to your father what they do" Bryson replied, "Okay then, come on!" Ariana beckoned him to join her: Shadow placed the twins on Angel's back, while Bryson jumped off over the edge of her wing, allowing the master of the winds to catch him in his updraughts.

" **Seriously though, what if you guys run into trouble?!"** Elysia worried, **"Don't worry, we got this, you just concentrate on keeping your team concealed: and if something happens, just keep one foot on the trees, I'll be able to reach you wherever you are, okay?"** Javorin told her **"Good luck"**

"Good luck!" Ariana shouted as Shadow banked away, and flew down in the direction of the village, "You too!" Carla called back as Angel banked the other way, and circled down to a clearing in the forest.

Whitefall was a small village situated on a steady incline next to the edge of the forest, and a vertical cliff-face that dropped some sixty feet down to open prairie below, connected via a winding road that was carved out of the rock: here, the Marian forest stood divided by the cliffs with only the giant trees to bridge the gap, and a series of small waterfalls dotted along the edge, cascading down to the forest below; which then joined up into one large river that cut through the prairie in a winding serpentine line of blue amid the endless green. As they descended down through the trees, Shadow assumed his hawk form and began flying through the canopy: summoning the winds to blow southwards, keeping them downwind of the scouts. And as Ariana and Bryson felt the updraughts soften, they took that as their cue to engage their ODM gear, and fly off on their own: keeping pace with Shadow above.

"The Scouts are sticking to the edge of the forest to avoid any titans, while we're heading in a straight line: from this distance we've got at least three miles on them" Bryson speculated aloud, "Then that gives us enough to time to find somewhere to hide," Ariana called back as she flew ahead, "Since they're ten miles off course, that means they now got an extra thirty miles to cover. There's no way they'll reach Stonestead by nightfall from here, they'll have to camp out in the village and resume their journey in the morning". "In which case we better find somewhere to sleep tonight" Bryson replied, "Are you okay to cover the scouts while I go and search for a place to camp out?" he asked offhand, "Sure thing, just make sure it's far enough away from the village" Ariana instructed, "Okay then, good luck you two!" the former scout bid them farewell as he took off, heading deep into the forest.

"Okay Shadow, just you and me: like always" Ariana glanced up at the hawk, who glanced back at her with a sure nod. Pressing onwards, the village soon appeared up ahead through the giant trees, and the smell of horses and people soon began to drift by: 'They can't be too far off now' Ariana thought offhand as she scanned the trees and undergrowth for a good spot to hide.

* * *

Meanwhile, a short time later:

As the edge of the forest continued to curve southwards, and the incline steadily grew a little steeper, the village of Whitefall soon appeared through the giant trees, with a sparse copse of birch, ash and horse-chestnut surrounding it's northern side, and a wide shallow river running through it towards the cliff-edge. As the front of the formation came together and galloped through the copse, the entire scout regiment soon came to the edge of the village, and stopped to wait for the rear to catch up.

"Well, that was a close one" Eld thought aloud as he watched the scouts file into the village, "And no one died this time, thank heavens" Petra breathed a sigh of relief, " _This time_ , " Levi shot her a cold look, "We've still got a long way to go, and we're way off course now," he glanced over at Erwin, "So what're your orders?". "We won't reach Stonestead by nightfall as planned: so we'll camp here tonight and resume first thing in the morning" Erwin stated, turning back to Mike, "Have the troops see to their horses first, and then pick out some branches amongst the trees to hang the hammocks from. We'll continue the prep-work for the supply depot and plan out a route from here to Stonestead". "Yes sir" Mike nodded, and headed off into the village to give the troops their orders.

"Hey Erwin!-" Hange came galloping up and stopped alongside him, "Kinda weird how those titans just broke off their pursuit and wandered off into the forest like that huh? Maybe it might be worth investigating?" she grinned as she wiggled her eyebrows, dropping the obvious hint, "Weird yes, worth investigating? No, we're already too far off course as it is, and we need to prioritize on securing the area before it gets dark" the commander stated firmly, turning to the stone-faced captain, "Levi, you and your squad are on the first watch, replenish your gas if need be and then assume your positions around the village". "Yes sir" the captain acknowledged. "But it's not even lunch yet! There's loads of time to have a quick snoop! You never know, we might just come across a truly amazing specimen this time!" Hange threw in with eager puppy eyes.

Erwin was about to shoot her down with a firm no, when the sound of a commotion somewhere on the other side of the village grabbed their attentions: one of the newer rookies came galloping up to them in a fluster and interrupted "Commander! You need to see this right away sir!". Glancing at one another in slight surprise, the commander, titan-scientist and Levi squad all followed the rookie up through the village to the cliff-side, where several of the other troops, including Mike, were all gazing at something down on the prairie below. "What's going on?" Erwin demanded, "I-, I don't know sir! We just saw them and-, well? See for yourself!" another soldier answered, equally confused as he was surprised.

As they pulled their horses up alongside the cliff edge, Erwin, Hange, and the Levi squad were all totally taken aback by the sight before them...

Spread out over a two to three square mile radius, were tens of dozens of dead titans scattered about the prairie, all varying size classes and all had their napes slashed and cut: but something was very off with this scene, the titan's bodies were all black and grey, as if they were decaying naturally like any other dead animal, and their corpses were giving off very little steam as they evaporated at an unbelievably slower pace. It was quite a sight, and for once, Hange was at a complete loss for words as she gawked at the scene. "The winds blowing south, that's why I didn't smell them..." Mike frowned, "Who or what did this?" he thought aloud.

"... That's what I'd like to know" Erwin replied as he knitted his brows together, the cogs in his mind turning as his curiosity piqued tenfold: "Titan's don't decay" Petra thought aloud in confusion, "So? What happened to them? What could cause a titan body to decay?", "Search me if I know," Gunther shook his head, "Nothing like this has ever been seen before". As the troops speculated amongst each other, Levi gazed out over the numerous dead titans with a rare genuine look of surprise, before he resumed his ice cold glare, and began to wonder who or what did this: and if 'it' or 'they' would be a problem to contend with.

As the moment of shock and surprise quickly wore off, Hange's face lit up like a firework display, as she was suddenly filled with a whole new boundless excitement and wonder, "OH MY GOD! ERWIN!-" she turned to the commander, "You _must_ let me take a team down there to check it out! I mean- _decaying titan bodies?!_ This is a first in the history of mankind! There's _no way_ we can squander a discovery like this!" she practically bounced up and down in her saddle. "She does have a point, nothing like this has ever been reported before" Mike pointed out. "... Alright, take a team down there and see what you can find, but don't go out too far: this is still titan country remember" Erwin stated, but Hange was already galloping off towards the cliff-side road as fast as her horse could carry her, yelling mad ramblings and laughing with elated joy, with her assistant Moblit trying to keep up. Sighing in exasperation, Erwin turned to Levi "You better go keep an eye on her", "As if you needed to ask" Levi deadpanned as he turned his horse and took off after the crazy brunette, with his squad bringing up the rear. "What do we do? Once Hange's finished inspecting them; do we continue to Stonestead?" Mike asked: Erwin thought about it a moment, before glancing over at him, "Obviously the supply route takes precedence, but we can't just glaze over this either: we'll spend the rest of the day collecting every bit of information we can find; to that end, arrange some additional teams to go down there and start taking notes and sketches. Like Hange said, we mustn't waste this new discovery" the commander stated.

* * *

A short time later, three hundred yards away up in the forest:

As she watched the scouts along the cliff-edge and down on the plains via her telescope, Ariana couldn't help but sigh as she gazed over at Shadow, who was perched next to her on the same branch, "Well? It can't be helped, and there's no way they'll back-shelve this", she thought aloud, to which he nodded in agreement.

It had only been less than an hour since the scouts discovered all the dead titans, but they'd been remarkably tight and efficient in the gathering of their scientific data: Hange in particular was having an absolute ball as she scribbled away in her journal, while the rest of the investigative teams took their time with each corpse; writing down their observations, while the more artistically talented scouts sketched the bodies and their strange form of decay. As she trained her telescope down on Erwin and his entourage, Ariana felt a cold knot tie up in her stomach as she saw Hange holding one of the venom-coated crystal-headed arrows, showing it to Erwin with much enthusiasm: "Ah shit, They found the arrows" she cursed with a sigh; Shadow pecked her lightly on the knee, grabbing her attention as he spelt out :It can't be helped:. "Yeah I know but-, even so, it's a clue that could lead them to us" she sighed in worry, :That maybe, but they got to find us first, remember?: he replied; even though his bird form didn't betray much emotion, Ariana could tell he was smiling that knowing smile of his. "...I know we're both good at being stealthy an' all? But how the hell can you remain so relaxed?" she frowned down at him: wishing he wouldn't be so blasé about this, :Experience, and I can sense them coming a mile off. Well? Many miles off in fact:

"I just wish you'd take this a little more seriously," Ariana huffed, "They may not be able to wield magic like you, but they're not idiots; not by a long shot..." Ariana frowned as she trained her telescope on the Levi squad, who were keeping watch from the cliffs near the road; a couple of times Levi glanced over in their direction, but Ariana knew that he couldn't see them, not from where they were perched amid the dense dark canopy.

Of all the Scouts Ariana had come to know over the past year, Levi was the one that unnerved her the most: from his blunt abrasive personality to his lethal proficiency as the scouts most powerful soldier, everything about him seemed cold, distant and unkind. He was not the sort of person she'd want to run into, and he was _definitely_ not the one she'd want to face in a fight. The very thought of him going after Shadow and cutting him down mercilessly never failed to send a pang of dread through her. Despite her position on the legion being potential trustworthy allies, she had to wonder, if, with someone like Levi in their ranks, would their task be that much harder to accomplish?

Ariana felt another peck on her knee, as Shadow replied with a flap of his wing :I do take this seriously, and I'm sorry if that's how I come off. But _you need to trust me_ , and trust that I know how to handle them if something happens. Alright?:. Ariana gazed down at him a moment, before letting out a sigh of regret: gently stroking his breast feathers, as she mentally reprimanded herself, "...I'm sorry Shadow, I just worry for you is all... I know one day our paths will cross with the scouts eventually, I just-, don't know what they'll do when they see you?". :It's okay to worry, with a guy like Levi in their ranks it's certainly an iffy proposition. But we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. For now, let's just focus on the task at hand:

Ariana was about to say something else, when the scent of a titan made her turn around. Through the giant trees, she saw three large ten-meter class titans coming around the edge of the eastern-side treeline, up into the copse below the village. From the way they were slowly lumbering along with dazed expressions on their faces, it was obvious they were being lured in by the baiting chimes: but even though she and Shadow could see them, it was evident the scouts hadn't yet spotted them. Glancing back at the cliff-edge and the village, they didn't seem to have heard the footsteps yet either.

Ariana folded her telescope away as she mused aloud, "Huh, Mike's nose is usually pretty good, and the winds blowing south so he should at least-

But no sooner had she spoken, a red signal flare shot up from the north side of the village, and within seconds they heard Erwin shouting orders, and everyone readying for battle, "-Oh, spoke too soon..." Ariana smiled offhand. As she watched the scouts race back to the opposite side of the village, while those down on the plains galloped back up the cliff-side road: the three titans turned and slowly made their way into the forest; much to the scouts confusion as they came to a screeching halt at the edge of the copse. As the scouts grew more and more bewildered, Ariana leaned forward like a cat that had just spotted a mouse, "Looks like this is about to get interesting" she smiled. :This is quite new for them: Shadow spelt out with an outstretched wing.

"However..." Ariana glanced behind her, to the rise where the incline came to its highest point, "Even though the titans can hear the chimes, the scouts won't be able to hear them until they clear that hill back there; let's see what they do..." she smiled, before suddenly remembering, "-Oh hell I nearly forgot!" she turned to Shadow, "You better go and see where Bryson got to, make sure he's hunkered down somewhere safe!". With an affirmative nod, Shadow took off and disappeared into the forest, while Ariana readied her concealment stone and hand-grips: "Better get ahead of them: since it looks like they're not going to kill the titans on the spot, they're gonna see where they go instead," Ariana surmised, "This is _definitely_ going to get interesting...", she shot her lines and took off in the direction of the baiting chimes, glancing over her shoulder to check the position of the titans, and calculate the likeliest route they were going to take through the giant trees.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in the village:

As the three ten-meter class titans headed up into the forest, Erwin and the scouts were somewhat at a loss what to think: "I don't get it? It's like they didn't even notice us," Eld thought aloud, "What's got their attention so badly that they'd ignore a whole bunch of humans?!" Oruo raised an eyebrow. "Ohohoh! this is so exciting!" Hange bounced up and down in her saddle, "-Let's see where they're going!" she beamed as she galloped off after them. Intrigued (as well as concerned for Hange's safety), Erwin chased after her with Mike and the Levi squad close behind, "Ness! You're in charge of the camp, we'll return when we can!" Erwin called out behind him, "Yes sir!" said squad leader replied.

Since they were going at such a slow pace, the scouts easily caught up, and found they could trot alongside the titans as they followed behind them up the incline; as they crested the rise, they spotted several other titans steadily walking in the same direction. All completely ignoring them, and seemingly staring off into empty space. "What on earth is with them all? I know abnormal's behave differently from normal titans, but this is totally new" Petra thought aloud, feeling very uncomfortable being near to so many titans, "And why are they all heading in the same direction?" Mike frowned as he gazed ahead, but the giant trees and thick understory obscured the rest of the forest from view. "Hehehe! _Two_ major discoveries in one day! This is one for the history books for sure!" Hange continued to fidget and bounce in restless excitement: "Question is, what're we going to find when we reach the same place as all these oversized shits?" Levi glanced over at the titans in destain: right now he was very on edge as he kept one hand on the reins and one on his hand-grip. "We'll find out soon enough..." Erwin replied as they pressed on.

Before long, everyone began to notice a strange sound over the bird calls and other ambient forest noises: it sounded distant as it echoed through the trees, just noticeable through the rustling of the canopy high above. But as they started to ascend downhill at a slight angle, the sound could be heard more clearly. A strange eerie low humming and mournful whistling, both rising and falling on different notes, and 'singing' a very inconsistent tune. "What is that?" Petra thought aloud as she gazed up and around at the giant trees, trying to determine where it was coming from: "Whoever they are, they're the _worse_ choir ever: can't even carry a tune right!" Oruo frowned in destain.

Following the titans for about a mile deep into the forest, the scouts soon spotted a large clearing up ahead with a big wide fast-flowing river snaking through it: with many more titans all standing in a tight cluster together, all gazing up in the same direction: whatever it was they were looking at, was obscured from sight on the ground by the giant trees. Signalling for everyone to stop, Erwin grabbed his hand-grips and discreetly spoke, "Whatever it is, we'll have to get up higher for a closer look: stay close and keep quiet"

Shooting their lines up into the canopy, the scouts flew up off their horses into the thick greenery, and made their way to the trees on the edge of the clearing: as they stepped out onto the outer-most branches and gazed down into the wide open space, they stopped and stared at the sight below; completely taken aback. Hanging from a long stout branch in a particularly tall giant tree, was a set of giant bamboo wind chimes: consisting of eight tubes ranging in size from one to eight meters, they hung from a large metal hoop supported by several small ropes which fed into a huge greased swivel, suspended by a long thick rope looped and tied around the branch. The whole thing gently spun clockwise while the tubes whistled and hummed as the wind blew through them, on the side of each tube was strange set of symbols; the likes of which the scouts had never seen before. And as they listened to the strange haunting melody, they saw all the titans were gazing up at them in a hypnotic daze, as if they were the loveliest things they'd ever heard: there had to be about fifty odd titans here, and more were arriving from all directions.

Yet again, Hange was lost for words as her overexcitement took a back-seat to her amazement and disbelief, "...They're-, attracted to those wing chimes?" she blurted out, leaning down for a better look, "No, they're being hypnotized by them! _Actually hypnotized!_ ". "Unbelievable," Mike blinked in surprise, "Who made them?" Eld thought aloud, "Indeed," Erwin concurred. "Hehehe! This is way better than I could've ever imagined!" Hange beamed with glee, "Someone _actually discovered_ how to hypnotize titans and lull them into ignoring humans! Oh the potential here is just _way too great!_ ". "... You're not wrong there Hange," Erwin knitted his brows together in contemplative thought.

* * *

Meanwhile, on the other side of the clearing above the river:

Even though she could see the scouts up in the canopy from where she was hiding, Ariana was too far away to make out what they were saying, plus the loud thundering rapids of the river didn't help: "...What're you going to do Erwin?" she murmured to herself with a frown of intrigue; already having a good idea what they might do. As the scouts continued to talk, Ariana glanced down and looked around the clearing, checking for any hints of Angel's position; "Wherever they are, they sure found a good spot to hide" she thought aloud.

On another side of the clearing, between the scouts and Ariana's position on the other side of the river, some thirty yards back into the giant trees, Carla and the twins watched the scouts from Angel's back, invisible to all as they maintained their watch. Suddenly, the wind picked up sharply for a second as Shadow's elemental form invisibly blew through the trees, depositing Bryson silently onto the avian god-titan's back. "Sorry to just drop in unannounced (no pun intended). But Shadow's just told me what's happened" he whispered, "Where's Ariana?". "We can't see her anywhere" Carla sighed in worry, :Don't worry: Shadow spelt out on the side of the tree, making sure it faced away from the scouts line of sight, :I can feel her heartbeat nearby, she's up in the trees above the river: he pointed to where the river flowed out of the clearing, although no one could see her, they breathed a sigh of relief: "Okay..." Carla turned her attention back to the scouts, "Let's see what they decide to do"

* * *

At the same time:

"Regardless of the reasons why, this is way too important to leave be! And just _think!_ With these babies handy we would never have to worry about another titan sneaking up on us whenever we're out on an expedition! We just hang them up somewhere and voua la! Instant titan protection!" Hange beamed maniacally, "For once, I actually have to agree with shitty-glasses: those chimes _would_ come in handy for keeping our troops safe" Levi threw in, "But, what'll happen if whoever hung them up comes back, and finds they're gone?" Petra pointed out, "Tough luck: the scouts have full claim on whatever property we deem useful in the name of aiding our mission, and these chimes look pretty useful" Levi deadpanned. Thinking about it, Erwin had to agree "This is indeed too big an opportunity to pass up, and there's no guarantee they'll still be here if we pass this way again," he turned to the group and ordered, "Mike, head back to the camp and prepare one of the wagons for a heavy load: once that's done arrange a couple of teams to come up here and retrieve the chimes. The rest of us will remain here and clear this area of all these titans, and dispatch any others that come into the area". "Yes sir" Mike nodded, and took off back to where the horses were waiting patiently: "Okay," Erwin readied his pairing blades and jumped off the branch, "Let's get to work!"

* * *

"Ah shit, " Ariana sighed in frustration as she watched the scouts start dispatching all the titans, "Gustav's gonna bust a blood vessel,"

"Wow, look at them go," the twins both blinked in amazement: "... So that's the Levi squad huh?" Bryson frowned as he watched the five scouts in question move with incredible speed and dexterity: their movements so attuned and synchronized to one another that Levi didn't need to give any orders, nor did any of them need to communicate; they just simply moved as one, like a murmur of starlings. :Yep, that's them: Shadow spelt out, "You weren't kidding when you said they had some serious moves" the former scout thought aloud. Carla couldn't help but feel her hackles rise in dread a little: she'd heard about the Levi squad, and from what Ariana and Shadow had described of them, she knew they were pros; but seeing them in action like this, even against hypnotized titans really put their proficiency into perspective. It made her fear for Angel and Shadow's safety, and in the back of her mind she hoped to never have to take them on in a fight: "Whatever happens, you better not engage them" she gazed up at Shadow with a stern mother hen look: "Dove," Bryson placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder, "It's okay, if anything happen we'll all be careful, and have each other's backs, alright?". Taking a deep breath as she tried to keep her cool, Carla tried to push her anxieties aside as she watched the scouts, "...You're right: I'm sorry it's just-", "-We know," the twins patted her other shoulder, "We're worried too, but that's not gonna stop us from loosing our heads" Lucius assured her, "Don't worry okay? You got this" Lucy added.

" **Seriously Javorin,** _ **has**_ **she got this?"** Elysia worried as she read Carla's aura, unsure how to quell her dread. **"It's the first time she's ever seen the scouts in action, never mind the Levi squad, it's only natural for her to feel worried: as are you"** he assured her, **"But don't worry, I'm right here: and I can sense everything happening through the forest and the winds"**. **"Hmm..."** the weather goddess groaned in worry, **"Just promise me if anything happens, you'll get them all to safety"** , **"Hey come on, it'll be alright:** _ **you'll**_ **be alright; don't focus on what might be, just concentrate on what's happening now"** Javorin coolly told her.

Glancing up at him, Elysia saw that knowing smile of his, and knew he had this in hand: swallowing hard as she tried to focus on the task at hand, Elysia couldn't help but feel her hackles rise, with her entire neck and back feather's standing on end. "Hey-" she suddenly felt Carla's soft hand on her cheek, as she got up and leaned forward to comfort her, "You'll do just fine: you always do; I'm just as scared as you are, but that's okay. We're in this together, and I'm with you whatever happens" she smiled. Elysia was amazed: 'Even under these circumstances, you're still worried more for me and the others...' she thought, as a smile crossed her lips, '...Yeah, I am scared: but I'll do this no matter what' she thought as she continued to watch the scouts: daring to hope that no matter what happened, they'll all be okay.

"That's the last titan..." Lucius pointed out as the final titan in the clearing fell dead from Erwin's pairing blades, and the group then flew up onto the branch the chimes were hanging from, "And it looks like they're now gonna try and take the chimes down" Lucy added. :As long as they stay up in the tree they'll be okay: Shadow spelt out, "More titans nearby?" Carla glanced up at him in worry, :Seventeen coming from the east, and less than a hundred and fifty yards away from them. The sound of the river is masking their footsteps, and all those trees are keeping them obscured from their line of sight. If those chimes come down they'll snap out of their stupor: they better have the sense of mind not to go down to the ground, or else they won't be able to get out the titan's way in time: Shadow worried as he watched the scouts closely...

* * *

"Who the hell can tie a knot this big?" Oruo thought aloud as he gazed down at the huge length of rope, which was just as thick as his wrist, and the knot keeping the chimes tied in place was the size of a large melon: "We better try and take it all in one piece, but don't start trying to unravel the knot just yet: we'll wait for Mike and the others to return"

"Hmm," Hange leaned down over the side of the branch for a closer look at the chimes, "You gotta wonder who built this, and how the chimes are able to hypnotize the titans: what makes them work? And what's with the strange symbols?" she pointed to said symbols on the sides of the tubes, as she quickly whipped out her journal and scribbled them down on a blank page. "...It's no language anyone is familiar with, and certainly not one that already exists within the three walls: the only place they could have come from, is somewhere _beyond_ the walls" Erwin surmised: to which everyone gazed at him in surprise.

"Beyond? As in, from the outside world?!" Petra gasped in astonishment: so caught up in the shock of Erwin's suggestion, that as she stepped back she slipped on a piece of loose moss, and fell over the side of the branch, landing on the hoop below. The swivel, (evidently not designed to take any additional weight) warped and snapped under the young woman's weight, and before anyone could reach down to grab her, Petra and the chimes fell straight down together...

* * *

"SHIT!-" Ariana hissed as she watched Petra and the chimes fall...

From their position, Carla and her team watched in equal shock and horror as the scouts were unable to grab her fast enough: "Oh no no no no!" the twins both clasped their hands over their mouths as they stared in wide-eyed fear. "This is going to be bad" Bryson frowned as he lay his hands on his hand-grips...

* * *

As she fell, Petra instinctively reached for her hand-grips and shot her lines, but as she swung into the side of the tree, a sudden jerk on her left foot stopped her from being able to take off, and as she gazed down, she was horrified to see the ropes connecting the tubes to the hoop had gotten tangled around her leg. The chimes were not so heavy that they caused her great pain, but were still an uncomfortable hindrance, and she _had_ to get them off. "PETRA!-" she heard Oruo call down to her, "Are you okay?" Erwin shouted, "I'm fine! But the chimes are caught around my leg!" she shouted back up. "Stay put! We're coming down!" Hange shouted as she readied her blades and got ready to jump...

But just as the scouts were about to descend, the thundering of fast-approaching titan footsteps made their blood freeze with dread: and as Levi jumped down to cut the ropes off, several titans came barrelling out of the understory at the edge of the clearing, and made a beeline for Petra at breakneck speed.

What happened next, happened so fast that hardly anyone had time to react: as Levi drew his blades to cut the ropes, the nearest titan lunged for Petra, but missed her and caught the longest tubes instead. Practically turning on a sixpence, Levi aimed for the titan's nape and sliced it hard: but as the titan indistinctly jerked in shock, it flung both its arms back and over hard, flinging Petra free of the chimes, but before she could react, she hit her head on the branch of a nearby tree and fell into the river unconscious. "-PETRA!" Oruo tried to go after her, but three more titans blocked his way, forcing him to quickly retreat before they too tried to grab him. Within seconds the clearing was filled with titans, and more were fast approaching; as Petra disappeared into the frothing white rapids, the scouts could do nothing but retreat back into the giant tree, and scan the river, trying to spot her.

"Does anyone see her?! Can anyone get a fix on where she is?!" Hange panicked slightly. "...I don't see her anywhere, do you?" Gunther turned to Eld, who simply shook his head, "...No...".

No one spoke as they silently lamented on their fallen comrade and friend: stoic as always, Erwin glanced down at the titans below. "..We have to remain here" he stated. "Sir?" Hange glanced at him in slight surprise, "As long as the titans are fixed on us, it'll give everyone back at camp time to retreat or fight: we have to buy them as much time as possible"

Levi looked like he wanted to go against the order for a moment: angry and embittered at loosing Petra, and unwilling to accept she was gone; but as he tried to hold his emotions in check, something at the edge of his peripheral vision caught his attention, and he snapped his head round in its direction, only to see a dark blur of movement disappear into the canopy across the clearing. "What is it?" Erwin asked, seeing the look of slight confusion in his steely blue eyes "...I could've sworn I just saw something move through the trees over there..." Levi replied: unsure of what it is he actually saw...

* * *

Watching the titan lunge at Petra made Ariana's heart skip a beat, as all she could do was watch the poor woman get eaten: but at the last possible second, the titan missed, and flung her away in the same instant Levi killed it. But the moment of sheer relief came crashing down as she saw Petra's head strike a branch, and she fell into the river. None of the other scouts, including Levi himself could go after her as the titan hoard barred their way: and as Ariana watched Petra's petite frame get tossed about in the white rapids, she knew the woman had only seconds before she drowned...

Deciding to hell with it, Ariana quickly but discreetly leapt to her feet, and dropped down into the understory below, flying over the river as she tried to find the scout amid the turbulent waters...

"This is bad! This is _really_ bad!" Lucius panicked a little, "What happened to Petra?!" Lucy gazed up at Shadow, "Is she alive?!". :She's somewhere in the water, I can't get a proper read on her!: Shadow replied anxiously, "Erwin and the others are okay: but even if they have enough gas to get back to camp, the titans will only follow them, and it'll turn into massacre!" Bryson realized. Carla and the twins glanced at him in alarm, "We gotta do _something!_ We can't just stand by and do nothing!" Lucius pleaded, "And we won't-" Carla frowned as she readied her pairing blades, "Bryson, cover me! I'm going in! You two wait here with Angel!" "Wha-, now hold on a sec! I want to help them too but we _need_ a plan of attack! We can't can't just rush in half-cocked!" Bryson stopped her as he grabbed her sleeve.

Between listening to the team bicker and watching the scouts as they remained up in the giant tree with the titans trying to reach them: Javorin suddenly sensed Ariana's hammering heartbeat moving away; extending his power out through the trees to 'see' what was going on, he watched with his mind's eye as she chased after Petra. The woman, remarkably, was still alive as she continued to drift down the river unconscious, being tossed about in the rapids like a rag-doll: somehow not taking in enough water to swamp her lungs completely. Ariana could see her, and was trying doggedly to try and grab her, but to no avail... Closing his eyes, he reached out to the spirits, and to the great powers that lay in the world beyond...

 _Great All-father, hear thy plea and receive thee, give these souls the power to overcome this tribulation: let those who fall be caught, let those in peril be spared death's hand; and let all who bare witness to thy strength, live to know thy true name._

" **Javorin! What do we do?!"** Elysia panicked, **"Don't worry, I have an idea..."** he stated. He then waved his hand in front of the humans, grabbing their attention, and spelt out :I'm making a call. Hang back and stay where you are, and if it all goes to hell get out and don't come back for me:. The invisible god-titan then drifted off into the trees, and before anyone could stop him, he was gone: "What the hell's he doing?!" Carla panicked, "Whatever it is he's got in mind, I got a feeling we're all about to find out" Bryson frowned. **"...For the love of All-father, don't get your nape slashed!"** Elysia huffed in fretful worry, realizing what he was about to do...

* * *

Ariana tried to keep pace as she scanned the rapids for Petra, but as they moved further downstream, a loud thundering sound made her glance up, and gasp in horror as she saw the top of a waterfall fast approaching.

'It's now or never!' She realized, '-only got one shot!'

Suddenly, the scout's pine green cloak reappeared amongst the white foam, and like a kingfisher diving for a minnow, Ariana quickly aimed herself downwards, recalled her lines and dived straight down with her arms stretched out: disappearing beneath the boiling rapids. A few seconds later, two lines shot out of the water, and Ariana flew up out of the river with Petra over her shoulder, just as the current was about to push them over the falls. She swung forwards with a sharp jerk and crashed into the river bank, tumbling ass over head into the ferns, with Petra landing on the grassy verge nearby.

Quickly scrambling to her feet, the young Celt kneeled down beside her as she checked her over for injuries. She was bleeding from a wound on her forehead, her left ankle was twisted in such a way that it was definitely broken, and she wasn't breathing: "Oh no..." she began to panic. Trying to keep a level head as she recalled Breck's first-aid lessons, particularly the technique in how to expel water from the lungs: Ariana placed the heel of her right hand over the middle of Petra's chest, and placing the other hand on top, began a series of steady chest compressions. "Please don't die, please don't die, please don't die" she murmured to herself over and over: willing the young woman to come back to life.

Suddenly, Petra jerked violently as she began coughing up water by the mouthfuls, much to Ariana's relief, but she remained focused as she realized her body was fighting hard to expel the water. "-Hey it's okay! I got you!" Ariana assured her as the young woman scrambled to her knees to cough hard, leaning forward as she desperately gasped for air, all the while Ariana held her steady so she didn't fall forward. After several more hard coughs, Petra took several deep breaths, gasping for air as the life returned to her: but as she turned to look at Ariana, her eyes rolled up into the back of her head, and she collapsed with a pained moan. "Oh no! Come on! What's wrong now?!" Ariana panicked as she checked her over again, wondering what in the hell just happened. It was then she noticed the wound on Petra's head was bleeding quite badly now, and her face was starting to turn slightly pale.

Realizing she was now bleeding to death, Ariana quickly reached for her hip pack, and flipping open the flap, pulled out a small bottle of one of Breck's healing elixirs: one of the higher concentrations that was only meant for life-threatening injuries. Pulling out the cork between her teeth, Ariana carefully held Petra's head as she dripped a few drops of the glowing blue liquid onto the wound: within several seconds the injury stopped bleeding and had closed up, with a pale white scar forming in its place; the colour returned to Petra's face, and she began to breath more normally.

Now turning her attention to her broken ankle, Ariana carefully scooted down to her legs, carefully pried off her boot (It wasn't what she was supposed to do to help with a broken ankle, and knew Breck would chew her out for it later; but right now she had no choice), and inspected the injury. The skin hadn't been broken, but the area around the break was swelling up with blood fast: taking the elixir and sprinkling a few drops into her hands and rubbing them together, Ariana gently massaged the ankle on all sides, and within thirty second or so the swelling began to go down and the ankle returned to normal. When she was sure the bones had completely reset and healed, Ariana flexed her foot back and forth to check it was okay, and sure enough, the joint was fine. Slipping Petra's boot back on and making sure she was comfortable, Ariana replaced the cork back on the elixir bottle, placed it back in her pack, and then rushed down to the river to wash the excess off her hands.

As she stood back up and sighed with relief, Ariana noticed they had travelled quite some distance from the clearing, probably a good several hundred yards at the most: standing at the base of a huge rocky moss-covered incline, they were on a small grassy verge with the top of the waterfall only ten or so yards away, she wandered over to the edge, and felt her stomach drop at the sight of the protruding sharp rocks some sixty or seventy feet straight down. Talk about a lucky escape. Returning to Petra's side, Ariana started wringing as much water out of her clothes as possible, although she hadn't been in the water long enough for her boots and pack to fill up, it was still uncomfortable having to move about in wet clothing.

Suddenly, a soft gust of wind blew through the trees, and Shadow materialized back into his titan form beside them. "Holy shit you took your time! Where did you take off to?!" Ariana hissed up at him, hoping not to wake Petra up. :My apologies, I had to make sure Bryson and the others were safe: he glanced down at Petra with a look of relief, :But it looks like you've got everything under control here: he smiled. Calming down and mentally face-palming herself for getting worked up again, Ariana passed a deep sigh as she gazed down at Petra, "...What do I do when she wake's up? Her gear's broken so I can't just leave her here, and with the chimes down the titans are bound to notice us: I can't use my hummer to get rid of them while babysitting her at the same time" she whispered, noticing one of the grappling hook's on Petra's ODM gear had snapped off; probably from when that titan yanked her off the tree. :I'm heading back to address that situation now, though, what I have in mind probably isn't got to make me very popular with your father and the rest of the team: Shadow spelt out with an apologetic gaze. Ariana gazed up at him with a raised eyebrow, "Huh? What'd you have in mind?", :I'll explain when we meet up later, for now, just make sure she gets back to the scout's encampment, and make sure no one else sees you, alright?:.

"Okay, just-, whatever it is you plan to do, _be careful_ : she whispered back, :Of course: he smiled as he held his hand over her, and as the markings on his skin glowed blue, all at once Ariana felt a warm humid breeze encircle her from every direction, blowing through her clothing and gear, until after a few seconds she and her clothes were completely dry, Petra's too, much to her amazement. :There, that should help. See you later, and good luck: he spelt out as all the tattoos on his body glowed, and his blue crystal grew out from the palm of his free hand, forming into his spear: "Yeah, you too big guy" She bid farewell as she watched him silently crawl up the boulders with his spear at the ready, and disappear over the top into the dense understory.

'Don't let Levi anywhere near you' Ariana silently hoped and prayed, as she stood up to maintain her watch over Petra: with the thundering waterfall and rapids, hearing any titans approach would be near-impossible; she'd have to keep her eyes attuned to the whole forest for even the slightest hint of trouble. Before long, she heard Shadow's footfalls running away off in the direction of the clearing, much to her alarm: 'What the hell's he going to do?! The scouts will hear him coming a mile off!'

* * *

"I think we can safely assume Mike smelt the titans: I don't see him anywhere nearby, do you?" Hange tried to glance through the more sparse openings in the canopy, and between the giant trunks on the outskirts of the clearing, which was now crowded with titans. With no room anywhere in the clearing, all the titans bunched together, trying in vain to reach up for the scouts, who were still trapped on their perch. "I count about fifty? Maybe sixty or more sir"Gunther glanced over at Erwin, "Even if we try to lure them in the opposite direction of the camp, there're just too many eyes on us to be able to slip away unnoticed" Eld realized. "And even if we do try to lure them off into the forest and wait 'till dark to return, we'll run out of gas long before then" Hange sombrely added. "We're going to have to make a move sooner or later" Levi pointed out.

As Erwin tried to think of a way around this, the sound of yet more titan footsteps could be heard echoing through the trees: only this time, they were running straight for the clearing. Glancing up as the thundering footsteps drew closer, Erwin's train of thought stopped abruptly as he laid his eyes on the massive form a fifteen meter class titan, running with everything it had: the thick canopy cast dark shadows through the trees, making only the titan's outline visible: but as the unusually large giant came barrelling through the greenery at breakneck speed, everyone else saw it too, making the hairs on the backs of their necks stand up and their blood run cold.

"This one looks like trouble, get ready!" Erwin frowned as he readied his blades, as did everyone else. But as the titan came within range of the clearing: it swung what looked like a massive blue staff up and over its head, and brought it down hard like a sledgehammer; knocking ten titans off their feet and sending them flying into the tree-line as it came to a screeching halt.

Time almost seemed to slow to a crawl as the whole situation was suddenly flipped on its head, and the scouts all gazed in stunned amazement at the titan, now standing before its kin with a giant blue crystal spear in both hands, assuming a fighting stance. The behemoth was enormous even by normal titan standards, with a lean but broad frame that was all muscle and raw power, with long thick light brunette hair that cascaded down its back, long pointed elfish ears, and a face that could instil terror in even the bravest of souls: for it had no lips or cheeks, just a row of exposed teeth. But unlike all other titans, its entire skin was covered in an intricate network of black swirling, pointed interconnecting shapes and patterns: almost beautiful in their design, but totally alien as it was no pattern or art form any of them had ever seen before.

The tension in the air was palpable for a brief moment, as all the titans in the clearing stopped: gazing at the intruder now in their midst, before charging at him like a stampeding herd of cattle. The titan raised his spear like a Spartan warrior with his feet planted firmly on the ground: his form was perfect, and as the titans nearest to him lunged to attack, he thrust the spear straight through the base of their necks, punching out the napes from the inside-out, and quickly drawing it back; killing five titans in one move and in one straight line. From there on the scouts watched in silence, as the strange titan practically danced around the clearing in a coordinated attack that felled titan after titan. With every thrust of his spear, every kick, punch and body-slam, he moved with ease and confidence: like flowing water his moves were as graceful and synchronized as they were powerful and fast. He used a range of different attacks and defences, utilizing the terrain to his advantage as he leapt up to grab the lowest branches of the giant trees to take flying drop kicks, and using his spear like a bo staff to double up as a secondary weapon, as well as block his opponent's from trying to bite him. All the while he remained calm and focused, never loosing his temper even once, as he continued to mow down his quarry.

As the scouts watched the mysterious titan's dance of death, Hange's mind was practically doing back-flips as she watched him weave between several large titans, swiping their feet out from under them with his spear, and then swung the weapon up and around to slice the napes all in a row: '...He's-...He's _fighting_ them: he's fighting _and_ killing those titans! How is this possible? What kind of titan is this?!' her train of thought raced by with a million questions as she watched and studied his fast-paced movements, 'He's fighting with coordinated moves, _actually thinking_ on his feet as he moves from one titan to the next: but he's not just attacking, he's also blocking the others from trying to get at him, and using a range of different tactics to boot!' her stunned expression morphed into a look of pure elated madness as a huge smile tugged at the corners of her mouth, and she continued to watch with titillated glee, 'An intelligent titan that kills its own kind, can fight with the brains and brawn of a whole army, and knows how to use a weapon', "Ooh this day couldn't get any better!" she squeaked as she blushed, trying to hold back the excitement that threatened to burst out like a volcano.

"That titan-, it's killing all the others?!" Oruo gawked, having finally got his breath back, "Quiet! Don't let it spot us! There's no telling what it might do next!" Eld firmly ordered as the mystery titan felled three more of its kin with another spear thrust. From where he stood on the branch, Levi was at a loss what to say or think: never in his life had he seen a titan like this, one that moved in such a way that it was obviously intelligent; tactically minded, and able to get the better of its prey again and again. Glancing over at Erwin, the expression on the commander's face told Levi right away that this was a big game-changer for the scouts: his intense look of concentration reflected his focus and sharpness of mind; taking stock of every last move, analysing every different technique, thinking through and working out this new titan with everything he had in his mental arsenal.

Within the span of about five minutes, the attack was over as the last titan dropped dead, and the strange titan stood in the middle of the clearing: leaning on his spear as he slowed his breathing, and calmed right down until his body was totally relaxed. From where they watched him atop their perch, (hoping and praying the steaming titan corpses would at least mask their scent) the scouts realized he hadn't seemed to have notice them, as the titan began looking all around the carnage, as if searching for something. Then, he stepped over to the edge of the clearing, and bent down to pick up the bamboo wind chimes that had been kicked aside during the ruckus: holding the tubes tucked under one arm, he held the hoop in one hand as he inspected the broken swivel between his finger and thumb. The scouts all watched in alarm, as it suddenly clicked into place who, or rather _what_ , had hung the chimes up in the first place.

'So _he's_ the one who hung them up!' Hange thought in excitement, trying like crazy to remain still and silent, but her body kept hitching with every suppressed laugh 'This titan somehow figured out how to create a set of wind chimes that hypnotizes titans and lures them in, and then wipes them all out in one fell swoop! _Oh sweet Sina on a unicorn this is way too incredible!_ '

As he inspected the broken swivel, the strange titan let out a low disappointed sigh, as if slightly annoyed he'd have to repair it. Glancing up at the branch where it had been hanging, his eyes shot wide open as he locked eyes with the scouts, and they froze on the spot. An unbearably tense moment of dread filled the scouts to the brim as the titan stared at them for what seemed like the longest few seconds, before a frown lowered his brows, and after placing the chimes back down on the ground, warily approached the branch. Acting on instinct, Levi and his three remaining squad members drew their blades, and the titan froze "Wait!-" Erwin snapped as he held up his hand to stop them; the titan didn't seem to respond, and simply kept its eyes on them.

It was only now that the scouts noticed his eyes: an incredible radiant and vivid pallet of blues that seems to glisten like sapphires and blue opals, and it was only now that they noticed he wasn't staring at them threateningly or with any kind of malicious intention; but rather, his expression seemed to hold a kind of calm. A tranquil presence that held no ill will, and seemed more curious than threatening. Cautiously taking a step closer, the titan glanced each scout up and down, studying them carefully: he made no sudden moves or sounds, as if sensing their fear. Taking a step to one side, he gently slipped the tip of his spear's blade beneath the rope, twisted it sharply to cut it loose, and caught it as it slipped off the branch.

He then stepped back over to the chimes and tied the rope around the tubes so as to hold them together, and rested them on his shoulder like a fishing pole while he held his spear with his free hand. He walked across the clearing to the north-east side where the river was flowing from, carefully stepping over the dead titans: he then stopped and glanced back, taking one last look at the six stupefied scouts, and walked up into the forest, disappearing into the dense gloomy understory; his strange markings practically making him vanish amid the dappled sunlight.

For a moment no one spoke, no one knew what to say: glancing down at all the dead steaming titans, and glancing at one another; Erwin adequately summed up the collective thoughts of the entire group "...This is unprecedented..."

* * *

"Well, this changes things," Lucius sighed as he continued to watch the clearing, "...No going back now". "That's certainly true" Carla sighed: "But perhaps? ," Bryson thought aloud, "This wasn't a totally bad call on Shadow's part", "Huh? What do you mean?" Carla frowned in confusion, "I'll explain later: right now, let's wait for them to leave before we can slip away" the former scout advised.

* * *

'What the hell was that?!' Ariana thought in alarm, 'What the hell did that big lug get up to?!'

Ariana had seen Shadow take on many titans before, and the fights that involved close-quarter combat with multiple titans were always the loudest: they rang out like a thunderstorm and shook the earth with every punch, kick and footstep; it was as awesome as it was terrifying to watch. And from the sounds of the fight she just heard, there had to have been upward of fifty titans, at least. If the scouts had been watching she could only surmise they've either been scared shitless and retreated, or worse, think Shadow was a threat and try to kill him. The fact Shadow could run and fly like the wind (literally) was the one thing that stopped her from totally panicking: and she knew he wouldn't let them come to any harm (whether they realized it or not). And if things got dicey he'd find a way to counter their attacks without hurting them: he was always careful like that.

Ariana didn't know why she was getting so worked up like this: she knew he knew how to handle himself, but it still didn't stop her from worrying none the less; whatever happened just now, goodness only knows he'd have quite a bit of explaining to do later.

Then, a soft moan snapped Ariana out of her vexing thoughts, and as she gazed down at the source, she saw Petra was coming back around, and suddenly a whole new slew of worries began to bubble up from within as her mind raced with alarm, trying to think through what to do. Petra was one of the best most proficient soldiers in the scouting legion, hand-picked by Captain Levi himself to be part of his special operations squad: she'd come to know her for over a year now (albeit at a distance), and knew she was a kind and sweet woman with a good and caring heart; but she was also a very capable soldier, one who knew how to hold her own in a fight. Ariana knew she had to play dumb, she couldn't let her know she knew her real name (among a number of other things), that would be both awkward and suspicious.

As Petra groggily lifted her hand to her head, rubbing the area where the laceration had been, Ariana silently stepped out of her line of sight: trying to keep calm and collected as she thought through how she was going to do this: when suddenly a familiar soft breeze blew through the trees, and as she spotted Shadow's glowing blue eyes watching her from the canopy above, she mentally breathed a sigh of relief, knowing her best friend had her back...

'Okay, come on: you used to do _this all the time_ back when you kept Shadow a secret, you can still pull it off' she told herself as she hid in Petra's blind-spot, and reached for her concealment stone.

* * *

The first thing she could hear was the thundering of a waterfall, and as she opened her eyes, Petra blinked in surprise as she saw a magpie perched next to her on a mossy rock, gazing down at her as it gave out a fast chatter, before flying off out of sight.

Sitting upright, she heard the magpie chattering close behind her, but didn't turn round as she rubbed her head, and gazed up at her surroundings: "Huh?...Where?- ...Where am I?" she thought aloud. For a moment she didn't know where she was or what she was doing here, until she gazed down at herself, and noticed her uniform and ODM gear; that's when it all suddenly came back to her. "Oh my god!-" she leapt to her feet as it all returned with frightening clarity: the chimes, the fall, the titans, and then nothing; the last thing she could vaguely remember was water fast approaching, and feeling weightless as coldness enveloped her. "Did I-, fall in the river?" glancing down at her dry clothes she knew that couldn't have been possible, she'd be soaking wet. Glancing over at the river, she noticed she was a good several feet from the bank, and that's when she realized, "But-, if I didn't fall into the river, how did I get here?"

The magpie chattered to her again, this time, hoping onto another rock closer to her: "... You're awfully bold" she smiled offhand, staring at the bird as it chattered again while flicking its tail. Noticing the waterfall, Petra turned to see how far a drop it was to the bottom, and was amazed by the view of the forest and plains spread out below, "... Where're the Captain and the others? I hope they're all okay" she worried.

"I'm sure they're fine" a young female voice spoke behind her.

Nearly jumping out of her skin, Petra turned on her heels: and where the magpie had been perched, there was now a young girl squatting on the rock in its place. She was dressed a little oddly: wearing a white shirt with blue and white sleeves, covered by a large black cloak that was a good several inches longer than the scout's standard-issued cloak, a dark green sash with long ends turned out loose, black trousers and military issued boots, and a black bandanna over her unkept dark auburn hair; with a black neck-chief covering her nose and mouth, and a bigger black bandanna around her neck. Something about the arrangement and colours of her cloths almost seemed reminiscent of a magpie: but her ODM gear was what really got her attention, as Petra noticed the scabbard boxes were wooden, not metal, with the sides engraved with a collection of strange images and symbols, and the hand-grips were made with a different kind of wood.

Staring at her in alarm, Petra nearly took a step back as the young stranger jumped off the rock, "I'm sorry if I scared you, but please, do be careful where you step: you don't want to fall over the edge". "Uh-, no, thank you..." Petra replied as she tried to calm herself down. Gazing into the face of this child, she was thrown off by her right eye: it was the most brilliant, unnatural shade of blue she'd ever seen: like a dazzling jewel, it almost seemed to shimmer in various hues of azure, sky and turquoise; it was rather odd, if not quite unique.

"...Um? Who are you?" Petra asked in slight confusion, "I'm Magpie" the young girl replied, even though her neckerchief concealed her face, Petra could tell she was smiling: "Magpie? As in, the bird?" she raised an eyebrow, "Yep, same one" she nodded, "And _you're_ one of the scouts, I'd recognize that wings of freedom crest anywhere!" she pointed to the crest on her jacket sleeve. "Uh yeah, how-" Petra stopped as she suddenly realized, "-Wait a minute, what're you going out here?!", "Uh? Same as you? Killing titans? _Duh,_ " she shrugged, "No I mean-, this is titan country! How have you been able to survive out here?!", "Eh, I have my ways, I am a hunter after all: being stealthy kinda comes with the territory" Magpie shrugged nonchalantly. "Okay? ..." Petra replied, not too sure if she was taking this seriously or not: deciding to stay on track with the situation at hand, she changed the subject, "Well? Can you help me at all? I seemed to have been separated from my friends, and I don't know where I am". "Oh that's easy, your camp's just half a mile from here..." Magpie stepped over to the edge of the cliff, pointing to the right, "The village is just along here: it's an easy walk if we follow the cliff" she added.

"Okay, thank you-" Petra smiled as she grabbed her hand-grips, "Ah-, I wouldn't do that, your hook's broken off" Magpie pointed to her left piston, which indeed, was missing its grappling hook: Petra gasped in alarm, "-Oh god no! How're am I going to get back alive with all the titans about?!", "Hey calm down, that's why I'm here," Magpie assured her, placing a hand on her shoulder, "I'll help you get back to your friends in one piece okay? I'll take care of any titans that come our way". Petra gazed at her in surprise, " _You-_ , will take care of any titans?" she echoed in slight disbelief, "Well yeah? I've been doing this for a while now, and I'm pretty good at it" Magpie smiled nervously. She was about to say something else, when the sound of distant titan footsteps made her pause and listen: Petra glanced up in dread, but Magpie simply narrowed her eyes, "...We better move, it's not safe to stay in one place too long: come on" Magpie beckoned her to follow as she took her hand-grips out of their holsters, "Oh-, you didn't tell me _your_ name" she glanced back at the redhead, "It's Petra" the young woman nervously replied. "Well Petra, nice to meet you".

As they walked along the cliff edge, Petra was as confused as she was alarmed: this girl, she was just a kid; probably just past the age of ten or eleven. There were so many questions she wanted to ask her, but she decided to try and stay on point with the most important ones: and so trying to play it cool, she changed the subject to a lighter note, "So uh, Magpie, You live here in Maria?", "Born and raised, you?", "Oh, a little place several miles south of the capitol", "The capitol? As in, Wall Sina? Interesting, even before the breach we hardly ever saw anyone from the heart of the interior: unless they were a merchant who owned some big company and came to trade for high-end goods". "Did you learn to use ODM gear all by yourself?", "All by myself? Eh, not quite," Magpie sheepishly chuckled, "We had a family friend who used to be in the military, he taught me... Mind you, that was before-," she paused anxiously, "Before what?" Petra asked curiously, "... _That day_..." Magpie gazed at her ruefully. "...Oh...I'm sorry," Petra apologized, knowing full well what she was referring to, "What happened to him?": "...He donned his wings one last time, and flew into battle against the titans" Magpie sighed, Petra's eyebrow's flew up in surprise, 'he was a scout?' she thought offhand; making a mental note to tell Erwin about it later.

Petra was about to ask her something else, when Magpie stopped her, "Hold up, we've been spotted..." she gestured to three large titans that were lumbering towards them: with the cliff behind her and her gear broken, Petra was absolutely terrified as the three slack-jawed monsters lazily walked towards them. Magpie pulled her over behind a giant tree, and forced her to kneel between two large roots: "You stay down and don't move 'till I come back, alright? I just gotta see to these guys, they won't be too much trouble, honest" she locked her blades into the hand-grips, fired her lines and flew off and up into the space between the trees. From her hiding place, Petra watched in stunned amazement as Magpie skilfully fought the titans: using their hulking bodies as anchors, she zipped and circled up and around, directing their attention on her for a brief moment so that they'd try to grab her, only to crash into each other. Seizing the opportunity, Magpie then darted back and forth across their napes, slashing the flesh with very little difficulty. Although she was young, Petra could see this girl had some really well developed strength and skills, in fact, her fighting style was not all that dissimilar from what she herself and the rest of the special operations squad used: she could certainly give the captain a run for his money.

As she continued to watch the girl fight, Petra noticed her pairing blades were coloured blue; 'huh? Why would she paint-'. But when Magpie circled back around, flying right over her, she saw the blades were not metal painted blue, but rather, they were made from some kind of blue crystal. Whatever it was, it was quite sharp as the blades cut through the titans flesh like a hot knife through butter.

Within hardly a minute the fight was over, and as the third titan fell dead, Magpie flew back down to the giant tree where she left the redhead, putting her blades away: "See? Hardly any trouble at all" she smiled. "Wha-" Petra stood back up with her eyes wide in amazement, " _How-_ , are you able to move like that?", "Eh, just practice really? I'm out here all the time so I don't really need to train like you guys. Come on, we better keep moving," the girl motioned for her to follow as she hoped over the roots and resumed walking along the cliff, "I'm serious! How did you-" Petra paced after her, but stopped as something else suddenly occurred to her, "...Magpie, _how old_ are you?", "Twelve?," she shrugged nonchalantly, to which Petra nearly gasped; Magpie simply kept on walking, and the scout quickly followed. Thinking this was an opportunity not to be wasted, Petra asked upfront "...How would you like to join us?" she smiled, trying not to sound desperate, "Huh?" Magpie glanced at her weirdly, "The scouts: you're the right age for conscription, and you have some _amazing_ talent, the very kind the scouts are always looking for. You could teach us how you managed to avoid the titans all this time, how you fight them: and more importantly, your strength would aid humanity greatly; what do you think?"

Magpie stopped as she gazed at her in amazement for a moment, seemingly taken aback by the offer, "...You-, really think I'd make a good scout?" she asked curiously, "But of course, you're a natural on the OMD gear, and the way you took down those three titans back there? Hell, even the commander would be impressed" Petra beamed, trying to sell it without sounding too eager. Magpie dropped her gaze in contemplation for a moment: and although her face was concealed, a look of regret seemed to fill her eyes as she met Petra's gaze again: "That's-, very kind of you: I'm flattered and honoured, really I am. But I can't just up and leave, not with my family and friends out here" she ruefully explained as she pressed on, "You have family out here?" Petra blinked in surprise, quickening her pace so as to keep up. "Yeah, pretty big too: I doubt there'd be enough room in the whole interior to fit them all in!" she chuckled anxiously before turning serious again, "...But, even if they approved: we can't go into the interior; it's too long and complicated to explain, but basically, we wouldn't be welcomed much"

"Huh? Why not?" Petra blinked in surprise, now really curious: "...When I was younger, I realized that being different is scary to some people: some aren't bothered by it, and some even welcome it. But others, hate it so much that they'd kill you: just so they don't have to look at you. Don't get me wrong we're not criminals or anything like that, it's just-, who we are, what we believe, the company we keep: it might be too much for everyone; and come to think of it, it'll probably frighten a lot of people," Magpie replied cautiously, as if trying to be careful about how she worded her explanation: Petra could tell there was something more to what she was saying, but decided not to risk putting her off by prying; she made a mental note to mention it in the debriefing later. "Basically?" Magpie sighed, trying to sum it up as best she could, "We have our reasons: not bad reasons, just-, _reasonable_ reasons. Does that make any sense?", "Uh yeah, of course" Petra nodded, deciding to just go along with it: she knew Erwin and the others were going to want to hear all about this, so it made sense play along and try to see what she could glean. "You've gotta do what you gotta do: family always comes first after all" she smiled as she scratched the back of her neck. "Oh yeah, and speaking of family, yours is straight ahead" Magpie smiled as she pointed forward.

Between the giant trees some several hundred yards away, the village of Whitefall lay straight ahead, and between the buildings they could see the scouts were okay by the looks of things. "Looks like they're alright," Magpie sighed with relief, "You better go: this is as far as I can go anyway; you'll be fine from here". "Thank you Magpie" Petra smiled in appreciation, "And, if you ever change your mind, we're out here every month" she added. "Heh, Thanks, I'll be sure to remember that" Magpie chuckled.

"Oh!-, one last thing," Petra suddenly remembered, "Before I woke up by the river, me and my friends discovered this huge set of wind chimes hanging in the trees: it was somehow hypnotizing the titans and luring them towards it; did you and your family make them?" "Oh _that..._ " Magpie gazed at her with a slightly sly twinkle in her eyes, "Yeah that was us: not the easiest thing to put together, but it does the job pretty good. Titan's are not the most cooperative creatures, even when you're trying to kill them they're very disagreeable: so we took some measures and hung them up to draw them in; that way we can just come back and dispose of them at our leisure. No harm no fuss, no fatalities" she smiled, before turning dead serious, "-Wait a sec, you didn't try to cut them down did you?". "Uh-, no not at all," Petra lied with a nervous smile, hoping this kid was as naïve as she sounded: she didn't feel good about lying to her, but under the circumstances she didn't know how she'd react if she told the truth. But her fears were quickly deflated as Magpie sighed in relief, "Oh thank goodness, you don't want to cut them down with the titans gathered around them, believe you me! The second they stop they all snap outta their trance, and then you're in deep shit. If you ever see them again, just leave them be okay? It used to be hard enough just hanging them up, never mind the repair-work involved if they get damaged".

"Used to hang up?" Petra raised an eyebrow, "Oh, my best friend does all the heavy lifting, he's really good at that kinda stuff: quite a titan-hunter too, really formidable. But he prefers a spear rather than pairing blades: weird I know, but it's a prudent choice; goodness only knows he's _way too_ big to use blades anyway. If you ever see him around, do be sure to stop and say hi," Magpie smiled as she turned to leave, "Well? I've spent too much time hanging around as it is, I gotta get going or else dad's gonna chew me out. You take care of yourself... " she paused hesitantly next to a tree stump, "... And-... One last thing... No matter hard this fight gets: no matter how many titans we have to face, Maria _will_ be reclaimed one day; it's gonna take a while, and it's not gonna be easy, but we'll get there eventually. You just keep fighting the good fight, and we'll keep at it from our end. We're out here all the time, and you guys only come out once a month: someone's gotta remain on the front lines to make sure humanity's best stays in one piece...Just-, remember that no matter how different we are, we're all the same underneath: our hearts all beat to the same tune, and they beat for humanity. You just gotta look closely enough, because not all things are as they seem: some things that seem scary, are really just misunderstood. And some things that appear bad, are probably just broken, and need someone kind and open-minded enough to help fix them... Keep that in mind, the next time you think you're in danger"

She wasn't too sure what she meant by those cryptic word's, but Petra could tell she was trying to get something important across: "I'll-, be sure to remember that. Thank you, Magpie" she smiled with respectful bow, and turned to leave, "Take care Petra," the girl smiled as she remained by the tree stump. As she looked towards the village, Petra allowed herself to relax a little, as she could hear the voices of the other scouts drifting out from between the trees, "...Oh, Magpie?" she suddenly thought of something else to ask. But as she turned around (thinking the girl couldn't be more than ten or so yards away), she saw Magpie was gone, and standing on the tree stump right by where she had been standing, a magpie watched her with a chatter, before flapping its wings and taking off.

Gazing all around, Petra was both alarmed and confused: even if she'd taken off on her ODM gear she'd have heard the piston's popping, and there were no trees or bushes in the immediate area which she could have quickly run to and ducked behind. She just, vanished. Feeling slightly uneasy, Petra picked up the pace, and starting trying to get her thoughts straight: Erwin and Levi were going to want a full report; and she didn't even know where to begin.

* * *

From her hiding spot way up in the dense canopy, with a good view of the forest-side of the village below: Ariana watched with relief as she saw Petra emerge from the trees. One of the scouts ran up to her, and soon a few others ran up to see who it was. She watched as Erwin, Hange, Mike, Levi and his squad rushed over to see what was going on, and were totally dumbfounded and relieved to see she was alive. Deciding to leave them be, Ariana silently crawled back into the trees, and climbed her way up to the top of the canopy, where the dense dappled green gave way to the open blue sky. Standing on the top-most branch, she spat out her concealment stone, reappearing practically out of thin air: and then held out her arms as the wind picked up, and Shadow carried her up and off into the sky, heading back to where Carla and her team were still hiding.

"Well? ..." she gazed up at Shadow in an uneasy mix of relief and worry, "... I guess we made the first move huh?". He nodded, but gently stroked her cheek with his warm breeze in reassurance: before long, they were back at the edge of the clearing, where the dead titans were starting to turn into skeletons, as most of their soft tissues had evaporated. Landing Ariana down on the branch next to Angel, Shadow materialized into his titan form again and stood nearby, as Carla leapt off Angel's back and ran over to hug her: "It's okay Dove, I'm fine" Ariana patted her in reassurance, before letting her go. "You scared me half to death, we didn't know where you'd gone!" Carla sighed with relief: "Where did you go?" Lucy slid down Angel's outstretched wing, "We saw you take off down the river, did you managed to rescue Petra?" Lucius asked anxiously, "Yeah I saved her, and got her back to the camp alright" Ariana replied, to which everyone paused. "You-, took her back? As in, you _walked_ her back?" Carla blinked in surprise, "Yeah, and before you ask no she wasn't any trouble: it's okay, I had the situation well in hand" she smiled sheepishly. "So, what happened?" Bryson asked eagerly.

Thinking back on it, Ariana wasn't sure where to begin: she couldn't quite believe what had happened, she'd just met one of the Levi squad, and it went okay; _actually okay._ Gazing up at Shadow, who gazed down at her with a proud fatherly smile, she sighed as she felt her mind weigh heavy with questions and cautious optimism. "...I'll explain back at camp: right now, I just want to lie down somewhere and not do anything for like, the rest of the day"

* * *

A week later, back in the Hidden land:

As she gazed up at the enormous canopy of Yggdrasil from the branch that ran alongside her bedroom window: Ariana's mind refused to remain still, as she tried to process what happened the week before. She still couldn't believe what went down: of all the likeliest scenarios she'd expected to meet the scouts under, that had _not_ been it; and the fact Erwin and his team didn't attack Shadow was just as remarkable. At the time it was incredible, but in looking back on it now, it kind of made sense as to why they didn't initially attack: "First rule of surprising the prey..." she thought aloud: feeling stupid for not remembering it sooner.

"The first one's always a freebie, because they're too stunned to move" her father smiled as he climbed out the window to sit down beside her. "...Not a totally illogical call on Shadow's part: but then, he wouldn't have put on that little display for the scouts if he sensed they were going to snap out of their shock" he then sighed in regret, "...I should've had more faith in him in _that_ regard". Sitting upright, Ariana gazed over at her father anxiously, feeling unsure of how he'd react to the question that had been on her mind for the last few days: "...Are you angry at me?", "What? No of course not," he gently wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her in for a hug, "You did the right thing, saving Petra and returning her to the scouts...I'm just-, sorry I came off as thinking that they're bad people: it's just-"

"-I know dad," Ariana patted his back, "... Look, I know I've said this before, but I'll say it again. Captain Levi may not be the most approachable guy, and Erwin's pretty hard to pin down for sure; but, if people like Petra are in the scouts, then surely some of them must be good people? If not most?". "I've no doubt they are, but, _we still_ need to be certain that they're beyond the wall cult's influence: even If they're not directly involved with the cult per se, the royal government still has power over them through the military, and if they can control the MP's under the noses of the top brass, then what's to say the scouts are not in their pockets too? ..." Tyto sighed in shame, "...You know? There was a time once I'd have agreed with you about them without a second thought: but knowing what we know now? I _hate_ how the cult have forced us to be so guarded: that we have to question _everything_ , and even question the very people fighting to reclaim Maria from the titans," he gazed at her with a mild look of resentment in his eyes, "Even here, cut off from the rest of the walled kingdom, the cult _still_ instils fear and doubt: so much so, that I never even considered that something like what you encountered with Petra, could be a possibility; and _I'm sorry_ for loosing that faith in basic human kindness", he let his gaze drop in further guilt, "Also-, I'm sorry I didn't take a more active role in your assignment: I should have been more attentive from the start, more involved; I know I had the Hunt to consider but that's no excuse. And, now that the scouts know we exist, and they know about Shadow-..." he paused in slight hesitation.

"... But when the rest of the herd jumps into action, you pay full price..." she gazed up at him with a small smile: leaning in for another hug as she thought aloud, "...I know they'll come for us: maybe not to hunt us, but they will have questions, and we'll need to provide answers one way or another; otherwise, I don't think they'll leave us alone". "I know, that's why I asked the queen for an audience with her and the Keeper: we need to decide our next move and how best to go about it", Tyto glanced over up Carla, who was looking rather down in the dumps as the Cooper twins sat with her on a branch nearby her cottage, with Angel sitting next to them, "...You know? She feels pretty bad too for not stepping in to save Petra sooner: but then, that's Carla for you, she always did have a habit of letting her priorities get a tad muddled sometimes. She means well of course, but she's eager to prove she's a capable team leader too. I'm going to talk to her later, let her know that she needn't worry: and that if she wants to step aside and let someone else be team leader, she can, there's no shame in admitting your shortcomings... I just hope she can be honest with herself"

Ariana nodded, changing the subject slightly, "So? What do you want to do? I assume you want to come on board with the assignment?". "Yes, which is why I called the meeting with the Hunt tonight: I'm going to pass the position of Hunts-Master over to Ratatosk" Tyto stated, "You think he's the right guy for the job?" Ariana raised an eyebrow, "He's been on my team since day one, and I know he's a strong, decisive and capable leader: he'll do a good job in my stead. Besides, I'll need Evrard, Falken, Eraman's help: Pascal, West, Bryson and Carla's too. If we're going to deal with the scouts, I want _all_ the people I can count on; your brothers, cousins and friends included" he explained. "What about Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel?" she asked, "Them too: we're going to do this together, just like old times: that way none of the others have to risk their lives unnecessarily; I know you all, I know what you can do, and I _trust_ you. Sound good?" he smiled.

"Yeah, thanks dad..." Ariana smiled offhand, "You know? Back during that meeting, before we set off for this month's hunt? I said there was something more you could do; well? Honestly? I couldn't put my finger on it at the time, but I think you just hit the nail on the head. I know I'm not smart enough to figure everything out: but my gut was telling me we had to do something different...And, things _are_ gonna be different from now on". "For sure," Tyto sighed as he ruffled her hair, "... I just hope we're not wrong about them"

* * *

Meanwhile, in the garden of the great tree of knowledge:

" **A bold move on your part, dear nephew,"** Aureia smiled as she reclined amid the giant roots of the shimmering white tree, **"...You do realize you've made the first move in a rather precarious game, do you not?"**

" **Change always is Aureia,"** Javorin sighed as he gazed up at the giant crystals on the mountainous cavern roof, **"Better to break the ice with a performance, rather than a show of fear: and Erwin certainly has a lot to think about before** _ **he**_ **makes his next move,"**

" **Indeed,"** Jarus glanced over at his brother, **"And that rather 'serendipitous' encounter between the scout and your little friend certainly added an interesting twist to the mix: no doubt she'll be quite the talk back at the barracks"** he smirked. **"Since when were you one for indulging in risky moves Jarus?"** Hecate folded her arm as she gazed at him sceptically, **"When were you one for becoming so cautious, Hecate?"** the one-eyed god-titan glanced back at her, **"Of all the risky ploys a god could take, this was far more up** _ **your**_ **street"** , **"Given the situation ol' goody two-shoes here wouldn't have even let me anywhere near the clearing,"** she huffed with a loud sharp "TCH!-", **"That's not true Hecate"** Javorin corrected, **"You** _ **are**_ **bolder than me, but you know how to exercise your strength just as well as I do: I still would've appreciated your help if you'd been there", "But you can't deny, I might've probably scared them into attacking for sure"** she frowned at him, **"Maybe? Maybe not? This time was unique: an incredible first for them, and they'll be wondering what to do next month; but they'll be more ready,** _ **that's**_ **for sure"** Javorin explained.

" **Which is why we need to be adequately prepared,"** Aureia stated to the assembled meeting of her fellow god-titans , **"From what you have observed of their auras, many if not all the scouts are committed to their duty: but we have to be certain they are truly beyond the wall cult's influence. Now, we need to ascertain if their hearts are** _ **truly**_ **dedicated to humanity, and that they are open to the possibility of an alliance. This, I have stated before, but now that we have revealed our presence, we must be prepared to meet the challenge that lies ahead"**

" **All well and good, but what have you got in mind?"** Hecate asked offhand, **"Tyto is going to use today's audience to request permission to form a new team: one consisting of those closest to him, that will exclusively deal with observing and studying the scouts in more in-depth detail, as well as keep them safe from the titans. This, I will approve, and of course, you four will oversee it,"** Aureia stated: to which Jarus added **"From what I have observed, gazing into the time that spans this new period: I do not see any particular incident that would pose a threat to us as a whole. It will be risky at times though: Erwin** _ **will**_ **be persistent, but I do not sense he is motivated by selfish intentions; not wholly at least. He's complicated, as all humans are: but I don't think he'll take things** _ **too**_ **far. The question is trying to ascertain how he and the scouts will fair, when removed from what their usually used to dealing with. In other words, a test must be devised to determine their true hearts and minds"**

" **A trail of the gods?"** Hecate's eyes lit up in eagerness, **"We haven't had one of** _ **those**_ **for a good few millennia"** , **"Kind of a tall order don't you think? Given none of the humans remember us anymore"** Herne raised an eyebrow. **"Not a trial per se"** Jarus explained, **"Merely, an assessment of the scouts capabilities and morals: and thanks to our young Magpie's 'off the cuff' thinking, the scouts have their first conundrum in which to contemplate. How you and the rest of Tyto's team wish to 'test' with them, we'll leave to your collective discretion; but it wouldn't be totally unwise to heed caution, and don't rush to conclusions... After all, thing are not always what they seem..."**

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Scouts HQ in Trost:

As she sat with her cup of tea in both hands, Petra started up at the clouds as they raced across the sky: her mind wandering back over the previous week, and trying to make sense of it all. To say that her encounter with Magpie caused a great deal of intrigue among her comrades was an understatement: Erwin and Hange in particular were eager for details, and after being filled in on what happened while she was gone, Petra was even more astounded, especially when she realized what Magpie was talking about when she said:

 _My best friend does all the heavy lifting, he's really good at that kinda stuff: quite a titan hunter too, really formidable. But he prefers a spear rather than pairing blades_

The mystery titan and the girl _were_ connected: but a titan making friends with a human? That was an unprecedented first, and one that had a lot of the scouts very dubious. After a hundred years of fighting and dieing at the jaws of the titans: to suddenly come across one that was killing it's own kind seemed way too good to be true; and Petra couldn't blame them for feeling that way. Had Erwin, Hange, and Levi not seen it for themselves, even they would've been highly sceptical of the idea of a benevolent titan. But on the flip side, she now knew what Magpie was referring to...

 _Who we are, what we believe, the company we keep: it might be too much for everyone; and come to think of it, it'll probably frighten a lot of people_

If that titan was her friend, and she was trying to protect him: then its wasn't surprising why she was being careful around her; she knew of the scouts and knew what they did, it was a no brainer really, and she couldn't blame her for taking precautions. But still, there were so many questions left unanswered, not least the mystery of how her clothes dried out so quickly after being saved from the river: _that_ had everyone scratching their heads, and even Hange was at a loss what to make of it. In the time it took for Petra to return to the camp, and the time Erwin and his team lost her, there was no way her clothes could have dried out _that_ fast, and if Magpie was the one that rescued her, why hadn't she been wet too? Unless something else happened; Magpie never did reveal how she saved her, and if she wasn't the one, then what-

"Hey..." Eld smiled as he sat down beside her on the bench table, stirring the redhead from her musings "-Oh, sorry Eld, I was a million miles away" she smiled sheepishly, "Still thinking about Magpie huh?" he asked as he took a swig of his drink, "How can I not? I still can't make sense of it all," she admitted, downing the last of her tea, "And, what _you guys_ saw after I fell-, I still can't quite get my head around _that_ either". "No one can," Gunther sighed as he joined them, "A titan killing his own kind? That's a first by itself: but humans in league with titans? It's a big pill to swallow. On the surface it may seem as if we have a possible ally? But there's no way it can be _that_ straight forward" he speculated aloud in a dubious tone.

"If there are other people out there and they got that titan for a guard dog, then it'll hardly be a match for the captain," Oruo stated obnoxiously as he sat down and adjusted his cravat, "True, the brute was quite formidable, but if he's got half a brain he'll be sure to stay out of our way". "Must you really talk like that?" Petra shot him a look of disdain, "We just discovered something incredible: something _totally unprecedented_ in the history of mankind, and your first assumption is to assume the worst?". "Hey, a titan is a titan is a titan: it's _always_ the worst whichever way you look at it; and at least _one_ of us still has the sense of mind to remember that" Oruo stated matter-of-factly as he folded his arms. "But still, the fact that titan didn't attack us counts for something: if it really is friends with that girl then it must have seen us as 'friendly' too: it makes sense," Eld threw in. "Maybe, but if that brat's in league with the beast then it's no surprise she snubbed your invitation to join us: with that thing for an attack dog, she must think we're second best!" Oruo smirked obnoxiously, "If had been me, I'd have had her marching back to the camp and licking the captain's boots"

"-Ugh! The next time you bite your tongue I hope you bleed out!" Petra fumed as she got up and stormed off: "... You _do know_ the captain would shudder at the very thought of _anyone's_ tongue touching his things, right?" Gunther smirked, "Even his boots". "Yeah well, it's just an expression, not to be taken literally" Oruo quickly brushed off. "Regardless of how we feel about it: it's up to the commander what we do next, and what _he_ says goes..." Eld thought aloud, as he gazed up at the window of the commander's office...

As he gazed out beyond the base's outer wall, and across the city of Trost, Erwin sat in silence, alone with his thoughts: on his desk was Petra's full transcript of her conversation with Magpie, a composite sketch (courtesy of Hange's assistant Moblit) of the strange bamboo wind chimes and the mystery titan, (or 'painted' titan as Hange nicknamed him, on account of the strange markings all over his body), the data on all the dead titans found below Whitefall, and some of the crystal-headed arrows found embedded in their flesh.

Although the remainder of this mouth's expedition didn't yield further discoveries, what they had found near Whitefall was huge: a serious game-changer, and one that demanded the right care and attention in handling it properly...

A 'rogue' titan in league with humans: at first glance it was incredible if not unbelievable, but Erwin _knew_ there was more to this than meets the eye. Between Petra's encounter and his own experience, he felt as if they'd just caught a brief glimpse into something mysterious, something _profound_ that was going on: the question was, did it pose a threat to humanity, or are there truly people out there fighting to reclaim Maria back from the titans?

The questions this put forth were numerous to say the least: but a certain few stood out to him the most; based off what they found in terms of the physical evidence...

The number of arrows they found in the dead titans below Whitefall indicated that there had to be tens of dozens of skilled archers, one's that shot the behemoths from a downwards angle, indicating they had been on the ground, while others were on hand to finish the beasts off. A very dangerous ploy for any scout, but for these people, they evidently had the means to pull it off safely: since they found no human blood at the scene. And then there was the mystery of the arrows themselves: all the arrow heads were carved from rose, smoky and clear quartz, or amethyst, and had been coated in a bright green substance that smelled like sweet vinegar and cucumbers. Was this what caused the delay in the titan's natural decomposition? That instead of being completely gone in less than an hour, they evaporated over a much longer period of time? For what purpose did that serve? Or could it be that the green substance had another affect on the titans? One that only worked whilst they were alive, and the slowed evaporation time was merely a by-product.

Then there was the issue of Magpie's ODM gear: besides not being a standard military-issued unit (on account of the wooden scabbard boxes and different hand-grips), there was the question of where she got the gas from. Erwin knew that for a few decades now, there had been uncommon rumours among certain individuals that the ice-burst stone caravans beneath the industrial city, might not be the only ones in existence. Some people had speculated that there were other caverns in the far remote areas of the Marian forests and mountains, but that they were too far and too inaccessible to ever be properly mined: plus the fact there was no absolute proof of their existence. Was it possible Magpie and her 'family' stumbled across one of these fabled undiscovered caverns? But even so, turning ice-burst stones into gas was a task that required specialized machinery, the likes of which could only be found in the industrial city (not to mention building the ODM gear in general required iron bamboo and ultra-hard steel: also near-impossible to come by outside of the industrial city, except for on the black market). So unless she and her family had looted the abandoned military depots in the walled cities, and pillaged the corpses of fallen scouts, where did the gas and gear come from? Plus, Petra's observation of her 'blue crystal' pairing blades also confirmed her connection to the painted titan, since he had a spear made of the same substance (presumably).

But more prominently, the symbols on the wind chimes and the markings on the titan's flesh were of the same style and design: where did they come from? what was their relevance? What meaning did they carry? Was it a practical or symbolic purpose? Or was it something else entirely? These questions and many more kept coming up again and again as Erwin tried to connect all the dots: trying to make sense with what he had, and trying to fill in the gaps with what made the most reasonable sense and logic.

 _We have our reasons: not bad reasons, just-, reasonable reasons. Does that make any sense?_

Of all the evidence of this mystery collected, those words in Petra's transcript kept coming back to him for some reason...

 _You just gotta look closely enough, because not all things are as they seem: some things that seem scary, are really just misunderstood. And some things that appear bad, are probably just broken, and need someone kind and open-minded enough to help fix them... Keep that in mind, the next time you think you're in danger_

Magpie was definitely trying to send them a message: which led Erwin to wonder if Petra's 'encounter' had really been an accident at all? Was it an opportunity to get close? To say hello and leave a good impression? Or was it something else? Between the painted titan's performance and Magpie's own behaviour, he _knew_ there was something at work here: his gut, instincts and intuition were sure of it...

A knock at the door stirred him from his contemplations, and he turned his gaze upwards to see Levi come in. Somewhere on the same floor, Hange's elated chatterings and laughter could be heard echoing loudly down the corridor: the scout's resident titan-scientist had been on fire since returning to the base, and despite it being a week since the expedition, she was still having a ball with what they'd found. "You keep brooding any louder and the whole damn building's going to come down," the captain deadpanned as he took a seat by the desk, "We haven't even been back a week and already the whole base is wondering what we're going to do next month: not to sound naïve but I _assume_ we're going to be investigating this matter? Even I can't deny this is big,"

"Actually, you caught me in the middle of compiling the report," Erwin laced his fingers together as he leaned back in his chair, "I'll be sending it express this month, sealed and for the Zackly's eyes only: the last thing we need is for the rest of the military to get wind of this; but it's not like we can keep it to ourselves either". "Obviously," Levi dryly replied as he folded his arms, "But still, it's not like our financiers can back out if they wanted to just yet: we got our budget approved, remember? We _can_ look into this if we want to". "Yes, but that budget was approved with the view to establishing a supply route to Shiganshina: if we're to start an investigation into _this_ particular matter, then we're going to require additional resources, and for that we'll need Zackly's approval on the new budget" Erwin explained. "Not to sound like a neigh-sayer but what makes you think the old man's gonna say yes? He's not one for bullshitting, and suffice to say: even _I'm_ having a hard time accepting what we saw," Levi frowned: "True, but I think the evidence speaks for itself: in the numbers as well as the evidence we found in Whitefall" Erwin smiled with a cunning twinkle his eyes.

"Hm?" Levi blinked in surprise, "What'd you mean by that?" he pressed him, wondering where the commander was going with this: Erwin obliged as he explained "For the past two years, particularly over these last twelve to fourteen months, we've seen a dramatic decrease in the number of titans sighted around Wall Rose and out on the expeditions, as well as our own fatalities. If this 'painted' titan and his human allies really are the ones responsible for the drop in their numbers, then its a safe bet they're highly proficient in their unique methodology. Being able to kill titans on a massive scale, and all with a minimal loss of life. After all, every time we go out on an expedition we always pass by the bones of our fallen comrades, but never anyone else's. Especially, anyone wearing custom-made ODM gear..." he glanced down at the papers and arrows on the desk, "... Regardless of how they feel about the Scouting Legion in general, the financiers _will_ have seen the monthly reports over the past year, and when they inspect the profits and losses, they'll see all that tax money doesn't seem to be going down the drain as much as it used to. At the end of the day, money and numbers is what speaks to them the most: and that could be enough to pacify them, if only to let Zackly have the final say in whatever request we send through. As for Zackly himself? I'll explain it all as best I can: the arrows are the only physical evidence we have, plus our eye-witness accounts and Petra's transcripts; it'll be tough to convince him, but we'd have nothing to gain by keeping this a secret"

"Fine, but what do we do if we run into that giant painted beast again? I don't care how 'friendly' he might be with that brat: he's still a titan, and he's fair game as far as I'm concerned" Levi stated, his tone telling the commander where he stood on this particular concern. "A valid concern: and one I'm not taking for granted," Erwin nodded, "But we could take advantage of this, _if_ we handle it correctly: it's simply a question of figuring out the right way to go about this" he stated as he got up, and wandered over to the window. "So what've you got in mind for next month? There's no telling how Zackly might respond, so what do we do in the meantime?" the captain pressed him.

"We continue with the supply route as usual, but we'll spend what time we can trying to get a lead on this: the painted titan will be a challenge, but if his benevolence is focused on Magpie, then she'll be our best bet in trying to get closer to him", Erwin explained, "Fair enough, but Maria's a big place, and if she really is good at hiding from the titans, then she won't be found unless she _wants_ us to find her"

"True, but I was thinking more along the lines of letting _her_ find us: it's a long shot, but there might be one way we can entice her out..." Erwin replied as he gazed down at Petra, watching her as she chatted with some of the younger scouts in the courtyard down below.

"...By the way," Levi suddenly remembered: "What Petra said: about the brat's mentor possibly being a scout: any leads yet?"

"Thus far no luck" Erwin sighed, "The civilian identification records are still in a mess from two years ago, and our own records show no sign of any current or former scouts residing in Shiganshina... Whoever he was, he taught her well..."

* * *

One month later, June, somewhere deep in the Marian forest:

"Okay, the gang's all back together," Pascal smiled facetiously, before deadpaning, "...So how the hell are we gonna do this?"

"With quick wits and cunning, just like we used to do back before the breach; the aim is to get up real close without being seen, so all we have to do employ the same tactics we used to keep Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel hidden, only, in kinda reverse" Belle stated boldly.

"Quick wits and cunning are all well and good, but this time it ain't a bunch of half-drunk Garrison soldiers or slacking-off MP's: this is the Scouts we're talking about. It's going to take every once of skill combined just to make sure we don't get caught" West pointed out.

"Yeah, if your monthly assignment reports are accurate-" Dale turned to Ariana, "-Excuse me, _they are_ " she folded her arms as she shot him a dry look: ", Then, we're going to have to pay particular attention to the special operations squad, Hange, Mike, and Erwin in particular" the young Celt sighed as he too folded his arms. Bryson decided to throw in his opinion, "They're all formidable, but _can_ we establish a line of communication? _That's_ the question. Since Magpie's encounter with Petra last month I feel we might have broken the first hole in the ice: the question is whether we can chip a little more away": "Awfully optimistic of you, considering a guy like Levi's in charge of the squad: if that pipsqueak's really got a hate-on for the titans like you said, then he's gonna be the trickiest of the bunch" Pascal glanced over at Ariana; "Undoubtedly: but he respects Petra, and I think if he knows she's okay, along with the rest of his squad, that might be enough to make him reconsider any negative views he might have of Shadow" she surmised.

:I think Petra's a safe bet, in terms of human-on-human contact: Shadow spelt out, :Though, how she'll react to me, or any of us may prove to be quite different: he gestured to Midnight, Boar and Angel. "Yeah but let's not forget," Evrard threw in, "She'll have told Erwin and the others about her 'rescue': between that and his own encounter with you, they're going to realize your both connected, and that might get them thinking". "Or not?" Jaye shrugged nonchalantly, "Not to sound like a neigh-sayer, but we still have to take into account the scouts might've reacted negatively to last month's encounter: maybe to them a titan is a titan is a titan, no acceptations"

"We don't think that's likely," the Cooper twins shook their heads, before Lucius explained, "Going over Ariana' reports and from what we saw last month, we don't think Erwin's likely to assume that. The guy's astute and shrewd to a tee, he's gonna be thinking of a way to try and find Shadow and Magpie again: preferably both together". "Hardly a pressing issue, given how well you two can hide without the concealment stones" Hawk threw in, "But what do we do if more of us are sighted, what's _he_ going to do then?"

"These are all valid points, and I'm well aware of the need to maintain our secrecy" Carla stepped in, "But aren't these the people who we're hopefully going to approach with an offer of an alliance one day? Forgive me if I sound naïve but why continue to hide from them if we're supposed to be reaching out?"

"I know it's not a simple or straightforward situation: but we need to have all our facts straight before we can take the next step," Tyto stated as he addressed the whole group, "I know it sounds counter-intuitive: trying to keep some distance while trying to get up close at the same time, but for everyone's safety, including yours," he glanced up at the god-titans, "We must not let the scouts become aware of the Hunt's presence: what happened last month can't be helped, and given the circumstances we're all very lucky things turned out okay for everyone. Which gives us an opportunity to continue where we left off on that good note"

"So, that being said, what've you got in mind?" Clay asked: Tyto turned to Bryon, as he stepped forward to voice his thoughts; "After careful consideration: we've decided to play this simple and straight-forward, for now. First we've got to get a idea of what we'll be dealing with: you and Shadow may know the scouts well, but we've got to get up to speed and get an idea of who and what we're dealing with. A report written on paper only gets you so far, before a face to face encounter gives you a true idea of the person and their ways,"he glanced over at Ariana, "For this reason, we will both trail the scouts and bait them where necessary: drop them some 'breadcrumbs' so as to keep their attention on us, that way the Hunt can continue without risk of interference. We will essentially be allowing them to observe us, and vice versa it'll be an opportunity to get close to them. But, in the moments when the scouts have their eyes on us: it is important to exercise restraint and discretion. The idea of a benevolent titan working alongside humans is one thing, but I think it's fair to say the scouts are not yet ready to see the god-titan's true powers. Ergo, we will rely only on the concealment stones, and our good friend's illusions to manoeuvrer around the scouts" he glanced up at said god-titan's, "Whatever you guys decide to do in terms of handling the scouts, we'll leave solely to your discretion: we all trust you to handle this; okay?". The four god-titan's nodded, before Bryson gazed back at the humans, "This is basically going to be a game of hide and seek: who will be hiding and who will be seeking will change constantly between us and the scouts. Going on what Magpie told Petra last month, the scouts believe I died in Shiganshina, so unfortunately I have to keep my head down, for now: call it a hunch but I don't think it'd be prudent to let the Legion see there's a former scout in our ranks; it could give the wrong impression. So in the meantime, I'll be watching everything that happens and make sure nothing gets out of hand: I won't be far off. Alright?"

Everyone voiced their agreement, while Ariana stepped out to the edge of the forest, and gazed out over the open grassland: "The scouts are unlikely to go back to Whitefall: since they saw you take the chimes away, they'll think that's a dead end" she glanced up at Shadow: the giant nodded in agreement as he knelt down, looming over her, "We need to watch them and be able to get close, but how're we gonna do that if they're galloping all over the place trying to pick up our trail? We need to set up something to lure them in: something that'll convince them to hang around and investigate. We could put up another set of chimes? But then, they might try to take those too" Ariana speculated aloud as she leaned against a giant tree.

"It's one thing to hunt a wolf by tying the bait to a tree" her father suggested, "But quite another when he picks up your scent on the bait itself: if Erwin really is as smart as you say he is, then he's going to realize something's up. We might get away with it once, but not continuously: we're going to have to take our opportunities where we can get them, and just remember to stay sharp. After all, I wouldn't put it past the scouts to lay a trap for us too: this is going to go both ways, and once they realize we're observing them, they're either going to take advantage of our curiosity, or rethink their whole approach so as to try and maintain the upper hand. Last month was a fluke, but this time we'll both be expecting something to happen"

"I don't know about you guys but I'm kind of excited," Belle smiled as she practically bounced on her heels, "For what?! Probably nearly getting caught or getting chased by Capitan Levi?!" Poppy worried, "Hey, if the pipsqueak's around, I'll knock him down a few pegs" Rowan boasted, "You can try, but he's already short enough as it is" Ariana smirked, to which the other kids couldn't help but chuckle.

" **I have to confess, now that we're out here, this 'pipsqueak' intrigues me"** Hecate mentally sighed as she folded her arms, **"Trust me, he won't disappoint you"** Javorin smirked. **"I'm interested to see just how crazy Hange is,"** Herne grinned as he picked his teeth with one of his claws, **"She sound's like a real little firecracker"**. **"And then some"** his brother nodded. **"You guys better not saddle me up in the trees,"** Elysia shot them all a dry look, **"Carla's going to be needing me on point to make sure the scouts don't take any liberties:** _ **I have a job to do**_ **you know!"**. **"** _ **We know**_ **, as if we didn't need reminding the last three times already,"** Hecate shot back with a sharp "TCH!-". **"We each have our part to play in this little game, just remember not to overreact: we don't want the scouts thinking we're aggressive towards them"** Javorin stated, **"It may seem like a tall order, especially with the more stubborn scouts: but if we're patient and play our cards right, then in time even the testiest of them will come to see we're no threat"**. **"Of course, but to do that, we've got to interact with them: even briefly if need-be. This whole 'maintaining distance' thing Tyto's got in mind is a fair ploy: understandably. But it's not going to be practical forever"** Herne pointed out as he scratched behind his ear, **"Look, I'm not saying we should let the scouts 'run into' the Hunt 'by accident'; but they know something's up by now. With the drop in their monthly fatalities, and all those arrows they found in the titans near Whitefall, they undoubtedly know there's more than just one hunter out here"**. **"For sure, and while they have the first few pieces of the puzzle, Erwin won't jump to conclusions before he too has all the facts: he may be unconventional for a scout (nevermind a commander), but he's anything but reckless, and he won't jeopardize a chance to learn more"** Javorin replied. **"So what? You'll be taking point on this?"** Hecate raised a sceptical eyebrow, **"For the time being at least"** the blue-eyed god nodded, **"We don't want to give too much away before we've had a chance to begin: but on the off-chance things somehow get out of hand, then intervene if you must. Just-, don't get too ahead of yourself, alright?"** : **"Me? Never..."** the black and white goddess smirked like a cat that just ate a canary, **"Well? Except maybe with one or two: the 'pipsqueak' sounds like he'll be fun"** , **"With you? I bet he will"** Herne chuckled.

" **Hold on..."** Javorin held up his hand to silence them, **"...I have them"**. Seeing Shadow gaze out over the grassland with a serious expression and his elfin ears pricked forward, everyone stilled as Ariana and Tyto both flew up onto his shoulder. "What's up Shadow? Do you feel them?" the Grey owl elder asked, :Fifteen miles north-east and baring south at a steady pace: he replied as he felt the distant echoes of horse hooves pounding the ground, reverberating through the roots of the grasses and trees, all the way to the forest...

* * *

Meanwhile, fifteen miles north-east:

As the long range scouting formation thundered across the open grassland, passing by sparse copses of pines and scattered trading posts and hamlets, everyone's head was on a swivel, more so than usual. As he scanned the surrounding landscape, Erwin thought back to his meeting with the Commander-in-Chief, Darius Zackly, not three days before they set out on this latest expedition...

 _You did the right thing in bringing this to my attention, though you do realize the incredibility of it, do you not? Understandably I can't just take this as it is without further evidence to back up your statement, but what you have initially presented does raise some interesting questions to say the least. If you can collect further information on this 'painted titan', and these supposed 'titan hunters', then we'll see where we go from there. If they prove to be truly committed to humanity's survival then we'll need to find them and bring them into our fold: but if not? Well then, I'll leave it to you to take care of the issue. But in the meantime, I suggest a wait-and-see approach will be your safest opposition: find them, but do not engage unless absolutely necessary... Think before you act, and watch your step; after all, we've yet to see what the truth really is._

Erwin hadn't intended to do it any other way: he figured the best option would be to try and find another set of those wind chimes, and wait and see what happens (if anything might happen at all?). At this point he couldn't safely say what would or wouldn't happen, this was still too new a discovery, and he didn't want to put his soldiers in unnecessary danger. Jumping the gun was not an option: better to play it safe, rather than be sorry if something happened; for now though, he was just thankful Zackly's curiosity had afforded him the opportunity to look into this matter.

From where she rode behind Levi and Eld, Petra tried to keep her mind on the expedition, and reaching their destination in one piece: but being out here in Maria again, and knowing Magpie was out there somewhere, she couldn't help but wonder how the young girl was fairing. Was she okay? Were her family getting by alright? This and other concerning questions had her curious, and wishing to hopefully run into her again; if anything, to see her 'big friend' for herself...

Petra's encounter near Whitefall had the whole Legion talking: the idea that there were survivors of the breach living wild in the forests of Maria alongside a benevolent titan was weird to say the least, and disconcerting at the most. The whole regiment was split down the middle on what to believe, and it left everyone wondering what this month's expedition had in store. As she pondered on the squad's recollection of the painted titan: it reminded Petra of a rumour she'd heard being passed around the Garrison once or twice, about how three strange-looking rouge titans seemingly appeared out of nowhere during the breach, and how they fought the titans back with 'the fury of the gods' (as some had described it) before disappearing into the fray; could this painted titan have been one of them? And if so, what happened to the other two? As for Magpie's 'ODM gear teacher', upon further investigation everyone was surprised to learn of another rumour the Garrison circulated from time to time; the story of the lone scout, and how several Garrison troops who were stationed in Shiganshina at the time saw him fly into battle, taking on a whole hoard of titans single-handedly before disappearing amid the carnage and chaos. Who we was, no one knew: not even a name had surfaced; but whoever he was, he must've been a truly formidable scout. From what Petra described of Magpie's fighting style, and it's uncanny resemblance to what the Levi squad commonly used in combat against the titans: he must've been a veteran of several years at least, and a powerfully fast one at that.

But as serendipitous as it seemed, it also raised the question: if he taught Magpie how to fight like a scout, what else did he teach her? Did he disclose anything about the Legion to her? Did he teach her their rules, protocols and procedures? And if so, was this how she was able to evade them in the first place? It was possible, but no one knew of anyone then-currently living in Shiganshina who had been a scout, so the only other conclusion must be that he was either discharged or retired; both very highly unlikely given the scouts occupational dangers and high fatality rates, but not impossible. But the records from the time of the breach had been a complete mess: between the influx of refugees, the rush to rehome and feed them all, and the selection process for the conscription of the failed retrieval operation the following year, the record keepers had lost track of a fair amount of people; and the fact the royal government had provided no additional support didn't help at all.

Regardless of how she learned to use ODM gear, there was no denying Magpie was as capable as any scout, which meant getting the drop on her was going to be a challenging proposition: especially if she knew how to hide, and could (most likely) see them coming a mile off.

Glancing over at the Captain, and seeing his ever present stone-cold face, Petra could tell he wasn't fazed by this: he was wary, but Captain Levi wasn't the kind of man to second-guess himself, or his squad; he had taken on many titans and wasn't one to run from a fight. Although she hadn't seen the painted titan in person, Petra could tell from the looks on each of her squad member's faces that the encounter had left them shocked and dismayed; even the Captain, for the briefest of moments, seemed to hold a slight quiver of uneasiness in his steel blue eyes, before brushing it off and dismissing it as nothing. He wasn't foolish or boastful (unlike Oruo), but he wasn't entirely modest: his professional pride did have a habit of showing through at times, and the idea that a titan could take him on and stand a chance of winning, was like waving a red rag at a bull. If he ever saw that titan again, Petra knew it would only be Erwin's orders that would stop the Captain from charging in and dispatching the titan without question: for him, it was just another titan, regardless of any friendliness.

Somehow, something about that didn't feel right.

"You okay Petra?" Gunther asked, stirring her from her vexation: "Uh-, yeah: just trying to keep my head straight is all," she replied nonchalantly, trying to keep her anxiety from being noticed, "You think that painted titan's going to show up again Gunther?". "Dunno, but if he is around, we'll be ready this time" he replied. "Ha! You can bet your ass we'll be ready: pairing blades an' all- GHA!" Oruo jerked as he accidentally bit his tongue.

Petra was about to reprimand him for his arrogance, when suddenly, several black and red signal flares shot up into the sky west of the formation. "Great," Gunther sighed. As the distant thunder of titan footsteps began to echo through a large expanse of pines and spruces, Erwin fired his green signal flare south-east: within seconds the whole formation fired their flairs to confirm the change in direction, and everyone veered sharply to the south-east. "Any alternative routes from here?" the commander glanced over at Mike, who quickly glanced down at the folded up map he had in one hand: "There's a small village several miles up ahead: with a main road leading up through the forest to Bridgetowen, we can get back on the main route from there. It's not the fastest way, but it's the most direct from here" the human hunting hound replied, "Alright" Erwin nodded, "lead on".

"Oh wow! Check out those fine fellows!" Hange grinned as several regular and abnormal titans came barrelling out of the trees less than a few hundred meters behind them, all varying in height as they tried to chase after the centre of the formation. "But not as fine as our big blue-eyed friend!" she beamed, turning to the commander, "So what's our next move if we see the big guy again? Follow him and learn everything we can?"

"Exactly" Erwin nodded, "If we encounter the painted titan again, your orders are to remain stationary and observe the titan's movements and behaviour; _do not engage_ unless absolutely necessary," he glanced over at Levi with an expression that told him the subject wasn't up for debate, "And by that, I mean unless one of our own is in danger of being attacked", he glanced back over at Hange: "For now, we study him: gather every last piece of information, and then decide what to do once we have enough"

"What do we do if we run into Magpie?" Petra asked offhand, "She'll be a slightly different matter," Erwin replied, "We don't know how she'll react to seeing us as a group: we best be prepared for anything", "I take it we're going to try and question the brat?" Levi surmised, "Yes, but we don't want to come off as aggressive, so we'll take things easy and try not to scare her off". "And if she gives us the run-around?" Levi raised an eyebrow, "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it: for all we know, we may not run into them this time" Erwin replied, "Let's just concentrate on the mission at hand, don't forget, we've still gut a supply route to establish"

As the scouts galloped onwards, the edge of the great Marian forest loomed into view, with a couple of low-lying rolling mountains on the horizon: the titans showed no sign of letting up, so a few teams at the edge of the formation broke away to engage them; quickly making short work of the monsters as they cut them down in succession. But as the scouts neared the sea of giant trees, those at the front and in the middle of the formation spotted several steam plumes rising up into the sky, from somewhere within the forest.

As he watched the steam rise, Erwin caught sight of something dart down through the clouds into the trees; it was too fast to get a good look, but no sooner had he seen the steam, everyone else confirmed they'd seen it too. "The hunters?" Mike raised an eyebrow, "Undoubtedly" Erwin frowned, "Your orders?" Levi glanced over at the commander, ready for action. Watching five more steam plumes emerge from the tops of the trees, Erwin got an idea: "Beat the bushes and see what flies out: at this distance there's no way they'll have time to run and hide". Knowing what he was implying, the squad leaders all nodded, and knew what to do, "Right on!" Hange grinned as she pressed her horse to go at full gallop, heading straight for the forest, which was now less than five miles away.

* * *

Meanwhile, about a mile up into the forest:

"GUUUUYS! WE'RE IN TROUBLE!" one of the Rangers shouted at the top of his lungs, as his bird-titan swooped down through the trees and perched on a branch above where the baiters were luring in the titans with their hummers, while the attackers waited patiently nearby; the commotion caused everyone to break cover and run to see what was wrong, "Whistler? What's wrong?!" Bowen asked in alarm as he noticed the man's flustered face, "-The scouts are fast approaching from the north! They're less than five miles away and heading straight for our position!"

Every Celt, Ranger and god-titan looked at one another as panic began to set in amongst the group: but Bowen was quick to put a stop to it before anyone had a chance to loose their nerve: "Alright everyone calm down! There's no need to panic!" he bellowed, grabbing everyone's attention, "Quickly dispatch these titans, grab your concealment stones and find a place to hide! We've trained for this, so just keep a level head and remember what to do! Those of you with bird-titans fly off and warn the other groups! Now get going!". The attackers quickly moved in and killed all the titans present as the baiters and archers gathered their hummers, bows and quivers and slung them over their shoulders: before engaging their ODM gear, and flying off to find their god-titans. Some of the bird-titans and their riders took off for the base camp and other three groups who were near the foot of the mountains: too far away for the scouts to reach at their current position, but not so far away they wouldn't be able to spot the steam plumes from the other titans they'd killed.

As the humans hunkered down with their giant friends, the god-titans cast their concealment spells, and everyone vanished from sight: those who were on their own or in small groups quickly blew on their concealment stones and popped them in their mouths, also vanishing from sight; while some simply threw up the hoods of their ghillie cloaks and found hiding spots amid the undergrowth and canopy to blend in with, slowing their breathing and getting into a comfortable position to remain as still as possible.

As the wind carried the scent of horses and soldiers through the forest, everyone waited as the distant sound of thundering hooves neared. From where he watched the brick road up in the dense canopy along with several of his hunters, Bowen frowned as he caught a whiff of Tyto's scent, and turning around, breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the Grey Owl elder climb into view, with his brothers at his side, along with Bryson, Pascal and West. "Holy-, how the hell did you get here so fast?!", "You can thank Shadow's wind magics for our speed: he also picked up the scouts change in direction, so what's the situation?" Tyto glanced all around, unable to see anyone down below or in the nearby trees, "We're okay, we all managed to hide: but the scouts will have seen the steam", "We know, and they're not likely to leave any time soon" Evrard sighed in annoyance. "Don't worry though, we have a plan (of sorts)" Falken shrugged, trying not to sound so sheepish as Evernight waited on the branch beside him, "Well? Sort of is better than nothing," Bowen shrugged. "We'll try and get their attention: get them far enough away so you guys can clear out of here" Eraman explained as his ravens perched on the branch beside Evernight, "Dove and Angel are keeping an eye on things from above, hopefully they won't have to intervene if the scouts get a little too close for comfort". "So who's doing the baiting?" one of the other Celts asked offhand, "Magpie and Shadow: actually they're not far away, they're just waiting for the scouts to come" West replied. "We'll be tailing them, so I'm afraid we can't hang around here guys," Bryson added, "Well then? I just hope the scouts are in a curious mood today," Bowen frowned as he continued watching the road, and listening as the first several scouts came into view, and headed straight for where the dead titans lay.

Suddenly, the sound of titan footsteps boomed from the rear right, as a large ten-meter titan gave chase: the rest broke away to avoid running into the behemoth, while a few others galloped on, chasing after the titan; presumably to kill it. One rider in particular stood out: "That one riding the pale grey, he must've been Erwin: he's the only one who rides a pale grey, right?" Falken glanced over at Tyto, "Right," the Grey Owl nodded "Let's go...".

* * *

"Well? No birds yet, but I'd say we've got the right bait at least!" Hange smiled over at Mike and Erwin as they chased after the titan: while up ahead, Levi and his squad held the beast's attention as it chased after them. "Hopefully, if we can lure this big-boy to where we spotted the steam plumes point of origin, we might just run into our big blue-eyed friend!" "That's _if_ it's really him" Mike frowned, "Right now I can't smell anything else except dead titans: he could be using the corpses to mask his own scent,". "In which case he could be anywhere" Erwin frowned in concern.

Hange was about to suggest something else, when she began to notice the ten meter behemoth was slowing down, and its breathing becoming more laboured: "Huh? What's up with this guy?" she thought aloud, until a flash of colour near the titan's nape caught her eye: it was an arrow, and where the head was embedded in its flesh, the titan's skin was beginning to take on a more unhealthy shade of grey, quickly spreading over the shoulders and right down the spine, before turning black, as if the skin was turning necrotic. Noticing the titan was slowing down as well, Levi and his squad slowed their horses so as to keep pace, albeit while maintaining a safe distance: "Oh my god look! That wasn't there before!" Hange pointed to the arrow in excitement, "Someone just shot that!", "Which means-" Erwin's eyebrows flew open in realization, "The hunters are right over our heads! ..." he quickly glanced up, and through the thick canopy some hundred meters away, he spotted someone on ODM gear take off through the trees. "There!-" he barked as he quickly grabbed his hand-grips and took off, flying out of his saddle and up into the canopy, followed by the others; "Ha! Now we're cooking with fire!" Hange beamed.

* * *

"-Shit! Where the hell did _they_ come from?!" Red cursed his luck as he took off as fast as his ODM gear could carry him, sweating bullets as he heard the scouts chase after him: down below, his best friend Ginger was invisibly keeping pace, even though Red couldn't see her, he could hear her cloven hooves strike the ground as the deer-titan bounded through the undergrowth at high speed. Swinging down until he flew some four meters above the ground, he hissed down to her, "Ginger listen! You _got_ to get away! Find somewhere to hide, I'll try and draw them off!"

Glancing up at him in worry, Ginger repapered only to him, and bleated desperately to try and get him to come with her: "No! It's _you_ they mustn't see! Don't worry about me, I'll find a way to evade them: now get going, and don't come after me no matter what!" he pleaded, aiming upwards and banking left while Ginger disappeared again. With a frown of determination, the red-headed deer-titan turned and headed up into the forest, running parallel to the scouts while keeping a safe distance: there was no way in hell she was abandoning her best friend; she'd think of a way to rescue him, the question was, how?

'All-father help me, don't let anything happen to my Red!' she thought as she swallowed hard.

" **Hey-"** Midnight invisibly flew down beside her in her shadow form, dipping in and out of the shadows of the forest **"Follow me, I have an idea"**

* * *

"Oh no..." Ariana worried as she watched the scouts chase the young hunter, flying alongside Angel as Shadow kept her aloft in his elemental form: "They found Red!" she called over to Carla, "He may be good at outrunning titans but there's no way he'll be able to outrun the Levi squad!". "That's not the only problem! Look!" Carla pointed ahead: the knot in Ariana's gut tightened as she spotted the fifteen titans approaching from over a mile away to the south. "Okay, I'll take care of the titans, Shadow, you get Red outta there: Dove, Angel, cover me!" Ariana shouted as she bent forward to dive, did a forward roll as gravity took over, and shot her lines down through a space in the canopy, flying parallel to Red and proceeding to close the gap between them.

Glancing behind her, she saw it was only Erwin, Hange, Mike trailing after the Levi squad: "Okay, no back up: good" she nodded. But no sooner had she spoken, several teams from Mike and Hange's squads came flying in at a right angle to Red, almost hitting him as they just barely spotted him in time, and quickly gave chase. "SHIT!-" Ariana frowned as she clicked the third trigger on her hand-grips, and engaged the increased speed mode; a handy custom-built feature courtesy of Gustav, which increased the ODM gear's speed by twenty percent, allowing her to fly at a much faster speed, and easily catch up to Red, who by now was all but panicking.

* * *

"Holy- what's with that speed?!" Oruo gawked as the second stranger seemingly appeared out of nowhere, and chased after the first, leaving the other scouts practically eating their dust. Noticing how the second stranger was clad all in black, white, blue and green: Petra suddenly recognized them, "It's her..." she breathed in amazement. Hearing this, Erwin then ordered, "Stay with the second one, whatever happens don't loose sight of her!". "Easier said than done!" Levi grunted as he tried to push his ODM gear to go faster, but to no avail.

* * *

"Red!" Ariana grabbed his attention as she flew up alongside him, "Magpie?! Holy shit! Those guys came outta nowhere! From where I was hiding I didn't even hear the horses!" he panicked frantically, "Never mind that now," Ariana replied as she spotted Shadow flying through the trees in his elemental form, visible only to her: he gave her a thumbs up, signalling he was ready, "Listen, veer left and head north, Shadow will cover you: there's a whole load of titans fast approaching, I gotta lead them away and keep the scouts on me! Okay?"

"O-okay, thanks!" he nodded as he banked sharply to the left, hoping and praying he'd be alright. As he broke away, four scouts from Mike's squad chased after him as he flew up into the canopy and disappeared from sight...

* * *

" **Okay,"** Javorin glanced down at Ginger, as she kept pace with the larger god, **"Here he comes, get ready now"** , **"Don't worry, I'm always ready!"** she boasted confidently. As Red flew through the canopy, whizzing by the god's face, Javorin instantly threw up two concealment spells: one behind Red and one behind the pursuers, so as to hide Red from the four scouts, and also conceal them from the main group. As soon as Red cleared the canopy, Ginger reappeared down below and signalled for him to join her, much to his relief: while simultaneously, as the four scouts were looking for the boy, Hecate suddenly appeared, and as they shot past her face she blew a cloud of glowing purple embers over them. The four soldiers instantly fell asleep, and Shadow gently caught them in his winds, yanking their grappling hooks out from their anchors, and lowering them down to Hecate's waiting palms, where Ash, Rowan and Dale grabbed them and laid them down safely. **"Been a while since you used that trick,"** Javorin noted as he floated down to the ground and materialized back into titan form, **"Well you can't really go wrong with the simple things"** She shrugged with a nonchalant smile, **"You better get back, I'll see to these guys"**. **"Mh,"** he hummed with a nod, **"Don't take too long"** he replied as he silently jogged off back the way he came, turning invisible as he chased after the scouts.

"Thanks for the save guys: I thought my goose was cooked there for a second!" Red called up to the three brothers as he sat on Ginger's back, "Hey, that's what we're here for" Ash smiled as he squatted at the edge of Midnight's palm, "What I want to know is, how the hell did they spot you?"

* * *

Ariana was now the one being chased as the scouts stayed on her tail: as the scent of live titans suddenly hit her nose, she reached for the little hummer in her pack, grabbed the string to let it unwind, and started spinning it fast, producing that eerie whistling/humming noise that filled the canopy and made the air ring like a glass bell. As the fifteen titans appeared up ahead, Ariana banked a hard right, and suddenly the titans diverted and started chasing after her: completely ignoring the scouts as they lumbered along, falling into a hypnotized stupor as the hummer worked its magic. She heard some of the scouts shouting something, but couldn't make out who it was or what was being said over the thundering of the giant footfalls: glancing over her shoulder, Ariana saw the Levi squad was still on point, along with Erwin, Mike and Hange close behind, but everyone else was hanging back.

What were they up to?

* * *

"What the hell is making that noise?" Eld frowned as the strange ringing sound became more consistent: "It's that little thing she's spinning in her hand!" Hange realised in excitement, "It's just like the wind chimes, only smaller!"

"Whatever it is, it's the only thing keeping the titans from noticing us" Erwin frowned as the cogs in his head continued to turn at full tilt, trying to figure out what Magpie's next move was going to be: "Maintain your distance, if she stops spinning that thing the titans will snap put of their trance: we won't have enough room to get out of the way in time!"

"Not to mention she'll get away!" Levi frowned as he glanced over his shoulder at the commander, "So what do we do now?"

* * *

Whatever the scouts had in mind, Ariana couldn't keep trailing the titans forever: they'd all run out of gas eventually, and then there'd be trouble. But in the meantime, they weren't going to give up the chase: she could stop using the hummer and the let the titans loose on them, but then if the scouts fought them and someone got eaten or trampled to death, that could spell disaster for any potential alliance with them. No, she'd have to take care of the beasts here and now, and pray the scouts stayed at a distance too: glancing over her shoulder again, she noted there were five titans between three and five meters tall, six titans between six and eight meters tall, and four titans between nine to twelve meters tall, all randomly scattered as they stampeded together in a loosely spaced group. "Hm, this is going to be a hard kill..." she sighed to herself as she reached for a handful of smoke snaps and flash snaps in her pocket: then spun the hummer around her arm, until it was safely wrapped around her wrist and secured in place, cutting out the humming as she turned sideways to get ready for the first move of her attack...

* * *

"That sound, it's stopped" Mike realized,

"Hey, what's she doing?" Eld pointed ahead.

From where they could see her, the scouts watched as Magpie turned and dropped something out of her hand: suddenly, a series of loud bangs rang out as several clouds of white smoke blew up in the larger titans faces, followed immediately by several blinding flashes of white light in front of the mid-sized and smaller titans. "STOP!-" Erwin barked: everyone shot up into the nearest tree as the titans tripped over each other, and fell to the ground in a crashing cacophony that shook the trees to their roots. The scouts all watched in stunned silence as the one young girl swung up and over, before coming down hard and fast to slice one of the titan's nape. From there, the monsters scrambled to get back on their feet while trying to grab her at the same time: their miscalculated and clumsy coordination afforded Magpie plenty of openings to dodge and dive out of the way, as she proceeded to kill the rest of them.

"Wow, you weren't kidding when you said she had some serious moves Petra!" Hange grinned as she glanced over at the redhead, who simply nodded as she watched in amazement: "Shit..." Gunther breathed in astonishment, "One kid against fifteen titans? And she's only _twelve?!_ " he glanced up at Petra, "That's what she told me" she shrugged.

"Tch!-" the captain huffed sharply as he watched the girl take out another four titans, "Bet you she's older". "I BET YOU'RE A LOT YOUNGER!..." Magpie cheekily called over to him as she swung past them, taking the captain by surprise as she killed the last three titans in one go, before landing in a tree that was some distance away, "-BECAUSE I FIND IT HARD TO BELIEVE SOMEONE SO SHORT CAN BE A CAPTAIN!" she added, flying to the next tree over to be nearer to them, "And if that's the case, then it's probably a good thing I didn't take up your offer of joining the scouts: I'd outrank you within less than a month!" she chuckled, much to the captain's annoyance. He was about to shoot back a retort when Erwin stepped forward. "You've certainly got the skills to make the cut in less than a month, that's for sure..." he called back in humour as he walked along the branch, trying to get closer so as to not have to shout so far: "...Mind if we talk? We have questions we'd like to ask"

"... Sure, we can talk," Magpie called back as she shot her lines and flew over to them, perching up on the branch opposite Erwin and his squad leaders: "But only if you stay where you are: it's not safe to move so freely with so many titans about. And that little ruckus will have drawn some attention"

"Ha! Like those brainless brutes are any match for us! Let' em come!" Oruo scoffed, "I wasn't talking about _those_ titans..." Magpie glanced down at the steaming corpses, to which Erwin and the squad leaders immediately paused as they realized what she was referring to: "...Is that 'big friend' of yours around?" Erwin asked coolly, keeping his concern well hidden. "Oh him?..." Magpie replied nonchalantly, "He's around, somewhere: can't quite remember where though. He tends to drop in and out: he's ambiguous like that"

"Indeed..." the commander studied her with an unreadable expression, knowing she wasn't going to give away the titan's position.

* * *

It was taking everything she had to hold her nerve, as Ariana studied the scouts: there had to be at least three dozen of them, plus Erwin, Hange, Mike and the Levi squad, who were all standing on the same branch barely eight meters away. She was outnumbered, but at least she wasn't surrounded, and knowing that Shadow could be nearby was the only thing stopping them from coming any closer. '... _Shit!_ ' she mentally cursed, 'Now that I'm _actually talking_ to the commander himself, what the hell do I say?!' she thought as she tried to keep calm and think through her list of options, '… There's no use in using the smoke snaps, even at this range I wouldn't have enough time to use my concealment stone, and I can't smell any new titans heading this way, so that's a no-go'. Realizing she had no way out, Ariana reluctantly steeled herself for a mental chess match with the commander of the scouts; she knew how shrewd and perceptive he was, and it was going to take everything she had just to keep her guard up. 'It'll be alright; just stay calm and focus...' she told herself.

Then, an invisible Shadow silently drifted in his elemental form, up right behind Erwin and the other scouts, and spelt out :It's okay, just relax and talk to him: Carla and Angel will get you out soon enough, and I'll be right overhead: he smiled, before drifting up as a breeze into the canopy above.

'….Thanks buddy...' she mentally sighed in relief, feeling a fresh wave of confidence well up inside, now that she knew her best friend was covering her: 'Okay, what would Pascal say? He can weasel his way out of just about anything...' she thought, before something else came to mind, '…No...what Armin have done?...'.

Then, she remembered the chase: how they went after Red before her; and an idea began to form in the back of her mind...

* * *

"...So, you're Magpie" Erwin gazed up at her with an unreadable look. "Yep, I take it Petra spilled all the gossip on me?" Magpie smirked behind her neckerchief, "Speaking of which, nice to see your still alive," she waved to the redhead. "Um-, nice to see your alive too," she replied nervously, "How did you know Levi here is a Captain?" Erwin asked offhand: "Uh? Because I overheard you guys as you rode into the forest? _Duh!_ " Magpie chuckled, "Seriously, with all the shouting and yelling you guys make? It's no wonder the titans are able to find you so easily: hell, I bet they could find you in the dark if they were able to move around at night". "You'll have to forgive our lack of 'tactful stealth', running and hiding isn't really in our nature" Erwin replied, "Meh, easily forgiven" Magpie shrugged casually, "Not everyone has what it takes to move around the forest unseen and unheard"

"Not everyone has what it takes to fight a titan either: nevermind fifteen..." the commander smiled as he changed the subject, "I understand you had an excellent teacher: tell me, was he a scout too?". Magpie paused a brief moment as an unreadable look filled her eyes, "...Yeah, he was". "And is it true he went into battle against the titans at Shiganshina?", "Yeah, I saw him fly and fight one last time: and before you ask, he simply went by the name 'L'; though, I always suspected that wasn't his real name". "Why do you suppose he kept it a secret?" the commander frowned dubiously, "Who knows?" the girl shrugged, "Everyone keeps different secrets for different reasons: some are too painful, some are too complicated. And maybe some are just too dangerous to be known: being careless can get you into trouble you know; sometimes, it pays not to be _too curious_ about certain things"

"...I know..." the commander replied as he maintained his poker face: Levi wasn't sure where Erwin was going with this, but it was clear the girl was hiding something, and he was trying to feel his way around it. "...But, as I said before, we have questions we're eager to find answers to: and if being 'too curious' is liable to get us into trouble, then how about you tell us what you can, and we won't pry too much. Sound fair?"

"Hmmm..." Magpie glanced away as she thought about it: her eyes wandered off into the forest as she seemed to be tracking the movement of something: noticing this, Hange chanced a glance to where she was staring at, but saw nothing. Turning her attention back to Erwin, Magpie finally replied, "Okay...But, I just realized this presents a bit of a problem: what proof would you have that anything _I_ say is the truth? And vice versa? I could preach on and on about how I'm fighting to save humanity by wiping out the titans, but then, for all _you_ know that could just be a means to an end for something else? And likewise, even if I was to take up Petra's offer of joining you guys and getting my own wings, how would _I_ know you having me in your ranks doesn't serve some other purpose? Neither of use are stupid, and we both don't have a solid reason to fully trust each other. So? How do we get around this?"

All the other scouts glanced at one another in confusion: "A fair point..." the commander knitted his brows together slightly, 'She's sharp, but has she entirely thought this through?...' he thought to himself, "What would you recommend?". "Well?" Magpie sighed as she scratched the back of her neck, "I'm no expert, but what would _you_ consider to be a sign of unquestionable trust?"

"Simple. Pledge your heart to humanity and join us: if we're both fighting for the same reason, then there shouldn't be a need to remain separate entities. With your skills and courage you'd be a most valuable asset," Erwin reasoned, "I'm sure I would," Magpie grinned before turning serious, "Don't get me wrong, _I am_ flattered and honoured you'd ask me to join you: but I already have responsibilities, as well as my family to think about, I can't just abandon them". "Fair enough" Erwin nodded, "But if it's your identity your worried about, no one need know who you are: you could create a whole new persona, for yourself and your family; that wouldn't be difficult for us to arrange"

Magpie paused a moment: although Erwin could tell she was smiling beneath her neckerchief, he saw hers eyes were filled with a kind of regret. "...It wouldn't be that simple..." she sighed reluctantly, as her gaze wandered down to the forest floor: watching the titan corpses as they continued to evaporate, "...Some secrets are not easily forgotten, especially by those who hold contempt in their hearts: it doesn't matter what face you wear, or what name you choose to go by: it doesn't change where you come from or who you are inside; and I refuse to be someone I'm not"

Now everyone was really dumbfounded, but despite her ambiguous choice of words, Erwin was taking stock of every last one: she was trying to convey _something_ , and the conviction in her voice told him this was something important; of course she could just be making the whole thing up, but somehow, his gut was telling him that wasn't the case. "...Alright..." he replied, "But this still doesn't solve our shared conundrum" he pointed out.

"No, it doesn't," she met his gaze again, "And maybe? For the time being at least, that's how it should be: until we get to know each other a little better. One thing I learned a long time ago is that you must learn some things for yourself: it's one thing to rely on the wisdom of those who came before you, and to heed good advice from those you trust. But sometimes, some lessons have to be learned first-hand: otherwise we never truly learn at all. So rather than tell what you want to know and question the truth in _my_ words, I'll instead, give you the opportunity to learn those truths for yourselves"

"What truths?" Levi frowned sceptically, "What're you talking about?"

"The big guy? ..." Magpie smirked slyly, as she diverted the conversation slightly, "Why else would you be so far off-course from your supply route? You tried to check out the dead titans on the way in here, and even tried luring that ten-meter in the hopes of baiting him; did you not?"

"You saw that?" Erwin regarded her with a cautious look, "Oh please, _everyone_ saw that," Magpie waved off: "Everyone? You mean there're more of you out here?!" Hange perked up in excitement, before suddenly remembering, "Oh!-, that reminds me: who was the other kid we were chasing earlier?". "Oh, he's one of the family: third cousin twice removed I believe..." the girl replied casually, before she narrowed her eyes at Erwin, "... Which reminds me: what were you going to do if you caught him?..." she asked in a dangerous tone. Everyone suddenly became uncomfortable as Magpie drove home the point, "...'Captain Levi' was running point throughout the whole chase, and from what I've seen he's pretty dangerous with those blades of his... I've seen what he can do to a titan; so what was he going to do, to my cousin?"

A tense but brief moment of silence hung in the air as Levi eyed the girl suspiciously, before Erwin coolly replied, "The same as we're doing with you now, simply talking". "Really?" Magpie smiled sarcastically, before shooting the commander a stern frown, "Three dozen scouts to talk to one kid? Yeah I'm calling bullshit on _that_. Normally, when someone threatens one of my family, I either shoot them in the ass with one of my arrows, _or_ I get my big brothers to beat the shit outta them..." she glared at him, before taking a deep breath and sighing reluctantly, "... _But_ , unfortunately, under the circumstances that's not applicable to you,". Everyone blinked in surprise as she explained: "For one, dad's gonna _chew my ass out_ if he found out me an' brothers beat the scouts senseless: secondly, from a practical standpoint it wouldn't pay to stay on bad terms with you guys anyway, for a whole slew of different reasons (not counting the big guy of course); and thirdly, the captain's so short I don't think I could get off a clean shot anyway..." she shot Levi a sly smirk, and he in turn gave her a look that could kill a titan from fifty paces away; which she promptly ignored.

Hange tried the stifle her giggles, while Oruo glared daggers up at the girl as she continued: "...Though, that being said: I don't know what you had in mind for my cousin back there? But I can only surmise it would've involved you cornering him, and scaring him half to death. Like I said, I'm not going to shoot or beat the shit out of you, and I'll stand by that: but I'm not going to let you go unpunished for that little stunt either. So how about instead, you owe me one?" she smiled devilishly at the commander. "Owe you one?" Erwin raised an eyebrow, "Since we're in no position to argue back, alright: what did you have in mind?". "Oh, nothing too fancy or frivolous: we gotta stay realistic, you _have_ got a supply route to put together after all, so we can't distract from that..." Magpie mused aloud, "Like I said before: I'll give you the opportunity to learn. The question is, would you be willing to humour me?"

"Learn about what?" Levi frowned darkly.

"About a lot of things you don't know: about the big guy, about the mystery of how the world was before the titans appeared; things you're _not allowed to know_ when you're on the other side of Wall Rose..." she gazed at them cryptically, "But first, you have to prove you're worthy, and not careless or ignorant: and to do that, there are _three_ things you must learn in particular..." Magpie held up three fingers, "Openness, understanding, and acceptance. Having the openness of mind and heart to be able to see the world with eyes unclouded by contempt or disdain. To see the unifying diversity of all mankind, and understand, how _all_ our differences make us one and the same. And to accept, that no matter how much we strive to learn, there are things in this world we will never totally comprehend, and that it's okay to be afraid of those unknown things; so long as we don't let that fear keep us from wanting to learn and move forward..." Magpie put her hand down, "If you can learn these virtues and let them guide you through thick and thin: then maybe one day, you'll be ready..."

"Ready for what?" Petra asked,

Magpie was about to reply, when suddenly she paused and her head jerked up slightly, as if she'd just heard something: "...What's wrong?" Erwin asked as she glanced to her left; "...It would seem it's time for me to go," she sighed, "A shame too, I was rather enjoying this little talk"

"Go? Go where?" Hange asked offhand. Magpie pointed to where she was looking at, and as everyone glanced in said direction, they were all alarmed to see a huge mass of white fog steadily rolling towards them, engulfing everything in its wake, making the forest vanish from sight amid the luminous white. "Wha-, where the hell did _that_ come from?" Hange blinked in surprise. "That's my cue to head for home" Magpie reached for her hand-grips, "Well, it's been a pleasure-, sorry, I didn't get your name"

"Erwin smith: I'm the commander of the scouting Legion" the commander replied, "... Yeah, you certainly sound like the guy in charge," Magpie smiled, "You take care now: rest assure we'll be keeping an eye on you a little more closely from now on. I'm already looking forward to next month"

"Likewise" Levi scowled,

"Oh, and one other thing..." Magpie smirked as she stepped to the edge of the branch, watching as the fog drifted closer, and enveloped the whole tree, "Remember to keep your wits about you: you'll need them for sure...". And within seconds, Magpie was gone from sight: the fog was so thick that everyone couldn't see their feet, and yet, there was a brightness emanating from all around, almost as if the fog were glowing. "What do you mean by that?" Erwin asked. But as some of the fog parted, he saw the branch Magpie had been standing on was bare: the girl had completely vanished. "Wha-, how the hell is that possible?!" Oruo gawked, "I didn't hear her take off, did you?". "None of us did" Eld realized, suddenly feeling a little unnerved.

As the fog thinned out a little, some of the outlines of the nearby trees became visible, and through the eerie whiteness, Erwin spotted something that made him pause: "Erwin?" Levi frowned in concern, gazing over to where he was looking at; the captain and his squad were totally taken aback. Standing on a branch some ten or so meters away in another giant tree, was a woman clad all in white and kitted out in custom-made ODM gear: dressed in much the same style as Magpie with her face concealed too, except she had long raven-black hair tied up in a side-ponytail cascading down over her right shoulder, and eyes so light brown they almost appeared golden, with what looked like a pale scar over her left eye. She simply stood there, silently watching them like a hawk would a mouse. "...Is, that _her?_ " Petra gasped.

"Who?" Erwin frowned in confusion, "...The lady in white," Eld replied as he stared at her in amazement. Erwin was about to call out to her, but before he had the chance, the fog thickened and she vanished from sight. Overhead, the sound of a giant set of wings could be heard beating fast: whatever bird or creature it was, had to be absolutely _huge_ to make such a heavy flapping sound. Suddenly, the winds kicked up sharply as a giant bird-shaped silhouette glided overhead, missing the scouts perch by several meters and making everyone duck down. But the scouts were even further dismayed when they stood back up, and saw the fog was completely gone: the air was bright and clear as the sun shone down through the canopy, and the whole forest was at peace, as if nothing had ever happened in the first place.

"...They're gone..." Mike's eyes shot wide open in alarm as he sniffed the air: "Yeah, quite a vanishing trick," Eld nodded in agreement, "No, I mean _they're gone_ : there's no scent of them anywhere" the tall blond man clarified, "Could they have masked their scent?" Hange surmised, "No, if they used something to cover their smell I could pick _that_ up: but there's no scent of anything or anyone. It's like they were never here to begin with" he replied, trying not to let his worry show. "..What're you saying Mike?" Erwin frowned in concern: not entirely sure what he was getting at, "I'm saying..." he glanced over at the commander with a look of confoundment in his eyes, "...I don't know what just happened: but as ludicrous as this sounds; I think you just had a conversation with-, something that wasn't really there..."

Unnerved, the other scouts all glanced around the forest, suddenly feeling vulnerable and exposed. "...What're you saying Mike? That she was a ghost or something?" Gunther asked with a raised eyebrow, "That shouldn't even be possible, there's no such thing as ghosts" Hange frowned in confusion: " _I didn't say_ she was a ghost: all I'm saying is that she had no scent; which makes no sense at all" Mike clarified with a vexed look in his eyes. "Whatever," Levi waved off, "So what now?" he glanced over at Erwin, who was staring at the branch Magpie had been standing on, "...Return to the others and make ready to leave" he glanced over at the Captain, "Call it a hunch, but I don't think we're going to get anything else on this expedition: let's move out!" he barked. No one needed to be told twice as they all took off back the way they came.

* * *

Meanwhile, not too far away:

As they watched the scouts fly out of sight, the humans and god-titans breathed a collective sigh of relief, while Ariana simply sat in Shadow's palm and flopped over backwards, as if exhausted: "'L'? where did _that_ come from?" Bryson couldn't help but chuckle, "I just-, your last name came to mind and the first letter was all I could think of" Ariana fretted, "I was trying to keep it as ambiguous as possible. You said they have records of every scout that's served in the Legion, well there's gotta be a lot of guys who's names begin with L, right?". "Well? For thinking on the fly it's not half bad, at least you managed to keep Erwin from pressing the subject" the former scout concurred.

"He didn't press you on anything else in particular," Pascal thought aloud sceptically, "And he followed _your_ line of the conversation: I don't know about you guys but I got the distinct impression he was trying to figure out what hand you were playing", "Huh? What hand I playing?" Ariana glanced up at him in confusion, "It's an expression used when playing poker" West clarified, "He could tell you had your guard up, and so he was trying to figure out a way around it". "I thought he was being a bit too easy..." Ariana thought aloud as she looked back over the conversation, "But _hell_ : I was sweating musket bullets the whole time. That was damn hard," she let out a deep exasperated sigh. "Hey, a battle of wits ain't to be taken lightly: and for first-timer, you managed to hold your nerve okay; that's a good a start as any" Pascal offered, "I suppose?" Ariana shrugged.

"Well..." Tyto stepped in as he flew up onto Shadow's palm, "The important thing is, you got Red out of trouble _and_ put the scouts on notice for their blunder: so at least they know where they stand with 'the family' now..." he glanced up at Shadow with an unreadable expression: "...I know I said I trust you guys to handle the scouts as you see fit: but issuing this 'test of three virtues' to see if their hearts are in the right place; do you really think they'll be able to work it out, and prove themselves?"

:A mind as perceptive as Erwin's? Oh he'll cotton onto it eventually. The question is, will the rest of them be able to follow suit, _and_ prove they're worthy. _That's_ what we need to assess, and that's what the Keeper needs to know too: Shadow replied. "You gotta admit, as first impressions go: they're certainly an interesting bunch," West smiled as he folded his arms. "Captain shorty in particular" Rowan smirked over at Ariana, "The way he was shooting you that evil look? I'd have beaten him up for free", "He was a tad haughty, wasn't he?" Carla smiled as she stroked Angel's cheek, to which the bird-titan replied with a concurring chirp and nod. "Captain haughty-shorty!" the raven twins beamed as they high-fived each other, "Heh, yeah, Captain haughty-shorty: suits him to a tee" Ariana couldn't help but chuckle.

"So, why did Red break cover?" Evrard asked offhand, "He said he saw that ten-meter running towards Willow and Stone's position, and thought it had noticed them before they turned invisible: he fired the arrow thinking the coast was clear, but he didn't see the scouts from his position; the lower trees in the undergrowth obscured them from sight" Ash explained from where he and his brother's sat atop Midnight's shoulder. "He showed me his perch after you guys trailed Ariana and Shadow, and the understory _does_ come up pretty high from over a hundred meters away, even a five meter-class wouldn't be visible from where he was" Falken added. "Okay, I'll fill Ratatosk in on the details once everyone's cleared out and relocated: we were damn lucky one of the look-out's spotted the long-distance scouting formation in time" Tyto sighed.

"You mean _this_ time," Bowen interjected as he and some of his hunters flew in, and perched up alongside Tyto and his brothers, "Bowen? I though you and the rest of the Hunt were still hiding?" the Grey Owl blinked in surprise, "The scouts are pulling out back the way they came, and we were far enough away they wouldn't have been able to spot us" he replied, before adding: "We're going to have to move the whole Hunt five miles further east to make sure they don't pick up our trail on the return journey. We were lucky to be able to hide this time: but next time? What if they find us again?"

"There's no way the scouts could've known the Hunt would be here today," Tyto stated, "This area was chosen _because_ it's over ten miles from their designated supply route: if the titans hadn't surprised them out on the plains, they wouldn't have had to divert their course; it was just bad luck they came this way and spotted the steam"

"I appreciate that, but even so, half my team were spooked: and _why the hell_ did the scouts chase Red in the first place? Were they going to try and capture him?!"

An uneasy silence hung in the air, before Fox frowned: "...Three dozen scouts to talk to one kid? There's no way in hell they were going to just 'talk' to him. I don't know what they were going to do, but the fact they didn't call out to him, or even plead with him to stop makes me think they _definitely_ had something elsein mind"

The hunters all glanced at one another in worry, before Bowen frowned: "They'd really be that desperate? So eager to learn of us and our secrets that they'd try to capture one of us?", "If that's their chosen path then what hope is there of an alliance?" one of the other hunter's sighed in despair. "There _is_ hope!" Ariana stated vehemently, much to the hunter's surprise: "...Granted, the scouts are more stringent than we are: _they're soldiers_ , they have a different way of doing things; but they're _not_ bad people. I've been spying on them for nearly a year now, _I know them_ , and they're not like the wall cult"

"Maybe not in a god-fearing way: but if kidnapping us is how they intend to get answers, then how are they any different to the cult?" Bowen stated. "That's fear talking," Tyto interjected, "This is the first time we've got a good look at them, and we've got a long way to go before we can safely say we know who the scouts are and what they're about"

"No one said this was going to be easy Bowen, and it sure as hell ain't gonna be straight-forward" Bryson added: "Things _have_ changed in the scouts, and I'm not just talking about since when I was part of the Legion: just by watching the way they flew and the way they were coordinated, I can tell Erwin has shaken things up: he's not like any scout I've ever seen before, and he certainly doesn't let his pride dictate his actions. He had enough humility to admit defeat when backed into a corner, and he wasn't forceful or demanding, not even once. And despite vastly outnumbering Magpie, he never gave any discreet order to have anyone sneak up behind her and box her in. He let _her_ dictate the conversation: he _knew_ taking the strong-arm approach wouldn't yield the results he wanted, so he went for subtlety instead. Even letting her use that move against Red to threaten him... Which, come to think of it; probably might have been an intentional decision on his part"

"What?" Pascal raised an eyebrow, unsure of Bryson's line of logic,

"But, if that's the case," Dale suddenly realized as the cogs in his mind turned at full speed: "And Erwin already _knew_ that he screwed up by chasing Red: then he must've figured he could turn his blunder into an advantage", "What?" Bowen stared at the young hunter in dismay, "Okay, now you really lost me" another of the hunter's rubbed his forehead as he tried to get his mind around the boy's logic.

"Okay, think about it for a minute," Dale explained "Erwin and the other squad leaders _know M_ agpie isn't the only 'titan-hunter' out here: she hinted as such to Petra last month. They know from the arrows they found that there are many of us, and that we hunt in a coordinated group with a non-human-eating titan: on the face of it, it's incredible but it's nothing to sneeze at, and something well worth looking into if there's the potential to utilize it in a military capacity. So when they spotted the steam plumes from the Hunt earlier, they realized it must be the rest of 'the family'. Being close enough to the forest, Erwin must've figured they had the chance to get the drop on us, and so galloped into the forest hoping to catch sight of us before we could run and hide (obviously not knowing about the look-out's or the concealment stones). Then, Red breaks cover and he figures its a chance to get some answers. So they gave chase, and then the other scouts come swooping in to provide back-up: as part of their protocol or under Erwin's orders? We don't know; but he thinks he's got the upper hand to do-, whatever he had in mind to do originally. But then Magpie flies in and things change: she manages to flip the whole situation around, and he realizes he's no longer in control,".

"Right," Lucius nodded, as he suddenly realized where Dale was coming from, "He quickly realizes she's got the upper-hand and that he screwed up, but when she talks him into owing her one as punishment for his mistake, he realizes he's got a way to flip it back round in his favour,"

"By agreeing to the test of three virtues, and hearing that she'd be keeping an eye on them, he must've figured it'd be an opportunity to keep an eye on her as well. Maybe? He could try to use his situation to get close to us through her, try to see what he and the other squad leaders can learn if they play their cards rights, and stick to the subtle tactics" Dale concluded.

"Even though..." Ariana grinned with a sly glint in her eyes, "I said _'we'd'_ be keeping an eye on them: I never said anything about the 'big guy' being the one to do the watching" she patted Shadow on the hand, as he glanced down at Bowen and the other hunters with a satisfied smile and a cheeky look in his eyes. "Oh..." Bowen realized as a smile crept across his face, before he suddenly thought: "-Wait, how the hell did you come up with all that? How do you know that's what he's even thinking?!"

"Meh, it's what I do if I was him," Dale shrugged, "It's only logical" the Cooper twins shrugged as well. "You know, I think you kids have _way_ too much time on your hands" Pascal smirked, "Either that or you've been hanging out with us too long" West smiled. To which Bryson smirked, "In any case: if your hunch proves correct-", "I'm pretty sure it will," Dale stated boldly as he folded his arms, "Then we're in the perfect position to watch and study the scouts, while you guys oversee your test" Bryson glanced up at Shadow, who nodded confidently.

"You know?" Tyto suggested as he thought about, "Maybe it wouldn't hurt to 'introduce' the rest of the family? Let them see some new faces?". "And let's not forget! They know we have a titan on our side, so they won't dare think to step out of line with us!" Belle added excitedly.

" **Would you like some eggs with that ham?"** Hecate smiled as she folded her arms, **"Shouldn't you be asking Ariana? She just made our jobs that little bit easier"** Javorin smiled back. **"Oh, I'm not sure if I'd like it easy,"** the black and white goddess smiled slyly, **"I think I'd like the challenge of testing our new little friends first-hand"** , **"It wouldn't have anything to do with the good Captain now, would it?"** Herne glanced up at her with a cheeky glint in his golden eyes, **"Maybe?"** she smirked in a sultry tone, **"You're excited because you noticed his physique, didn't you?"** Javorin raised an eyebrow at her, **"Hey, a hot guy is a hot guy, regardless of whether he's a mortal or god: maybe if he's a good boy I'll turn myself into a succubus and have a little fun with him"** she teased, **"You'll do no such thing!"** Javorin replied firmly, giving her the mother hen look, **"Seriously Hecate, the guy may have some strength on him, but I doubt he'd be able to survive a night with** _ **you**_ **"** Herne smirked, **"Eh, a goddess can dream"** she shrugged nonchalantly, **"Seriously though, I get first dibs on him"**. **"Fine, just don't let any of your 'fetishes' come to the fore: it could get very awkward for the rest of the squad, as well as him"** Javorin grimaced, **"Oh but that's half the fun!"** she grinned wickedly.

" **Well, I call shot-gun on crazy-bangs Hange"** Herne stated, " **And that Mike guy looks like he could be interesting: with a nose like that he'll certainly give** _ **me**_ **a run for my money"**. **"Isn't that what we're trying to avoid? Letting the scouts hunt us?"** Elysia worried, **"Kid, I'm** _ **the god of the hunt**_ **, this is** _ **way**_ **within my divine jurisdiction! And as such, I will bestow my blessings upon the scouts and grant them a measure of good luck for the coming tests. All-father only knows, they're certainly going to need it"** Herne smiled slyly as he held his head up with pride. **"And what about you brat?"** Hecate glanced up at the weather goddess.

" **Me?"** Elysia blinked in surprise, **"Yes, Jarus appointed you to this task and you accepted; so how do you want to do it?"** Herne shrugged, **"Oh-, I didn't think-, I've never tested any mortals before: I'm a Tempus goddess, we're not usually into that kinda thing,"** she hesitated, **"Brat, you haven't been a** _ **true**_ **Tempus goddess for nigh on seven years now: I think you can handle testing a few mortals on the limits of their morality; it's hardly alchemy for all-father's sake"** Hecate shot her a dry look. Surprised, Elysia wasn't sure what to think, **"I wouldn't worry about it too much,"** Javorin smiled up at her, **"This will be a good exercise for you: and who knows? You might just get lucky and find a few scouts who make the grade"**

" **You-, really think I can do this?"** she asked in uncertainty, before letting a small nervous smile cross her lips, **"Honestly? I was fine with just following your lead: I didn't think I have to be in charge of anyone or anything", "Not in charge per se: that's not how this particular test is going to be carried out; more like, you'll have an equal say in whatever we decide to do. In other words, no one of us is going to be in charge,"** Hecate clarified. **"Really?"** Elysia perked up a little, **"Oh, well I guess that'll be easy enough"**. **"Ah trust me kid, it'll be a breeze,"** Herne grinned, " **You did** _ **not**_ **just use a weather pun,"** Hecate shot him a deadpan look, **"What can I say? I saw an opening and I took it"** he shrugged.

As the two gods proceeded to playfully bicker, Javorin leaned in close to Elysia, and smiled confidently, **"Don't worry about it, you got this: just follow Carla's lead as you always do, and just take note of what you sense along the way. Keep your focus and remember to keep your wits about you; this is going to go both ways after all, so just remember to stay calm during the heat of the moment"**

" **Heat of the moment?"** she glanced at him weirdly **, "Trust me, you'll find out,"** he chuckled, as he used his power to note the scouts position as they returned to where they'd left the main group...

* * *

"For someone who just got their ass handed to them by a fresh-as-fuck green horn: your looking kinda like the cat that just ate the canary" Levi glanced over at Erwin in ire, who simply stared ahead with a subtly satisfied glint in his eyes. "Oh, _you_ managed to figure out a way to turn the situation to our advantage, didn't you?" Hange grinned gleefully with a sneaky look in her eyes. "We use the kid to get close to the rest of the family huh? I'm _assuming_ that's what your thinking" Mike glanced over at the commander sceptically.

"Correct. We'll dance to her song and let her take the lead: if we're patient, and play our cards right, we could potentially get more than just a tamed titan" Erwin smiled cunningly, "Ohohoh _I so hope so!_ " Hange giggled as she bounced up and down in her saddle "Granted the big guy is probably going to keep his distance for a while, given what happened here today; _but hell!_ I'm willing to play it subtle if it means I get to gaze upon those perfectly chiselled abs once again!" she practically salivated in sheer elation. "Oh _please_..." Levi scowled, "We're only in this mess because we made the mistake of chasing after that other brat". "And that's something to keep in mind for next time," Erwin pointed out, "They always travel in pairs at the very least, plus they have a titan for additional support. Let them throw all the insults they want, but if we do this right and don't rush it, the pay-off could potentially be huge "

"I can't believe the lady in white was one of them this whole time: thinking back to that night in Stinestadt, it sort of makes sense now" Eld threw in, "Indeed," Erwin nodded, "And it proves they really have been watching us all along". "Forgive me sir, but if she really is Magpie's mother, and she was watching us the whole time: what might she have done if we tried to capture the boy, or her?" Petra asked worryingly. "For all we know she could've had the means to sic that painted shit on us like a guard dog," Levi concurred, " _Then_ what would we have done?". "Fortunately it didn't come to that, and from now on we won't do anything to push our luck: if any of us see the girl, her mother, the titan, or anyone else that might be one of the 'family', we're to give them their space and let them approach us if they want to," he glanced over at Levi, "With the acceptation of any act of aggression".

"Well? As first impressions go, it could've been a lot worse," Hange pointed out in a chipper tone, trying to stay on the positive side, "And hey, she was pretty reasonable; giving us an 'opportunity to learn' rather than resort to fisticuffs". "You _do_ realized half of what she said was complete bullshit right? For all we know she probably stalling for time until 'mum' showed up," Levi glanced over at the scientist with a his usual disdainful scowl: "True, but we can't rule out the possibility she might have been telling the truth either" Erwin replied, "I couldn't understand half of what she was saying" Mike threw in frankly, "Me neither, but it's very much along the same lines of how she spoke to me last month" Petra added, "There's definitely _something_ she and her family are keeping secret: and I'm starting to get the feeling it's not the painted titan"

"You're right..." Erwin glanced over at her, "The question is, how far are they willing to go to protect it?", "Clearly it's to do with something, or someone on the inside of wall Rose: but what?" Hange thought aloud, "What could pose such a threat that they'd rather take their chances out here with the titans? Even with a tamed titan to protect them, this family are willing to run the gauntlet every day, even letting their own children put their lives on the line. And would _we_ be in danger if we knew?" the scientist thought about it, before suddenly realizing, "...When she said 'it pays not to be _too curious_ about certain things': did she say that as a way of warning us against something in particular? Something that, if we became curious about, would pose a threat to _us_ if that 'certain thing' became aware of our actions?"

"And for all we know she could've just been telling us to mind our own business," Levi shot back, "We don't know anything yet," Erwin stated, "This was our first good look at one of the titan-hunters, and confirmation that the encounter at Stinestadt wasn't an accident after all. They've been aware of us for the last two years, and maybe even long before that: we have to be careful, for we don't know how much they truly know"

Hange was about to say something else, when suddenly, one of the rookies from the main group came galloping towards the veterans: his face flustered with panic,"SIR! We have a situation! Four of our number have been found alive!"

"Found alive?" Erwin frowned in mix of alarm and confusion "Explain", "It's-, well? It's rather hard to explain sir: I-I still can't believe it happened!" the rookie swallowed hard as he tried to keep his composure, "-Just spit it out already" Levi shot him a reprimanding frown, "Uh? Perhaps it'd be better if you see for yourself" he turned his horse and galloped back the way he came. Glancing at one another in confoundment, the commander and his veterans all took off after the messenger: following him through the forest until they reached the brick road, and followed it back to where the main group had been left to wait near the entrance to the forest. The rookie led them to the base of one of the giant trees, where the four scouts who chased after the boy were sitting with a couple of medics at their sides. The four of them looked like they'd seen a ghost: pale with fright, as well as looking slightly dazed and confused. Erwin jumped off his horse and stepped over towards them, they were so out of it they didn't even realize it was him until he was standing right over them: at which point they all nearly jumped out of their skins as they scrambled to their feet and saluted.

"What happened? Did you see where the boy went?" Erwin demanded, "N-no sir!" the first scout swallowed hard, "I regret to say we lost him!". "How the hell do you loose one brat?" Levi demanded as he too jumped out of his saddle and approached, "W-w-with due respect sir, I-I'm afraid something found us instead!" he replied, petrified as he tried to keep himself from shaking. "Something? You mean the painted titan?!" Hange's eyes lit up in excitement. "N-No ma'am: I say something because-, I regret to say we four didn't get a good look at it!"

One of the medics placed a hand on his shoulder, reassuring him as she explained: "About ten minutes after you ordered us to remain here, we were-..." she hesitated as she tried to find the right words, "...We encountered _a new type_ of titan: at first we thought we were going to be attacked, but the creature made no move to harm us. It just stood there between the trees, watching us," she pointed to a dark shady area between a close cluster of giant trees, "Then, when it came closer and stepped out onto the road, we saw these guys in it's hand. We thought it was going to eat them at first, but then-, it just bent down and placed them by the tree here, before disappearing back into the forest. I mean-, none of us could believe what we were seeing: and when we checked them over for injuries, we found they were actually asleep"

"Asleep?" Erwin glanced at the four scouts sceptically, "Knocked out somehow, probably with the use of some kind of sleeping gas?" the medic offered, "Why do you say that?" the commander pressed her, "B-because," the scout replied as he tried to keep it together, "The last thing I-, _we_ all remember before falling unconscious, was passing though a strange purple mist, filled with glowing purple sparks; next thing we know, we're waking up under that tree feeling like we've slept for days"

"The painted titan can emit a kind of sleeping gas?" Hange blinked in surprise, "Tell me! Did he do anything else while he was observing you?! Did he make any attempt to try and communicate?!"

"He?" the medic blinked in surprise, "N-no, this one was a _female_ : and it was painted black and white all over, with long black hair reaching down to its heels, a face that had been painted to look like a skull; and vivid purple eyes that glowed when she stood in the shadows"

* * *

 **This chapter was a tad more harder to work on than I anticipated, as I didn't want Ariana and the scouts to get off to a bad start: but now that the stage is set, the next chapter should see some scout-spying shinanigans and titan-chasing fun (much to Levi's annoyance XD). Stay tuned, and hope you enjoyed this chapter :) Don't forget to R &R before clicking off, okay? :)**


	19. Chpt 18: First Move

I don't own Attack on Titan: just my OC's and the plot.

* * *

The Awakening

Chapter 18: First Move

847, July, somewhere in the Marian forest:

"So, basically you can see dead people with these?" Pascal raised an eyebrow, as he looked over the small blue crystal sitting in his palm.

:In a way, they can pick up a number of different spiritual entities: Shadow spelt out. He then gently clasped his palms together, and with the markings on his hands and wrists glowing, a more radiant flash of blue light emanated out from the gaps in his hands. He then opened both palms to reveal several tiny triangular crystals, each about the size of a child's palm with a hole in the middle, and covered in the same strange markings that decorated the god-titan's bodies. Shyla, Fox, Josefa and Jaye reached over the side of Shadow's hand to grab their own crystal, while Gale, Poppy and Belle grabbed the last three.

"So this is what the spirit world looks like? ..." Bryson thought aloud as he held the stone to his right eye, and gazed through the hole. Instead of seeing the forest as it was, everything was tinted the same shade of pale blue: making the whole forest seem as if it were bathed in the dimming light of the twilight hours, with no sun to be seen. All around, balancing on the leaves of the trees and other plants, hidden among the roots and blades of grass, and flitting and floating through the air like insects and dandelion seeds, were tiny humanoid-shaped flames no bigger than an inch or so: pale as starlight and surrounded by a greenish aura that trailed like smoke as they moved silently about. It was mesmerizing to watch, and as he lowered the crystal from his eye, Bryson couldn't help but smile as he gazed up at Shadow: "Just when I thought you couldn't surprise me anymore, you manage to come with yet another head-scratcher"

"What'd you expect?" Ariana grinned from where she sat atop Shadow's shoulder, undoing the knot to the cord that held her concealment stone around her neck, and slipping the new crystal on alongside it: "He knows _all kinds_ of magical things, I thought you'd be used to that by now Bryson?"

"Evidently not" the former scout smiled, "I guess you can still teach an old dog new tricks"

"Speaking of which: as cool as being able to see spirits and ghosts is, why do we need these?" West asked the blue-eyed god-titan, holding up his crystal, "And what do we call them? Spirit stones?"

:They're calling seeing stones, and they are simply a precautionary measure. You know; better to have one on you and not need it, than to be in a situation where you need one, and don't have it:

"Ah, so it's one of _those_ kinda things, better safe than sorry, right? " Rowan nodded, :right: Shadow smiled. "But, if we can see the spirits through these, and they can see us anyway, can it also be used to talk to them?" Lucy asked curiously, as she watched one spirit flit past her face. :The spirits hear and see all, they can understand you just fine. But remember when you talk to them, to be polite, courteous, and respectful of them and their home. This forest is _their_ domain, and they won't take kindly to anyone disrespecting it: Shadow explained. "Since when have _we_ ever disrespected the forest?" Eraman exclaimed in surprise as he saw to his ravens, "We're _Celts_ , respecting nature and all it's creatures is what we're all about!". :I know that,: Shadow nodded, :It's just that some require a gentle reminder...: he deadpanned down at Pascal, who was trying to swat a butterfly away from his face.

"Well? I'm sure it will come in handy somewhere down the line," Tyto spoke up as he threaded his seeing stone onto the same cord as his concealment stone.

" **Aside from 'better safe than sorry', what else did you have in mind with these 'seeing' stones?"** Hecate asked offhand as she watched Ash, Rowan and Dale try out their seeing stones: **"Maintaining an edge over the scouts?"** Javorin shrugged as he held out his hand for Gale, Poppy and Belle to climb up onto his shoulders, **"We don't know how this 'testing the waters phase' is going to go down with the them, and I'd rather everyone have a means of an emergency back-up, than be caught short and stuck with no help available"**. **"And the spirits are okay with this?"** Herne asked offhand, to which Hecate retorted, **"Of course they are, he's the prince of all spirits: anything he says goes for them"**. " **The forest doesn't want the titans around anymore than the humans do, they know this, so it's a 'the enemy of my enemy' kind of thing; it'll be in their best interest to help us where they can, within reason of course. They do have their own rules after all"** Javorin replied. **"I don't get how spirits do what they do"** Elysia sighed, **"They do whatever they want, and yet they have so-called 'rules' that they supposedly live by? How does** _ **that**_ **work?"**. **"Granted, most spirits are fickle to understand: but then, maintaining** **all** **the facets of the balance of nature isn't cut and dry. A great deal of flexibility has to be afforded at times; and nature has a funny habit of going both ways on occasion"** Javorin explained.

" **The bottom line is, they're willing to help us if things get difficult: that's all that matters"** Herne smiled, before changing the subject, **"But we can worry about that when its time to cross that bridge. Right now, It's a bright sunny day, the scouts are heading out as we speak, and we got a whole load of fun planned for them!"** He tried to lighten the mood. **"Yeah come on! We've been training for this for the last two weeks, and I want to get my goddess on with the haughty-shorty squad!"** Elysia grinned enthusiastically like an impatient child as she bounced up and down on her perch. **"You certainly changed your tune,"** Hecate grinned, **"You were scared half to death of the prospect of facing Levi not barely a month ago". "Well that was then, with the new moves me, Carla and the twins have been practising, we'll be ready for that lil' pipsqueak!"** the avian goddess stated boldly.

"Someone's eager to get this little exercise started..." Carla chuckled as she watched Angel bounce up and down on her perch, letting out an eager chirp-chirp-chirp! To which she replied with a vigorous nod. The white huntress then turned to Tyto, and sighed dryly, "... Remind me again _why_ we're letting the kids take point on this?". Tyto turned to answer her, but Pascal stepped in before the Grey Owl could reply: "-Because they're small, young and don't look as intimidating as adults: the scouts will be thinking they're young, naïve, and not too much of a problem to deal with if things go south" he grinned with that devilish smile of his, "Remember, we want them more _curious_ than cautious: let that nut-job Hange get carried away and take the lead, and let Captain Sour-puss play catch-up"

" _You_ just don't want to have to face Levi and risk getting on his bad side, do you?" Carla deadpanned, "Well there's _that_..." Pascal flatly admitted with a sheepish smirk, before deadpaning, "But seriously. Erwin's no idiot, he knows one of us is going to be keeping an eye on the kids: the questions he's gonna be asking, is how many are there, how far away are they, and will they show up in force if he pushes his luck again. As long as he doesn't get a sure idea of the numbers, we're holding the upper hand, and he'll know it" he smiled confidently. "Not to mention there're the big guys to consider," West thumbed over at the god-titans, "Erwin's gonna quickly realize he's in way over his head, especially when he see's what Midnight has to offer"

"Hey come on! It's not like we're unprepared for this," Ariana chipped in, shooting her lines and flying down to hang in front of the grown-ups, "We've got our plans laid out, we've been practising our moves: _we got this_ , okay?" she gazed over at Carla, "We know how to handle ourselves out there"

"I know you do, sweetheart..." Carla sighed, letting her shoulders go slack, "I just-, worry is all". Bryson then put a reassuring arm around her shoulder, "Hey come on, I helped train all of you remember? I wouldn't be letting _any_ of you do this if I thought you couldn't handle it," he gazed up at Ariana with a humorous smirk, "And I know you kids are going to stay on point, and not get too carried away with yourselves". "Don't look at me, I ain't the trouble-maker here," Ariana deadpanned over at Rowan, Clay, Josefa and Jaye, "Hey don't look at us! It ain't our fault haughty-shorty's practically asking for it" Rowan shot back, "Yeah, that's what I'm talking about," Ariana folded her arms as she eyed him sceptically, to which Ash smacked Rowan up the back of the head. "We'll be fine dad, we know what to do," he glared down at Rowan and the others, "-And _what not_ to do. We won't let you down". "I know you won't," Tyto nodded with a knowing look: of all the kids, he knew Ash would be the one to keep things in line; he had a knack for knowing how to take the lead when it came to the other kids.

" **So how're we gonna do this?"** Elysia asked eagerly, **"Slow down kid, this ain't a surprise party we're throwing here: we're going to go with what the situation dictates,"** Herne gazed up at Javorin and Hecate **"At least, I** _ **assume**_ **that's how we're going to do this? Listen in on the kids and play along?"**

" **You three can do what you please,"** Hecate waved off, **"** _ **I'm**_ **going to be 'assessing' the captain solo"** she smirked slyly, **"So long as you don't wind him up** _ **too**_ **much,"** Javorin raised an eyebrow, **"But on the other hand, that's probably not a bad idea: given your particular 'aura', we don't want the scouts spooked too much"** he added.

" **What about the titans and the baiting chimes?"** Elysia asked offhand. **"I think it's safe to say Erwin won't push his luck and try to steal them, as for the titans, I wouldn't worry too much: the chimes might not be heard too well across the other side of the river, but the risk to the scouts is minimal. Plus, having a 'titan buffer' might come in handy if the scouts get a little too curious: something to keep them busy and give us the slip"**

" **But how do we even know they'll pitch up by the river this time?"** the Tempus goddess pressed him, **"Because it's the quickest way to the next location on their supply chain"** Hecate threw in, **"Plus, Erwin's going to figure the baiting chimes are a good place to start looking, or waiting for us: whichever comes first. Plus the chimes have been hanging there since last month, so with the number of titans gathered around it, he not going figure it was put up only days ago"**

As he 'listened' to the life of the forest and the grasslands beyond, through his feet, Javorin soon sensed the familiar thundering of hooves and the grinding of wheels on axles echo through the roots and earth, **"Heads up, here they come..."**

* * *

Meanwhile, ten miles north-east:

As the sun shone bright in the clear blue sky, the Scouts thundered across the plains, heading for the great southern Marian river: all across the empty countryside, swallows, martins and swifts danced on the breeze, while some deer cautiously fed out in the open fields and grassy hills.

As everyone kept an ear and eye open for titans, Erwin contemplated what this month's expedition would yield: after last month's encounter with Magpie, he knew the family would be watching them more keenly from now on...

Exactly as planned.

The so-called 'blunder' of running into the forest to 'flush some birds out' wasn't so much an accident, as it had been intentional on his part. The whole idea being, to force an encounter with one of the 'titan-hunters', and let them know they were aware of their presence: a real gamble for sure, but it paid off. And now, it was simply a case of letting curiosity get the better of Magpie (that is, if she wasn't being kept on a short leash), and the rest of the family hopefully, and letting them come to the scouts. It was simply a case of being patient, and waiting to see what will happen. It didn't take Hange, Levi and Mike long to realize the blunder had been intentional either, but none of them questioned it: they knew Erwin was a risk-taker, and he never took any big gambles without weighing up the outcome, and if it was going to pay off in the long-run. And in this case, the pay-off could be potentially enormous: so it made sense to go with his line of logic on this, and play the waiting game.

And with any luck, those painted titans might follow Magpie's cue as well...

"Hehehehe!" Hange couldn't help but giggle in sheer delight as she watched the river appear around the next line of knolls: ever since the sighting of the black and white female titan last month, she'd been hoping and praying that same titan would make a reappearance this time. A female titan was unheard of, never mind it could be another painted titan: "You keep laughing to yourself like that and people're gonna think your off your nut!" Oruo huffed in frustration, "Little bit late for that" Levi deadpanned, " _Just think!_ A female titan! Another great first in the history of mankind! Who knows what other secrets this family are hiding!" "Your brain, in all probability" Levi shot her a look, "Ha ha very funny" the scientist waved off nonchalantly, "But seriously, what if she's our big blue-eyed boy's mate? Or a sibling? The scouts who saw her said she had the same style of marking on her back as he did: coincidence? I think not!". "For all we know they may not be the only ones" Eld offered, "Oh I so hope that's the case!" Hange squealed in joy, "I so hope not" Levi shot her a glair.

"Whatever the case my be, your orders still stand" Erwin glanced over at them, with a look that told them the subject wasn't up for debate, "No attacking or retreating unless in immediate danger, no interrogations, no cornering, no attempt to injure: in fact, no behaviour that could be interpreted as aggressive or violent what-so-ever. Got it!" Hange gave him a thumbs up, "Fine, but I still don't like it" Levi huffed dryly.

"Head up!" Mike pointed ahead to the river, and to a couple of titans walking along the opposite bank, which seemed totally oblivious to them. "...At this range they should've spotted us" he frowned as he sniffed the air, "Under normal circumstances they might have" Erwin replied, having a good idea what was going on. "-Look out! Four ten-meter classes approaching from the south-east!" one scout shouted: sure enough, four giant ten-meters were steadily ambling along in their general direction. Except, they were totally ignoring the scouts, and carrying on towards the river: not two seconds past before Hange figured it out: "-The chimes! Our boy must've rehung his wind-chimes close to the river!" she shouted. "Our main route takes us over the bridge by Neness, that's less than five miles from where the chimes might be: Coincidence?" Mike raised an eyebrow. "Hard to say, let's get there first and assess the situation" Erwin ordered.

Following the river southwards to the edge of the great Marian forest, the scouts soon arrived at the little riverside town of Neness: more of a large village than a town, Neness had once been the home of fishermen, huntsmen, and a stop-off for weary travellers; not at all like the bigger industrial towns further up river. With it's winding dirt roads, crumbling stone jetties and small thatched cottages, Neness sat nestled between the giant trees of the forest and a large sharp bend in the river, with a huge bascule bridge connecting it to a smaller hamlet on the other side. Flanked by a pair of large towers on either side of the river, which housed the chains and mechanisms used to raise the bridge, it was one of the more impressive bridge designs along the river. It had been a quaint little place back in the day, now it was no different to all the other towns and villages in Maria: overgrown, dilapidated, faded, and slowly succumbing to the ravages of decay and time.

As the long distance scouting formation gathered into the town square, and everyone was accounted for, Erwin and other squad leaders stood to one side as they studied their surroundings. Suddenly, a couple of titans were spotted on the opposite side of the river, less then six hundred yards away: but like the others they just kept heading south into the forest, paying no attention to the humans what-so-ever. Straining their ears to listen, the scouts couldn't hear anything, not even a vague hum, "Looks like the chimes are somewhere in that area of the forest" Erwin thought aloud, "It's strange, we can't hear anything, but the titans evidently can", "Which must mean the titan's hearing threshold is higher than ours, much like a cat or a dog" Hange reasoned, before breaking out into another smile, "-Oh! I must write that down! Where'd I put my journal?!" she reached up to rummage through her saddle pack. Turning to the others, Erwin ordered, "We'll set up camp in the trees and have look-outs posted around the perimeter: if the painted titan or his female companion make an appearance, no one is to engage unless attacked, understand?" "Yes sir!"

"What about the chimes sir?"

"Leave them be, for now: concentrate on planning the next leg of our journey, while I and the other section commanders try to figure out how we're going to handle the 'family', if and when they reappear"

Across the river, hidden from sight by the thick understory and canopy of the smaller giant trees: a pair of large vivid purple eyes watched the scouts with great intrigue, unblinking as they followed the movements of the squad leaders, and paid particular attention to Captain Levi.

* * *

Some time later:

The heat of the July sun had cooled off as a thin veil of clouds had slowly rolled in, and banished the worst of the sweltering humidity: giving way to a nice pleasant temperature that made working outdoors a lot more bearable. As the rest of the scouts kept an eye on the perimeter of the town, and went about setting up the arboreal camp, Petra had been tasked with watering the horses. Taking them several at a time down to the little sandy shore on the edge of the southern embankment of the town, the sweet-hearted redhead stood and watched as a kingfisher sat on a twig, watching the minnows in the water below.

She was so lost in the bird's intense focus, that she nearly jumped out of her skin when a magpie flew down behind her, and chattered loudly as it landed on one of the horse's saddles. Catching her breath, Petra gazed up at the bold creature, and was slightly surprised as it eyed her up and down, chattering again: as if to say hello. "Oh goodness, you really got me there!" she couldn't help but laugh: the magpie chattered again, bobbing its head up and down, as if excited to see her. "Are all magpies in Maria this friendly? Or are you just looking for some company?" she asked offhand in a friendly tone: again, the magpie chattered, and hopped down onto her shoulder, "-Oh, I guess that answers that question" she smiled, "You know? I ran into someone called Magpie a little while back, I don't suppose you know her, by chance?".

The magpie chattered loudly again, this time, flying off her shoulder and back onto the saddle: as it continued to chatter, the horses all perked their heads up with their ears pricked forward, and listened as the magpie called out again, before flying off into the forest. "Huh?" Petra blinked in surprise, then suddenly, all the horses bolted at top speed, following the magpie. "WHAT?!" the redhead gawked, grabbing her handgrips and shooting her lines as she took off after the horses.

"What's up with the them?" one of the perimeter look-out's gently elbowed his comrade, as they both watched the redhead and horses disappear into the forest, "Dunno?", "Should we go help?", "We have our orders: we're to remain here and keep an eye out for that painted titan; but, it might be an idea to go let the rest of her squad know. Just in case..."

It didn't take her long to catch up, and soon Petra was flying parallel to the horses below, and the magpie that was seemingly leading them in a particular direction: "Since when are birds able to talk to horses?" she thought aloud as she tracked the wayward steeds. There was no way to stop them at this speed, the only choice would be wait until they finally stopped, grab their reins and then lead them back. But that didn't look likely, as the magpie continued to chatter, and the horses kept pace with the bird: "... How can a bird learn to lead horses? Is such a thing even possible?" Petra frowned in confusion as she watched the strange chase. Looking around, a pang of worry shot through her as she realized she was well out of sight of the town, and could no longer hear the river: but where was the magpie flying to? And why were the horses following it?

Gazing up ahead, something caught her eye through the trees some fifty to sixty yards away: something that took her breath away...

A huge muscular fifteen meter titan with a cheekless lipless maw exposing a row of teeth, long pointed elfish ears, a long thick mane of light brown hair and eyes as blue as the sky, covered head to toe in strange black stylized markings, and carrying a long blue crystal spear in one hand.

Acting on well-trained reflexes, Petra shot up into the canopy before the giant could see her, while the horses ran right up to it's feet. Taking a moment to catch her breath and steady her nerves, Petra cautiously glanced down through the leaves, and stared in wide-eyed amazement. It was the painted titan, just as Erwin and the others all described: big, impressive, and nothing like any of the others titans she'd ever seen before. She watched as the magpie flew around the giant's frame, before landing on it's shoulder, alongside a whole flock of various other birds: the titan then slowly bent down as the horses neighed up at it, like a pack of dogs begging for food, and it gently offered its open hand to them. Petra frowned in confusion, the horses were clearly eating something out of the titans palm, and as one of the horses moved aside, she saw they were apples.

A titan, feeding horses?

The magpie was chattering to the other birds perched on the titan's shoulders, which ranged in size and species: were they his pets? This was the most extraordinary thing she's ever seen, and as the strange yet cute little scene continued to play out, Petra suddenly realized there was a serious problem. There was no way she could get back to the camp without the titan spotting her at this range, and how the hell was she going to retrieve the horses? Since the last encounter with this titan went without any form of communication, there was no way to tell how he'd react to her. Was he aware that she accidentally broke his wind-chimes? Might he not take kindly to the scouts this time? She didn't know what to do: this was totally new territory, and she had no way to predict what might happen next.

After the horses had their fill of apples, the titan shooed them off, and hummed something that could be construed as: go on, off you go. The horses then turned, and started galloping back the way they came. 'Huh?' Petra raised an eyebrow: after watching them head back in the direction of the camp, she glanced back, only to see the titan was gone. Dread tied her stomach into a knot as she desperately looked around, but he'd completely vanished: 'How the hell does a fifteen meter titan disappear without making a sound?!' she panicked. She was so caught up in her anxiety, that the loud chattering of the magpie nearly made her fall off her perch, whipping her head round to the source of her fright, she let out a low huff of frustration as the bird eyed her up and down on a nearby branch. "You again? I don't suppose you know where your big friend took off to?" she glanced at the bird, which only chattered at her again.

Suddenly, a loud creek in the branch she was standing on got her attention, as she felt the limb begin to give way: but before she had a chance to jump to safety, the branch snapped, and Petra fell straight down through the canopy. But before she could fire her lines, she landed in something soft and warm; sitting upright and looking around, she gasped in horror as she realized she was sitting in a giant hand: turning around, she locked eyes with the painted titan, as he simply stared down at her...

Gazing up into those eyes, and now being close enough to see them in full, Petra was stunned at how radiant and dazzling they actually were: like opals, sapphires and blue topaz all shimmering as one, with hues of every blue imaginable. It was then, Petra noticed how warm and gentle his gaze was, as if there was a peaceful being behind those eyes: kind and benevolent; they were so mesmerizing and beautiful, it was hard to believe such a thing were possible in a titan. She felt her body relax as her fear gave way to an uneasy wariness, as if some kind of power had overtaken her, and assured her instincts that there was no danger here: suddenly, the magpie flew down and landed next to her, followed by all the other birds that now all sat in the titan's palm, twittering and chirping up at her, as if telling her to relax, and not to worry.

"...Uh? ..." Petra swallowed hard: now realizing she was in no danger, she decided to take a bold chance, and see if anything could be gleaned from this encounter: "...H-Hello?". The titan smiled back, and hummed softly in a happy tone: 'Okay, he seems to understand what I'm saying' Petra thought with slight relief, "Can-, you speak, at all?" she asked cautiously, to which the titan shook his head: no. "But, you can understand me okay?" she asked; the titan nodded. 'Boy is Hange going to flip' Petra thought as a small uneasy smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. A titan that could understand English? The enormity of it suddenly hit Petra like a brick, 'but-, language implies intelligence' she realized: she was about to ask the titan something else, when he suddenly snapped his head round to one side, ears pricked forward, and moving up and down as he listened to something.

"What is it?" Petra asked worryingly: the titan lifted his spear, and pointed it through the trees. There, some eight hundred yards away, a whole group of various-sized titans were passing by, seemingly unaware of their presence; the titan frowned as he let out a low hushed rumble, as if annoyed by their sudden appearance. He then gazed down at Petra with an apologetic gaze: but before she could say anything, he moved his hand close to his chest, curling his fingers around her so as to hold her securely, and then silently snuck away; keeping one ear on the titans as he began weaving through the trees. The birds all flew back up onto the titan's shoulder, staying quiet as Petra gazed down over the side of his palm: she was stunned at how quiet each of his footsteps were, hardly making any sound or vibrations as he moved like a shadow; 'How on earth does a titan his size move around without making any noise?!' the redhead wondered in wide-eyed amazement. Gazing up ahead, Petra suddenly realized they were heading back towards the town, and would soon be in range of the scouts look-out perimeter.

Suddenly realizing what this might look like to the captain, Petra stood up in his palm and pleaded in a hushed voice: "No no please! You can drop me off here, I can make my way back just fine!"

The titan glanced down at her, glanced back at the titans, and firmly shook his head: no. Petra was about to try and plead again, when suddenly...

"PETRA? Where are you?!" Gunther's voice rang through the trees: and as the redhead gasped in alarm, he, along with Eld and Oruo suddenly swung into view. The three squad members all saw the painted titan, saw a stunned Petra standing in its palm, and without even stopping to think, all charged straight at him. "-PETRA!" Oruo panicked "-NO DON'T!" Petra held up her hands to try and stop them: but to everyone's great surprise, the titan threw his head back, and leaned as far backwards as he could go without falling over, all without letting Petra slip out of his hand. Eld, Gunther and Oruo gawked as they flew clear over the titan, quickly turning back in the same moment it took for him to correct his stance and stand up straight, all with his birds flying about his head and shoulders, getting all in a flutter. As the three men lined up for another attack, Petra threw up her hands and yelled: "STOP!".

Slamming on the proverbial breaks, the scouts stopped just short of the titan, who unusually, was making no attempt to defend himself or keep them at a distance, he simply stood there as Petra continued: "-I'm okay! He's not dangerous, I-, fell off a broken branch and he caught me! There were titans nearby so he was taking me back to the camp! _Please!_ It's okay, really! Just- everyone clam down!"

"Petra, what the hell?!" Eld exclaimed in alarm, not at all sure what to make of the situation, "Get out of that monster's hand! Before he has the chance for a quick snack!" Oruo panicked, "I think if he wanted to eat me he'd have done so already" she deadpanned up at him, "-Listen, does he look dangerous right now?". Gazing up at the titan, his expression hadn't changed in the slightest, he was just standing there: calm, collected, not at all worried in the least; none of them bar Petra were sure whether that was a good thing or not. "Petra..." Gunter spoke in a more measured tone, "We don't know what it wants, just-, stay calm and don't try anything rash"

The titan then pricked his other ear, as another familiar voice came hollering through the trees, "Oh boy..." Oruo deadpanned as Hange came flying in with Erwin, Mike and Levi on her tail: "-Hey-hey! Look who it is! Our big blue-eyed handsome boy!" the scientist yelled in joy, before suddenly noticing Petra standing in his palm, "-Whoa, what? Petra?!". 'Oh no...' Petra mentally fretted as Levi saw her, and flew straight at her at high speed: grabbing the redhead out of the titan's palm and lifting her away to the safety of a nearby tree: "You okay?" he asked in concern, "I'm fine, but captain!-

She didn't have time to finish as the captain took off and started circling the titan: who still didn't move. "-LEVI!" Erwin barked sharply, and the captain reluctantly returned to his perch next to the redhead, with the rest of the squad joining them at their sides. "...Would you care to explain what just happened Petra?" the commander gazed up at her. Without wanting to get snarled up in trying to explain every little detail, Petra sighed as she decided to go with the long and short of it: "The painted titan saved me sir: I was chasing after the horses when he showed up, some other titans were in the vicinity and he tried to sneak me back to camp without them noticing" she stated, glancing over in the direction of where she last saw them, "Luckily, I don't think they heard us just now"

"He-, saved you?" Hange stared at her in amazement, before that mad smile creped back across her face: but Levi stepped in before she had a chance to burst again, "-How do we know he didn't have something else in mind?". "Yeah! What proof do we have his intentions were noble at all?!" Oruo concurred in an obnoxious tone.

Petra was about to retort back, when suddenly, the magpie that had been flying around only seconds ago, now landed on Oruo's head and started chattering in a rather angry tone at him; much to his surprise. Everyone started at him in bewilderment, before the other birds all perched themselves on the other scouts (bar Petra), and started twittering too.

"What the hell is this?!" Oruo exclaimed as he tried to swat the magpie off, but it only kept landing on him. "I think they're his friends? Or maybe his pets? I don't know, they've been following him closely" Petra offered, "Well whatever it is, it's fucking annoying!" Levi huffed as he tried to swat a rook and a waxwing away. "A titan who keeps pets? Now that would be something!" Hange grinned as a mountain bluebird, yellow warbler, flame-coloured tanager and a bullfinch sat on her shoulders, chirping away while a cuckoo sung it's characteristic 'cuck-coo' while perched on her head. "Is it just me, or do all these birds seem to be annoyed with us?" Mike grimaced as a snow bunting and snow finch took turns in flitting around his head and shoulders.

"They do appear to be riled up..." Erwin frowned as he paid no attention to the Stella's jay and blue jay pecking at his collar: gazing over at the titan, he was slightly taken aback to see the giant giving him a rather amused look, as if he were taking this whole situation in his stride, and enjoying the scene; a slight unease settled over the commander, as he suddenly began to get the feeling he wasn't the one in control here. The giant then smiled as he let out a low rumbling chuckle, taking all the scouts by surprise: as the titan parted his teeth slightly, Erwin noticed his tongue curl up against the roof of his mouth, and a sharp short " _-PHEE!_ " came whistling out, echoing through the trees. All at once, the birds stopped their pestering, and flew up and away into the canopy: leaving the scouts dumbfounded, "What just happened?" Oruo blinked in surprise, "I think he told them to back off? ..." Hange gazed up and around at the canopy, before another smile beamed across her face "And he did so by whistling! Cross-communication between a titan and another species of animal! This day just keeps getting better!" she clasped her hands together in joy.

The titan, much to everyone's surprise, let out another deep hum, as if to say: oh really? as he propped his spear up against a nearby tree, and leaned back against another, folding his arms as he continued to watch the humans in amusement. "Oh yeah? And what're _you_ so happy about?!" Oruo shot him a stern glair, "-You ya twit!" a voice from above made him jump: looking up, everyone saw Magpie, along with a whole gang of other kids: all dressed up in much the same style as her, the same custom-made ODM gear, and around about the same age (bar one boy in a pale grey cloak and redish-pink neckerchief, who looked to be in his late teens), "You lot standing around getting your feathers in a flutter, at this rate every titan in the neighbourhood's gonna know where to find lunch!" one of the kids, a plucky brunette dressed all in blue retorted with a smirk beneath her neckerchief.

"Seriously, you guys always this uptight?..." Magpie smiled as she flew over to perch above Erwin (being sure to keep a few meter's safe distance), "Nice to see you again, commander: no hard feelings from last time?", "Water under the bridge, and likewise, it's good to see you again, Magpie" he smiled, "Nice. You stopping off to set up another supply depot? Or just passing through?". "Passing through I'm afraid, the next leg of our journey is too long to be completed in one day: and Neness is the nearest stop to our main route" the commander explained. "If it's the main eastern road through the forest your taking, you'll definitely want to hold off until tomorrow" Magpie replied, "The titans are pretty numerous today: why, not five minutes ago, Petra would've been outnumbered eight to one if our good friend here hadn't saved her from that fall" another of the kids added; a younger girl in a slate blue cloak and cream and grey stripped shirt.

"Honestly. The big-guy here tries to do a good deed in saving one of your own, and you all think he's only interested in snacking on her? Shame on you," the girl dressed all in blue tut-tutted them with a smirk, before Magpie called over to Petra, "By the way, tether your horses next time you water them!". "Will do" she waved back sheepishly. "My apologises, we misinterpreted the situation" the commander dipped his head respectively, before changing the subject "So what brings you all to this neck of the woods?", "Titans? What else?, oh, and making sure none of your lot get eaten" one boy dressed all in black with a dark purple neckerchief threw in casually.

"Seriously, of all the places you guys choose to pitch up, you _had_ to go for smack in the middle of titan country?" one of the other kids retorted, "There're like, a hundred and thirty-plus titans over the other side of the river, about a ninety this side, and at least a hundred more both north and south of the river, on _both_ sides", "If we weren't here, you guys would be screwed for sure" another threw in nonchalantly: though it did little to ease the scouts nervousness, "Luckily for you though, we're working this whole territory today: so why don't you go back to camp and take a load off; don't wanna run outta gas now, do we?" another teased, to which Oruo shot them a stern look.

"Oh really?" the commander raised an eyebrow; that sounded about as serendipitous as a pickpocket just randomly appearing in a crowded marketplace. No way did they 'just happen' to be in this area today: 'So they were already waiting for us huh? That can only mean they must have had look-out's posted a few miles further up stream: but then, how did they manage to relay the message so fast?' Erwin thought offhand, "Yeah, really" the boy replied an a slight snarky tone. "Blue, lay off" Magpie retorted, giving him the mother hen look.

"Blue?" Hange raised an eyebrow, "Oh yeah, pardon my manners: we don't really see anyone else out here, so we tend to forget to introduce ourselves"Magpie gestured to each of the kids, "This is Blue jay and his sister Stella's jay, my twin cousins: my brothers, Raven, Rook and Jackdaw, my other cousins, Waxwing and his sister Goshawk, Swallow and her brother Swift; and our 'best-friend's-who've-been-in-the-family-so-long-they-might-as-well-be-cousins': Mountain bluebird, Yellow warbler and Flame-coloured tanager, Bullfinch and his little sister Cuckoo, and the snow twins, Snow bunting and Snow finch. Oh, and the big-guy is Shadow" she pointed to the titan, to which he shot the scouts a wink.

"Geez, you guys really have a thing for birds huh?" Gunther gazed up at Magpie weirdly, "It's a bit of a family tradition" she shrugged. "Shadow? That's his name?!" Hange bounced up and down in excitement, "Oh how wonderful! So nice to be properly introduced at least!" she waggled her fingers at him, to which he waved back: "Oh-, yeah, I forgot to mention, he understands our language!" Petra threw in, "I'll say!-" Waxwing scoffed, "You can't have _any_ private conversations with those giant ears nearby". Erwin and the other scouts gazed at him in astonishment, "He-, understands our language?" the commander gazed up at the kids, "How did you accomplish that feat?"

"Accomplish?" Raven gazed down at him in slight astonishment, as he flew down to join his sister at her side, "You think _we_ taught him how to communicate?". The others kids dispersed themselves among the scouts, as they chipped in: "Seriously man, he ain't no one's pet" Waxwing grinned, "Yeah, you see any collars or leashes on him?" Blue jay added, to which the titan smiled. "Nope, we didn't teach him shit" Rook scoffed as he flew over to perch next to Levi, eyeing the captain up and down sceptically as the shorter man stood up in a defensive manner: "...And speaking of shit: _this_ is the pipsqueak that tried to chase you last month sis?" he gazed over at Magpie, before grinning back down at the captain, who stood well over several inches shorter than him: "That's him," Magpie deadpanned, unimpressed with her brother's attitude. "Heh! You weren't kidding when you said he was short!" he scoffed with a chuckle. "Watch it brat," the captain stepped up to him, "I'm not so short I can't beat you down a few feet shorter"

"Oooh I'm _so_ scared..." Rook mockingly trembled as he stepped away, and flew off to a nearby branch, "Yeah you idiots try to pull a stunt like _that_ with my lil' sister again, and the titans will be the least of your problems". "Rook, we talked about this" Magpie deadpanned at him, "There's nothing to get riled up about, everyone's cool here, so fly back up to your perch!" she glared at him, but Rook simply muttered something under his breath as he folded his arms, and reclined against the branch. "As far as last month's little 'encounter' is concerned? It's no big deal. No one got hurt, nothing too serious went down, and its water under the bridge, right?" Magpie gazed over at Erwin, "Right" he nodded. "You'll have to excuse Rook, he tends to let his fists do all the talking" Jackdaw apologized, "Yeah, he doesn't always know how to use his brain" Goshawk chipped in dryly, "Oh, I think I can relate" Petra shot Oruo a look. "But seriously," Raven continued, gesturing to Shadow, "He may be a titan? But he's _not_ stupid: you might want to keep that in mind, should you go getting any bright ideas"

"Duly noted" Erwin replied stoically, "One other thing, those giant wind chimes: is there a set of them hanging up in the forest somewhere, on the other side of the river?"

"Somewhere. What's it to you?" Rook dryly mocked, to which Magpie replied, "Yes, there's a set hanging up by the main road some five miles away, near the village of Berkvenn, just past the windmills on the edge of the forest. Like Cuckoo said, there's a lot of titans in this area, so we're gonna be busy for most of the day. Which means, this is probably going to be the only time we see each other"

"Aw really?" Hange sulked, "Well that's a bummer"

"Hey, there's always next month," Snow finch suggested, "I doubt this is the last time we'll be seeing each other" his sister added without dropping a beat. "Indeed" Erwin raised an eyebrow. "Oh, I nearly forgot!-" Hange suddenly perked up, gazing up at Shadow with a titillated smile, "May I ask, who's your black and white lady-titan friend?". Shadow let out a low amused hum as he raised an eyebrow, as if to say: ah, so you've met her huh?

"Ah," Jackdaw chuckled sheepishly, "So you've met _her_ eh?". "In a way" Erwin nodded, "Four of our number ran into her last month: and the rest of the main contingent only briefly saw her; care to enlighten us as to who and what she is?", "That would be Shadow's _cousin_ , Midnight," Raven thumbed over to Shadow, who nodded in agreement, "Kinda the 'rebellious child' of the family, so to speak" Blue jay offered with a sly smile, "Unlike Mr marshmallow here," Stella's jay thumbed over at Shadow, "She has a real taste for titan flesh, and kinda likes to take a bit of pleasure in these little hunts of ours" she smirked. "A titan that _eats_ other titans?!" Hange squeaked, "Only when she's hungry, most of the time she just likes to play with her food" Raven offered, "She kinda has a thing for games, and likes to get her kicks in where she can" Magpie added, "Meaning, if you guys piss her off, you might wake up hanging upside-down in a tree being used as titan bait" Rook smirked, "Or worse".

Quick as a weasel, Magpie flew down at Rook, trying to kick him off the branch: but the larger boy was too fast, and shot his lines, flying away to perch on another branch nearby; "-Knock it off Rook!" she yelled up at him, to which he paid no attention. "...Seriously though," she glazed back up at Erwin, "If you _do_ see her? don't get your cables in a twist, she won't hurt you; but, don't get blasé with her either: she can be real slippery when she wants to be, and even you guys won't be able to keep up with her". "And if she's in the mood to play, she won't let you go either" Mountain bluebird smirked, before adding in a chipper tone, "But hey, you're the scouts! Ain't no titan in these woods that's gonna get the better of you guys, right?", "Right..." Levi deadpanned sourly: he didn't like the sound of that.

Raven was about to say something else, when a white dove flew down through the canopy, and perched above the gathering of humans, cooing loudly as it watched them. Shadow stood up, grabbed his spear, and let out a few soft hums, as if to say: time to go. "What? Already?" Magpie protested, the titan simply gave her a mother hen look, and tapped his left shoulder, "Sorry guys, looks like it's time for us to get back to work," she sighed as she shot her lines and flew up onto Shadow's shoulder, followed by the others. "Work?" Hange blinked in surprise, before it clicked, "-Oh! Right! Yes, the titan hunting! Well good luck, and don't be shy to pay us a visit next time we're passing through!" she waved good-bye, "Somehow, I don't think that's gonna be an issue" Magpie smirked. "So how long are you planning to camp out here?" Raven asked offhand, "Just for tonight, and we'll be away first thing tomorrow morning" Erwin replied, "Fine, just be careful" the boy nodded, flying up onto Shadow's right shoulder as the giant turned and started walking away back the way he'd came.

"Oh! One last thing!-" Magpie called out, "Midnight's a bit of a handful, but Angel and Boar shouldn't be too much of a problem!"

"What?! Who're Angel and Boar?!" Hange called out, but before Magpie could reply, Shadow started jogging: and before long, he had vanished from sight among the giant trees. "...Well? that went better than last time" Hange offered, "Is it just me or did anyone else get the feeling they were messing around with us?" Levi frowned, "All that big talk and posturing? _Pft!_ \- they're taking us for fools!" Oruo scoffed in concurrence, "They're kids, what'd you expect?" Petra shot back at him, "Posturing or not, we'll have to take everything they said with a pinch of salt, and air on the side of caution," Erwin stated, as the Levi squad flew over to regroup with him.

"So what now?" Levi asked, "Leave them be: if they really are hunting titans nearby, let them handle it; it'll mean we might have a clear run out of the forest tomorrow morning". "And what if this 'Boar' and 'Angel' show up? At this point I think it's safe to assume their titans too! (or more hunters maybe?)" Hange grinned, "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it, for now we take it in shifts to maintain the perimeter and observe whatever comes our way" the commander replied, before turning to Petra, "Petra, when we return to camp, I want you to sit down with Hange and give a full transcription of your encounter with Shadow. That goes for all of us too. Come on" he grabbed his handgrips, and got ready to jump.

"We'll catch up, I just need a word with Petra, in private" Levi interjected, "Don't be too long" Erwin stated, before flying back to camp with the other two squad leaders in tow, "You three go, I promise we'll be right behind you" he assured his squad; Eld, Gunther and Oruo glanced at one another, and took off without another word: wondering what it was the captain didn't want them to hear.

Feeling stuck between a rock and a hard place, Petra had a good idea what this 'word in private' might be about: gathering her nerve, she tried to explain "If, this is about me not trying to get away from-", "-Don't" Levi interrupted, frowning at her in annoyance. Petra instantly went quiet, and didn't interrupt as the captain continued: "You let that monster hold you in his hand, without knowing what he had in mind? I don't care what those brats say; he's _a titan_ Petra. Smart or not, friendly or not, deep down he's no different to all the other monsters we've been fighting for the past hundred years, and I'll bet if you piss him off the wrong way, it won't take much for that hunger to surface. So the next time you see him, or any others like him? You damn well keep your distance, understand?"

"Y-yes sir" she submissively dipped her head, letting her gaze fall with a look of shame reflected in her eyes: "When we get back, submit your report to Hange, then help out with the resupply: and don't go wandering off again" he stated as he fired his lines and headed back to camp. Petra then fired her lines, and took off after the captain: briefly gazing back at the direction where Shadow and the children had gone.

* * *

The dove that had been watching them, flew high up into the canopy of the giant trees, and perched next to her friend, who stroked her back gently: "...Not bad Angel" Carla smiled, to which the titan-goddess in disguise cooed proudly.

"It would seem we've got a tough nut to crack," Tyto pondered aloud as he stroked his beard, "It's going to take quite a bit of buttering-up to bring the captain round: that's for sure" Pascal concurred, "Might be an idea to give him a wide berth, for the time being at least" Evrard suggested.

"Any other time I'd agree, but we've got to see how far is too far with him, and how much or little it takes to really piss him off" Bryson stated: "In that case we'll stick with the original plan and let Midnight handle him: the question is though, how do we get Levi away from the camp, and alone with her?" Falken pointed out, "We'll leave that to Dale and the snow twins to figure out, they're good at that kind of tactical thinking" Eraman smiled as he whipped out a small piece of paper and a writing stick from his hip pack, "So what are the new orders?" he asked.

"Onto the second phase: the scouts know we're here, they believe we're hunting nearby, and they have their look-out's posted: time to see what happens when they 'run into' the rest of the family'" Tyto suggested, which Eraman wrote down on the paper, rolled it up, and tied it to one of his raven's leg's, before throwing her into the air, "Go find the kids Brandy!" he called to the bird, which took off into the forest. "In that case, we better get into position; we still gonna split up for Midnight's solo 'encounter'?". "Yes, you guys go wait for her and get into position across the river, I'll take my team to the scouts camp" Tyto stated as everyone got ready to move out.

Brandy flew a fair distance before finally finding Shadow and the kids further downstream, hiding alongside Boar and Midnight in a narrow glen that flattened out by the river. "Brandy!" Josefa called to the raven, which flew down and perched on her knee: she then removed the message and read it over: "New orders, we're moving onto phase two" she announced.

"Already? That was quick," Ariana blinked in surprise as she reclined against Shadow's neck: "Ten to one says Levi needs some serious buttering-up" Belle smirked, "And then some; I knew you said he was a real uptight little jerk, but _wow_ : the look he was giving you could've made milk go sour" Clay glanced up at Ariana, "The guy's lucky I'm in a good mood today, or I'd a smacked that look clean off his face," Rowan frowned as he cracked his knuckles. "I did warn you he's not approachable: I've been watching him for over a year, and believe me, there's hardly anything or anyone that manages to lighten his mood" Ariana explained, before frowning down at her brother, "-And the next time _you_ decide to try pissing him off? Just remember, he can _fight_ when he wants to. I've seen him take on fifteen-meter classes like they were nothing, and even _you_ wouldn't last two minutes in a one-on-one with him. So don't go getting cocky Rowan!"

"Isn't the whole point of this particular mission to see how far we can push him and the others?" Rowan glanced up at her with a smug look, "Look, he may be tough, but so am I: and I can get the drop on him if I wanted to. Don't worry about me okay? I can handle this" he stated seriously, "That's what you always say" Hazel deadpanned, "Right before you get your ass handed to you" Clay smirked, "Oh lay off!" Rowan shot back.

"In all seriousness though?" Shyla interjected, "This whole thing could go both ways: and we have to be prepared for what might happen if this goes bad": everyone glanced at one another, as a feeling of uncertainty came over the group, "...The idea of being permanently on Levi's bad side, has haunted me ever since I first saw him in action: the thought of him seeing Shadow and the others as nothing but bloodthirsty monsters, and cutting them down as such, still fills me a horrible dread..." Ariana admitted, "But the thing is? As much as he's not friendly or polite: Levi _is_ a good leader, he respects and trusts his squad, and they in turn trust and respect him: Erwin and the other section commanders too, they trust his opinion and judgement, and they trust him to know how to handle things when a situation goes bad. Regardless of his personality, he's a damn good scout, and maybe, a good friend in his own rudely stoic way? How else do you think Erwin and the others are all able to tolerate and get along okay with him?"

"She's got a point there" Hawk nodded, "No one was shooting any stink-eyes in his direction"

"My point is, I don't believe he's a bad guy: just-, stubbornly set in his ways" Ariana added, "Remind you of anyone?" Ash shot Rowan a deadpan look, "I think we can get him to see reason: it's just going to take a bit of work is all". "Maybe? Look, we trust your observations of him and the scouts sis; and if chipping away at that stubbornness is the way to go with him? then okay, we'll play it easy with Levi" Ash smiled as he glanced up at Midnight, "And I know _you'll_ definitely sweep him off his feet". :Damn right: she replied with a sultry smirk.

"One other thing though..." Hawk thought aloud: "Is it just me, or did Erwin seem rather reserved? He wasn't asking too many questions back there"

"Yeah, I noticed that too" Ariana frowned, "Levi may be a serious contender in terms of a physical fight, but Erwin's the one we really need to be careful of; he was studying us back there, trying to work us out. And you can be sure he's not going to give anything away: unless we overhear it"

"What'd you think?" Gale glanced down at Dale, Lucy and Lucius, "You think you guys can out-smart him?"

"Only if we have all the cards we need: and that's what today's all about" Dale replied, "We're testing the waters to see how he and the others all react to us: back there we were acting as a buffer between Shadow and the Levi squad, but now, it's just gonna be them and you guys," he gazed up at Shadow, "I know you can all handle him and the other scouts, that's not the issue here. When you read their 'aura's': what is it you'll be looking for, specifically?"

:A few different things: Shadow replied, :But you must remember, we're not going to get everything we need from them today, this is going to be a long-term observation. It's going to take time to fully get all the facts, and determine where they stand between us and the ultimate goal of our endeavour. For now, we concentrate on breaking the ice:

" **That's putting lightly,"** Herne smirked up at Javorin, **"Phase two isn't going to be subtle"** , **"Better we do it now in broad daylight, then sneaking around the camp after dark, and having the scouts believe we're up to something questionable"** Javorin replied. **"You do realize once today's little 'ice-breaker' is over, Erwin's going to figure we're up to something, right?"** Elysia pointed out, her telepathic voice echoing on the wind, **"He already knows we're up to something kid: today is all about letting him know who's who, after that, whatever he does next is the tune we dance to. And speaking of which, you know what to do next, right?"**

" **Of course!"** she shot back impatiently **, "I'm** _ **bored**_ **waiting around, let's get started already! I wanna put my new training into action!"**

"So" Ashlyn changed the subject as she read the details of the message, "Seeing as we're moving onto phase two, we're going to need a few titans handy"

"Not a problem" Clay grinned as he and Hazel climbed up onto the back of Boar's neck, while Ash, Rowan, Dale, Josefa and Jaye climbed into Midnights waiting hand, and everyone else climbed up into Shadow's palms, "Okay. Let's get going" Ash ordered.

* * *

A few hours later, noon:

The thin cloud cover remained in place, cooling the air and partially hiding the sun at times, turning it into a white sphere that hung in the grey sky.

The scouts continued to go about their usual duties, while maintaining a careful watch on the forest. Over the last few hours, steam plumes had been spotted rising up above the treetops on the other side of the river, some three or four miles away: the tell-tale sign of a titan corpse evaporating; what started out as a handful, had grown in number to well over sixty by the time lunch rations were being handed out.

As she sat down to eat her lunch by the bridge, Petra watched the steam rising up into the sky, and thought back to this morning's encounter: there was something about Shadow's eyes that had her completely taken aback; how they held such warmth and kindness, so different to what she had been expecting. He was certainly no titan she'd ever seen before: but as she thought about Levi's admonition, she realized that she could have indeed, potentially been in danger. Even if his intentions were noble, there's no telling what might have happened if Eld, Gunther and Oruo had attacked him a second time. She mentally reprimanded herself, she was a member of the special operations squad after all: Levi hadn't chosen her for her good looks and sweet nature, she was a professional; and she hadn't acted very professional today.

But then, as she contemplated her gut-instinct: why was there this nagging feeling that Shadow wasn't dangerous?

"Hey Petra-" Gunther nearly made her jump as he sat down beside her, "-Oh sorry, didn't mean to spook you" he apologized, "Ah don't worry about it Gunther," she waved off with her usual sweet smile, "What was on your mind? if you don't mind me asking" he asked as he took a bite out of his ration cracker, "...Shadow?" she admitted sheepishly, "Ah," Eld nodded as he and Oruo joined them, "Can't say he hasn't been on my mind either: he's something huh?". "Something is definitely the word" she couldn't help but smile. "Oh don't tell me that painted shit-face has got you smitten?" Oruo obnoxiously scoffed as he tucked into his rations: Petra shot him a look but didn't say anything: she couldn't be asked to get into another argument with him today: "He sneaks you away from some titans, and that makes it okay to trust him? How do we know that giant shit isn't planning something? Like biding his time and waiting to snap us up for dinner? Consider yourself lucky those brats came by to put him back on the leash (so to speak), or who knows what might have gone down?"

"You might have a point there," Gunther sighed, "But we don't know anything about this titan, or those kids: but likewise, we don't know what kind of threat they pose, if at all?"

"But how can they be a threat if they're out there killing the titans? Doing the same thing as us?" Petra pointed out, "Okay, we don't know if it's really for humanity's sake: but we share the same enemy; surely we can't be all that different?"

"Maybe? Maybe not? Like Gunther said, we don't know anything yet" Eld pointed out, "Besides, what the kids said earlier, about this female titan 'Midnight': I know it would be a huge discovery in terms of new information for humanity, but I'm kinda hoping we don't run into her" he admitted, "Same here" Gunther nodded, "Oh come on guys!" Oruo rolled his eyes, "For all we know those brats were likely making half that crap up! They're _trying_ to prey on our fears, keep us on edge so as we don't try to catch them off-guard; hell it's what I'd do if I were up against an opponent I don't know" he stated boldly. "That's basically what the captain said during the debriefing" Petra deadpanned over at him, "Besides, what if they weren't making it up? And then there're this 'Boar' and 'Angel', we don't know what expect if they are titans"

"Well, if they really are hunting titans out there," Gunther gazed up at the distant steam plumes, "At least we don't have to worry about getting attacked"

Across the other side of the town, on the edge of the treeline, Mike was tucking into a ration cracker as he surveyed the forest: with the cloud cover thinning out the sun's light, the forest looked even darker than usual, with the shade and shadows now almost completely dark in some places, concealing the canopy and understory; giving the whole forest a spooky and foreboding presence.

As he was about to take another bite, the familiar scent of a titan wafted by his nose, and it was well defined: the titan in question had to be around five hundred yards away. The distant booms of giant footsteps confirmed it, and without hesitation Mike reached for his flare gun, and fired a red smoke signal up over the town: "MOVEMENT IN THE FOREST!" he shouted loudly, and within seconds the whole camp was readying for battle. "What is it?" Erwin demanded as he flew up next to the squad leader's side, "Regular titan by the smell of it: and from the sound of its pace, it doesn't seem to be in a hurry to get here; Nanaba's team can dispatch it easily" Mike replied: Erwin was about to say something else, when suddenly, Hange got both their attention: "Erwin! I'm going on ahead to check it out!" she grinned as she leapt up onto her horse and took off in the direction of the booming footsteps, "HANGE!-" Erwin tried to shout, but she was already out of earshot as her horse galloped up into the forest, "-LEVI!".

"Tch!-" Levi huffed as he mounted his horse, and took off after the titan scientist, "Idiot". "Oh boy," Oruo sighed in annoyance as he and the rest of the squad stood back up, "You know what that means": "Let Erwin worry about reining Hange in, come on, we better mount up" Eld stated as he finished his cracker, and ran off to locate his horse.

Up in the forest, Hange kept her head on a swivel, until she finally spotted the titan in question: "-Ah ha! There you are!" she called up to it; a bloated thirteen meter class with beady eyes and a permanent rictus smile, watched as she galloped past its feet, "Care to come for a stroll with me?" she smiled, and within seconds the titan was lumbering after her in a somewhat clumsy manner. "Hey! You haven't seen any titans covered in strange markings have you?" she teased, narrowly missing the giant's chubby hand as he reached down to try and swipe her, "-Whoa! Nearly got me there! You'll have to do better than that!" she grinned as she carried on through the giant trees: dodging and weaving through the understory as the titan continued to chase her, "I don't suppose you might have seen any kids on ODM gear either, have you?" she threw in, only to avoid another swipe, "I'll take that as a no then!" she called up.

'If those kids and the rest of their family are really hiding up in the trees with those poisoned arrows of theirs, there's a good chance they might take a shot at this guy,' Hange thought to herself, easily missing another swipe of the titan's hand, "Close, but not enough!" she smiled, 'Although, there's also the probability they won't make that mistake again, in which case, let's try looking for Shadow instead: and get a look at that big guy in action again!' she thought as she turned, and started heading towards the river; confident she'd led the titan far enough away from the camp.

Suddenly, a red signal flare shot past the titan's face, "Wha- , Hange glanced over to where it had been fired from, and saw the Levi squad galloping past the titan, deliberately trying to get its attention, "OI! This way moron!" Levi shouted up at the beast: but the titan paid him no attention, and carried on chasing Hange: "Dammit! an abnormal!" Oruo cursed, "Stay on it!" Levi ordered, turning his horse and chasing after the titan, "HEY!-" Hange shouted, "Don't kill it! I need this guy alive!". "What the hell's that nut-job up to now?" Oruo huffed in annoyance, "You know Hange: never misses an opportunity to get close a to a titan" Petra shot back, "Ten to one she's using it as bait to try and lure Shadow back to camp" Gunther deadpanned, "-I don't care" Levi flatly stated as he drew his blades, "This one's going down".

The scientist carried on galloping, until she inadvertently led the chase to a wide clearing in the trees, with the river barely thirty yards away: the titan managed to gain some distance, and as the Levi squad were just about to leap out of their saddles and go on the attack, the titan lunged for Hange; actually catching her off guard. But at the moment the titan bent down forward with it's arms outstretched, a huge shadow descended over the clearing, and as everyone glanced up, an enormous white blur shot down through the trees, and struck the titan on its nape: blood arched up as the thing took off and up at a rapid speed, and the titan fell over dead.

The scouts all stopped, gazing up and around in confusion, only to see nothing: "Wha-... What the hell was that?!" Hange blurted out in astonishment, "I-, don't know: but I could've sworn I saw feathers" Eld admitted, unsure what just happened. Approaching the titan, the scouts all saw several gaping slash marks over where the nape had been: rather than sliced away cleanly with a set of pairing blades, the marks in the evaporating flesh indicated a more forceful attack, as if a giant set of claws or talons had dug into the skin and just ripped it out in one large chunk. "What the hell could do something like that?" Hange wondered aloud, gazing up at the sky through the canopy; "And where the hell did it go?" Levi frowned, getting a bad feeling that this meant trouble...

As they stood around the body of the fallen titan, the scouts nearly jumped with fright as a loud "COO COO" echoed through the trees: gazing up and around to see what it was, another "COO COO" sounded. "What is that? A dove?" Eld frowned in alarm, "Fucking big dove" Levi deadpanned. As they tried to locate the strange bird: something bright caught Petra's eye at the edge of the clearing, and as she glanced up to get a better look, the sight before her made her breath hitch; she froze, eyes wide in amazement, and not quite able to comprehend what she was seeing.

"Petra?" Hange suddenly noticed the look on her face, as did the rest of the squad: and as they all followed her gaze, they too were totally taken aback by the strange thing perched up in the giant tree...

* * *

As she stood perched on the branch with the titan's blood evaporating off her metal talons, Angel was careful to keep one wing slightly outstretched, so as to allow Carla and the snow twins some cover, enabling them to sneak into the canopy without the scouts seeing them: "Okay" Carla smiled up at her, as she reached for her concealment stone, "You got this, right?", to which Angel smiled and nodded confidently, "If they get too close and go for the nape, just remember what we practised: there's no way they'll be able to move once you have them trapped, and then it's just a case of shaking them out like fleas" Carla smiled: "And remember, curious puppy, not hissy kitty", Angel smiled as she let out a soft giggle, gently nudging Carla and the twins away, telling them to get going, "See you later," the twins whispered, and together the three of them blew on their concealment stones, popped them into their mouths, and vanished completely from sight.

If Elysia had to honest with herself, she was still very nervous about this: Levi worried her, and Hange's near-craziness had her even more concerned. 'No' she told herself with a determined frown, ' _This needs to be done._ Everyone's counting on me to do this right'. Taking a deep breath, she steadied her nerves, and began bobbing her head up and down beneath her outstretched wing, mimicking preening. She couldn't hear the scout's ODM gear, so they must be still on their horses, **"Good, they're still in place..."** she thought aloud, **"Now they just need to give me a reason to look up"** she smirked, feeling like a child about to indulge in some mischief...

* * *

The creature was nothing the scouts had ever seen before, a giant pure white bird over seven meters tall, it's feathers so white they seemed to glisten like freshly fallen snow, with a rainbow iridescence that reflected every colour imaginable: it had long tail feathers over ten meters in length, and it's back was covered in a huge long trailing crest that ran down from its head, with two large flank plumes cascading down over its shoulders and wings. It had one wing partially outstretched, and it's head concealed beneath said wing, bobbing up and down in a slight jerky movement: obviously in the act of preening. The creature was perched some twenty meters up in a giant tree, about less than eighty yards away, and clearly hadn't noticed the human's presence.

"What. _Is that_ thing?!" Oruo hissed, trying to keep his voice as low as possible, "Clearly a bird; the _biggest_ bird ever!" Hange gasped in a whisper, also keeping her voice low: as taken aback as she was, her fascination was piqued as she studied the strange creature. "Is that what killed the titan?!" Gunther whispered anxiously, "Don't know, I can't see any talons beneath all those feathers" Hange whispered back, "Let's not take any chances" Levi ordered in a hushed voice, "Everyone retreat to the treeline, slowly and _quietly..._ "

As they turned their horses around, the scouts all remained silent as they walked out of the clearing, keeping their eyes in the giant bird, and hoping it wouldn't look up: but just as Oruo rode past a large briar patch, a sharp twig was loosened from the thorny grip of the bushes, and flicked up against his horse's flank, making the animal jump and whinny in surprise.

Suddenly, the creature's head shot up from beneath its wing, and its eyes instantly locked onto the scouts: the human froze beneath its gaze, but they were even more stunned to see that instead of a beak and typical bird face, the creature had a human face instead. That of a teenage girl, it's skin was white as snow, and covered in the same style of markings as Shadow: it's eyes were a pale ice blue, and it's lips a pale shade of lilac. As the creature turned around to get a better look at them, the scouts saw it had human legs with digigrade feet, and on those feet were, what looked like giant sets of armoured 'gloves' with long curved mental talons; it's body was human in profile with a feminine figure, the neck being slightly longer and it's face, neck, shoulders and the upper part of the chest devoid of feathers. As it gazed down at the humans, the strange giant let out a series of warbling chirps as it's head bobbed up and down slightly, much like a curious bird would.

Down on the ground, the scout's were as alarmed as they were weirded out, as they tried to make sense of the strange giant "...A bird? With the face of a titan?!" Oruo squeaked nervously, "A titan bird?" Hange raised an eyebrow, as her brain started to do cartwheels, "Or a bird titan?! How is such a creature even possible?!", "I don't know and I don't give a fuck!" Levi hissed, "If that thing even tries to-

But Levi didn't have time to finish, as the strange avian spread it's giant wings and glided down towards the forest floor, landing near the horses: the scouts immediately ordered their steeds to go, taking off for the forest. The giant didn't follow, and simply stood there in the clearing, somewhat bemused by their sudden departure: Levi led the way as they galloped back to camp, "Can you believe this?! A hybrid species of titan! This is definitely a first for mankind!" Hange bounced up and down in her saddle with excitement, "-We need to study it! We to get back to camp and- " _-Like hell we are!_ " Levi angrily shut her up, "We need to get back and warn-

"-Sir!" Eld pointed up through the canopy: overhead, they saw the avian titan glide over the treetops, easily overtaking them with its superior speed; it's massive wingspan had to measure just over twenty meters, blotting out the light as it sailed overhead. It didn't take everyone long to realize it was flying in the direction of the camp. "-SHIT!" Levi cursed, "Brilliant! We'll be able to get a much better look!" Hange squealed, "Yeah! At it's nape!" Oruo frowned.

Mike and some of his teams were waiting by the treeline, wondering where Hange and the Levi squad had taken off to, when suddenly, one of the look-out's yelled "UP THERE!": glancing up, everyone was shocked to see a giant white bird fly over the trees and circle above the village. "-TAKE COVER!" Erwin bellowed loudly, and without hesitation every scout in the vicinity scrambled to find some cover, or to get up into the giant trees: chancing a glance up at the giant winged beast, most of the troops were dumbfounded to see it had a human-like face. "What the hell is that?!" one petrified rookie yelled in horror, "-Some kinda titan-bird?!".

The creature swooped down, and perched up on the roof of the church, bobbing it's head up and down as it looked all around the town, chirping and warbling it's strange avian vocalizations: every scout didn't know what to make of it, but as he studied the creature with a sharp eye, Erwin immediately noticed the strange black markings on its face and neck, and recognized the stylization right away; 'So, you're another of Shadow's 'relations' huh?' he thought offhand: "Orders?" Mike flew down next to the commander with his blades at the ready, Erwin drew in breath to speak, when suddenly,

"-ERWIN!" Hange waved to him as she emerged from the forest with Levi and his squad in tow, "DON'T KILL IT!": She and the squad flew out of their saddles and landed next to Erwin and Mike, "-What'd you think? We met our new friend here in the forest, she killed that titan you sniffed out!" she beamed over at Mike, who stared at her in surprise, "And look at it's feet!-" she pointed to the artificial metal talons, "Take a wild guess who made those!" she waggled an eyebrow smugly, "It's one of the titan hunters" Erwin frowned, having already figured it out, "Question is, how approachable is this one?", "-Only one way to find out!" Hange beamed as she took off, "-Hange!" the commander tried to grab her cloak, but she was already on the roof of the tavern, across from the church, "Cover her" Erwin ordered, " _Tch!_ Like you need to ask" Levi deadpanned as he and his squad took off, and assumed a defensive semi-circle around the rear of the creature, keeping a safe distance as Hange cautiously grabbed the creature's attention.

As she carefully made her way along the rooftop, Hange watched as the creature bobbed its head in every direction, seemingly curious at every little sound, all the while it's expression was like that of a child: excited and curious to be here; more inquisitive than threatening. "My my, we are curious, aren't we?" Hange thought aloud under her breath, excitement coursed through her whole frame as she neared the giant: at seven meters tall, it was nowhere as big or strong as Shadow, but the fact it sported the same style of markings as he did, had Hange's mind bubbling with all kinds of theories. This was clearly a separate species of titan, so were the markings relevant in a cultural sense? What was this titan's relationship to Shadow and the children? How were those metal talons created? Was the creature trained to wear them, and subsequently trained to kill titans as well? So many ideas, so many possibilities: the scientist could just barely contain herself. 'Oh, at this rate we'll be returning to Trost with _three_ journals-worth of new information!' she thought with glee, before forcing herself to focus, 'But first, let's see what you're like...'

* * *

As she gazed around the camp, Elysia played her part well: rather than let the scouts see how intelligent she really was, and potentially scare them into keeping their distance: it had been agreed that it would be best to play the 'curious puppy'; cheery, curious, naïve, and happy to see everyone, rather than try the firm approach (that would be Midnight's thing anyway). And for the most part, although all the scouts were scared by her, at least they weren't trying to kill her off the bat: as she surveyed the auras of the whole camp, she sensed Erwin and Mike watching her from the safety of the edge of town, the Levi squad assume a semi-circle around her blind-spot some fifteen meters or so away, and Hange trying to hide behind the roof of the tavern, steadily approaching her.

" **Okay, it looks like everyone's hidden in their hidey holes"** she thought aloud, **"But what are you guys up to?..."** she frowned internally as she sensed the auras of the Levi squad pulse with worry, wondering how this was going to play out, while Hange's aura was bubbling with glee and wonder, eager to approach her and talk, **"...Well? At least one of you won't be disappointed... Looks like this might not be so bad after all"** the weather-goddess smirked as she watched the titan scientist creep nearer, pretending to notice her by tilting her head to one side inquisitively, and chirping in a sing-song kind of call, as if to say: I see you!.

* * *

Having been spotted, Hange slowly stood up and approached closer, bowing submissively as she smiled up at the avian titan: "Hello there..." She spoke clearly and calmly, hoping not to spook the creature "...Do you understand me?". The bird-titan chirped happily, and with a powerful thrust of its legs, jumped the short distance from the church to the tavern: Levi and his squad nearly gasped in dread, but as they watched the creature sniff Hange up and down like a dog, they stayed put; even though the knots in their stomachs was tightening by the minute.

"Oh my! Well nice to meet you too!" Hange giggled as the titan's nose kept bumping her, almost knocking her on her ass: bringing her hands up to steady herself, she chanced a touch of its cheek, and to her excitement, the creature didn't seem to mind; running her hand over part of the makings, Hange was surprised to find that it wasn't paint. 'The marking, it's within the skin? _Actually part_ of it?' she blinked in surprise, 'But, these are no natural markings that are like that of any other animal, so how did this come about? Natural? Or artificial somehow?'. Deciding to ponder on it later, the scientist got back to the task at hand, "Say, if you can understand what I'm saying, is there any way you can let me know?" she asked, to which the creature let out a long complex string of chirps and warbles, "Huh, you talk in-, bird calls?" Hange raised an eyebrow, "Well I guess that makes sense, seeing as your part bird an' all" she chuckled.

As they watched the exchange between Hange and the bird-titan, the whole camp was on tender hooks, wondering and worrying if this giant was actually friendly, or simply bluffing so as to get an easy meal: the same thought was running through Levi's mind as he watched in a mix of dread and annoyance. Sometimes, Hange could be mildly irritating, and then at other times, like now, she could be downright infuriating; how the hell she hadn't become titan food sooner was beyond everyone. By now, Levi was convinced she'd either been born under a very lucky star, or he had committed some horrendous horror in a previous life, and had been cursed to endure her in this one, along with her over-the-top eccentricities. For all her smarts and capability as a scout, Hange was a handful at times, and right now, she was really pushing the boat out. "How much longer is this going to go on?" Oruo cursed under his breath.

"Say" Hange suddenly got an idea, gazing down at the artificial talons, "Do you mind if I take a gander at that fancy footwear of yours? It looks ever-so impressive" the scientist carefully approached the titan's feet, and looked the blades up an down: while the bird-titan went back to watching around the camp. The talons weren't part of a 'boot', but rather, a sort of armoured glove, attached to the feet and toes via a series of leather straps, with silk sheaths over them to prevent chaffing: the armour plating was a mix of metal and leather, interlocking and intricately decorated with intertwining lines and shapes, most of which seem to resemble animals, trees and plants; as she ran her hand over one of the talon's, Hange was slightly taken aback, as she recognized the metal in question "Ultra-hard steel?" she thought aloud, "Where the hell did that come from? And how did those hunters get enough to make these?"

As they watched Hange inspect the Titan's metal talons, Erwin was pondering on how to go about this encounter, while Mike remained focus on the creature's behaviour: "... It's definitely no titan I've ever smelt before: just like Shadow" he thought aloud, "Shadow?" Erwin glanced at him curiously, "This morning, being close enough to get a good sniff this time: I was-, surprised to find he didn't have the scent of a typical titan, or any scent similar to any animal I've ever smelt before. It's likely these could be whole other species of titans, like Hange said: ones that don't behave like the titans we're used to dealing with... Of course, I could just be clasping at straws here: I'm just going with what my nose is telling me" the human hunting hound sighed. "Unorthodox as it my be, your nose has never been wrong before" Erwin replied, "True, but this time, it's telling me something I don't know: and I don't like not knowing" Mike frowned, "Me neither, so let's learn what we can from this..." Erwin concurred, before something else came to mind, "Also, we'll have to be careful not to seriously injure the titan: if the hunters are watching us right now, they won't take kindly to us harming or killing one of their own", "Easier said than done" Mike frowned.

As the bird-titan shuffled it's feet about, Hange moved back and away from the talons, "Well, you must be quite the commodity, being able to fly and slay titans..." She smiled: then, an idea popped into her head, 'Fly _and_ slay titans? Now there's a concept! I wonder if it's used to having a rider on its back?': deciding to test the idea, Hange got out a couple of ration crackers she'd tucked away in her breast pockets, and waved one of them above her head, "Hey! You hungry?" she beamed: the bird-titan leaned down, and sniffed the cracker over. "What the fuck are you doing shitty-glasses?" Levi cursed under his breath. The bird-titan chirped cheerfully, and took the cracker out of Hange's hand with it's lips, grinding it up with its tongue against the roof of its mouth: it paused for a moment, as if analysing the flavour of the dry biscuit, before smiled and nodding with approval.

* * *

" **Not freshly baked bread, but I guess it's okay..."** Elysia thought offhand as she downed the tiny cracker, which was barely a crumb on her giant tongue. From what she gathered of Bryson's stories of his scouting days, Elysia knew the scouts rations mostly consisted of a cracker-like biscuit, that was made with a special kind of yeast that staved off mould and made it last a good long while. Indeed, it did have a strange dry taste to it, but it wasn't wholly unpalatable; just not someone's first idea of a snack or meal. As the cracker's flavour lingered on her tongue, Elysia couldn't help but think back to the days before Shiganshina's fall, and how every once in a while, Carla would bring her a whole bag of freshly baked bread rolls from the bakery near her house: she loved the taste of fresh bread, along with fruit buns, dumplings, strawberries, apples, peaches, and other nice things to eat...

'Why am I thinking about that now?' Elysia thought offhand, pushing the memories to one side, and focusing on Hange: judging from the scientist's aura, Elysia had a pretty good idea what she had in mind with the second cracker: **"Sorry Hange, but I don't fancy Levi trying to slash my nape if I fly off with you"**

* * *

"Want another?" Hange waved the second cracker over her head, before tossing it into the street below "-Go fetch!": the bird-titan jumped down after it, and as soon as it landed and picked up the cracker, the scientist leapt down onto its back, and disappeared among the thick crest of feathers. "HANGE!" Petra called out in alarm, but no answer came. The bird-titan glanced up at Petra, and flapping it's wings, flew up towards her in excitement. "-MOVE!" Levi ordered. In rapid synchronized formation, all five members of the squad flew up and over the bird-titan in a wide arch, much to the creatures amazement as it perched on a rooftop, and in one fast-paced burst of speed, all five squad members brought their blades up and aimed for the nape. Seeing this, the bird-titan squawked in a panic, flapping it's wings: and just as the squad flew within range-

FLOOF!

Every scout, including the commander, stared at the bird-titan in dumbfounded surprise, as all its feathers were completely standing on end: and now, instead of a lithe avian creature, there was now a giant white fluffy puffball standing on the rooftop with its wings partially outstretched. There was movement among the feathers on its back, and as he looked more closely, Erwin was surprised to see the Levi squad flaying about as they were caught up in the thick mass of feathers. Oruo was semi-concussed with his feet sticking up in the air and bleeding from the mouth, having accidentally bitten his tongue (again), Petra was struggling as if she were sinking into quicksand, with just her head and arms visible: Gunther was snagged in such a way that his arms were stuck above his head, Eld's arms were free, but his head was wedged between a few especially big feathers, and only Levi's head and feet were visible, having accidentally 'bellyflopped' right into the fluffy white mass; it would've been a rather amusing sight, had the captain not been scowling so hard.

The bird-titan then shook it's whole body vigorously, like a dog dispelling water from its coat: the five squad members plus Hange flew out in all directions, and crashed onto the nearby rooftops, while the bird-titan ruffled it's feathers, letting them settle back into place. "...That's one hell of a defence" Mike blinked in surprise, "Indeed" Erwin concurred in equal astonishment, "Unusual to say the least, but highly effective"

"Wow! Those feathers a way thicker than they look!" Hange chuckled as she picked herself up, only to be booted back down onto her ass by the captain: "The next time you try pulling a stunt like that, I swear I'll-, "-Oh cool your heels Levi, I had the situation well in hand," Hange waved off as she rubbed her backside, "Speaking of which, we must try and get a sample of one of those feathers: no one would ever believe such a creature could existence, unless we bring back proof of some kind!" she smiled as she watched the bird-titan preen itself, licking some of the more wayward fathers back into place. Suddenly, the bird-titan lifted its head up as it sniffed the air, and glanced down at the supply wagon with an eager smile, "...Shit" Levi scowled. And before anyone could react, the titan took off and flew down to land near the wagon: "-Oh no!" Hange panicked as she took off after it.

"Don't let it get at the rations!" Levi ordered as he flew over the titan's head, and landed on the wagon, holding his blade up to its face threateningly, "OI! I'm warning you-

But the creature simply deadpanned at Levi, and with a big inhale of air, blew him off the wagon's canvas roof as if he were a fly: Hange then tried to grab its attention by tugging at its long tail feathers, which did make it glanced over its shoulder, "Hey come on! Don't be so greedy now!" at the same time, Gunther and Eld landed on the wagon roof, while Oruo and Petra tried to circle it from above. Quickly realizing its mistake, the creature flew back up onto a nearby roof, and proceeded to caw loudly at the scouts, as if begging for another cracker: Erwin and Mike decided to join Hange and the squad on the ground, while Levi picked himself up.

"So what was the logic in that move back there?" Erwin glanced sideways at the scientist, "I thought it might be used to having a rider on its back? But apparently its not feasible: with those feathers being so thick, I don't think anyone can ride it without being swamped" Hange explained, "I think it's fair to say the shit-face has out-stayed it's welcome," Levi scowled up at the creature: "If it's taken a liking to the ration crackers, that's going to be a real problem if it tails us the rest of the way" Erwin thought aloud, "We can't risk harming it either: in case the hunters decide to take action against us", "Then it's a good thing I've got an idea to get rid of the thing" Levi glanced over at the commander, "I'm going to need a few more crackers"

* * *

As she kept up the 'begging for scraps' routine, Elysia watched as Levi grabbed another few crackers out of the back of the wagon, stuffed them into his pockets, and took off fast: shooting past her face in a wide arch over the river. Taking off after him, the weather goddess was stunned when, in one rapid move,the captain suddenly recalled his lines and shot them into her left shoulder: before she could do anything, he came straight at her, and with his blades drawn he sliced all the primaries off her left wing, pulled out the grappling hooks and flew back down to the nearest rooftop.

Elysia panicked a little as she flapped hard and fast, desperately trying to stay aloft: but she just spun round and round, crashing into the river near the opposite bank. **"Okay, did** _ **not**_ **see that coming!-"** she gaspedin stunned amazement, **"...Well he didn't go for the nape a second time round, so that's something"** She thought offhand as she stood up in the shallow water, flapping her wings and shaking the water out of her feathers. "Sorry about that!" she heard Hange shout across the river, "I hope we can still be friends after this!"

" **Oh yeah, still gotta give them an incentive to follow me..."** Elysia suddenly remembered, **"...Hey Javorin, you nearby?"** , **"Right over the town with a good view of you and everyone else"** the god replied as he hovered over the town in his elemental form, **"See if you can do something to get the scouts to follow me across the bridge will you?"** , **"You mean like, making the wind snag the map out of Mike's pocket, have it fly across the river, and conveniently land on your back?"** he smirked, **"That'll do nicely"** she smirked as she waded out of the water, flapped her wings one more time, and proceeded to pretend to preen herself: waiting for Javorin to make his move.

* * *

At the same time across the river, a sudden powerful gust of wind blew up, snagging the scouts cloaks and pulling them over their heads, and as they straightened themselves out, a familiar piece of paper flew past Mike's face from out of his back-pocket: "No!-" he panicked as he tried to grab it, but missed. "What was that?" Hange raised an eyebrow, "The map to our next location!". The scouts watched in dread as the paper unfolded on the wind, tumbling through the air as it was carried over the river, and snagged onto the back of the bird-titan, wedging between its feathers. "...You've got to be kidding me" Levi deadpanned with ire, "Erwin, that's the _only map_ we have to our next location on the supply route, I haven't even gone over it properly yet!" Mike fretted, "Then we've got to get it back!" Hange proposed, "The titan is unable to fly, and I doubt it'll be able to get far on the ground with that huge tail: if we move now, we'll catch up to it easily!" she suggested, watching as the creature disappeared into the forest: its bright white feathers standing out against the dark shadows of the trees. "Move out!" Erwin ordered.

Across the river, further into the forest: Elysia came across Hecate in a shaded hollow, waiting for her with Ash, Rowan, Dale, Falken, Eraman, Josefa, Jaye, Carla and the twins. "Hey sweetie," Carla smiled as she flew down to greet her with a gentle stroke on the cheek, "Very nicely done" she praised her, to which she smiled and gave her a nose-boop. **"So, not so scary after all?"** Hecate smirked, **"He's fast, and precise"** Elysia admitted fretfully, before deadpaning, **"But honestly? He's just more annoying than scary. Knock yourself out"** , **"Well? If he wasn't able to scare** _ **you**_ **entirely, then this is going to be easier than I thought"** the black and white goddess smiled slyly.

Flying down to Angel's back, Lucy removed the map snagged in her feathers, flew back up to Falken and handed it to him, "Well, this will certainly bring the scouts over here, good thing they don't copy their maps eh?" he stated as he read it over, "So we better clear out, and get into position for the next 'observation'" Ash fired his lines up into the canopy and took off. Falken held the map in his outstretched arm, and let it fall back down to the ground, where Angel caught between her lips, "Nice work Angel" he smiled. "Midnight, your time to shine babe, have fun!" Rowan stroked her cheek before following the others up into the canopy, leaving the two god-titan's to their own devices: "Join us as soon as you've plucked those feathers out, okay?" Carla called to her as she took off, to which Angel nodded with a chirp.

" **You better get going,"** Elysia suggested as she dropped the map, and started plucking the clipped feathers with her teeth, watching as new ones grew into place within seconds, **"The scouts will be here any second"** , **"They haven't crossed the bridge yet, so we're in no rush: after I'm done here, tell Herne to get ready for his introduction"** , **"Sure: what've you got in mind for the scouts, per se?** "

" **Oh, I'll think of something..."** Hecate smirked.

* * *

A short time later:

Deciding not to get caught out on the ground again, the Scouts left their horses back at camp, and after crossing the bridge on foot, took to the giant trees and made their way to where the avian titan had exited the river. Finding its trail was not so hard, as they followed the wet leaf litter deep into the forest: until they came to a shallow hollow, where a pile of sliced feathers littered the ground and the grass had been trodden flat, and off to one side by a fallen tree, the map lay on the ground. "...Aw dammit" Hange sighed in disappointment as she and the scouts landed on a branch, "Looks like our new friend flew the coop", "On the plus side, we got our map back" Mike pointed to said map, before flying down and swiping it up in one move, " _Tch!-_ Good riddance" Levi scoffed.

After Mike perched next to the others, he dusted off the map and smoothed out the creases, "Still in one piece, that was-. The human hunting hound suddenly froze as he sniffed the air: his eyes widened in alarm and his whole frame stiffened. "Mike?" Hange blinked in surprise, "Is it a titan?"

"It's one of _them_..." he simply replied: "Who? Shadow or the bird-titan?" Erwin pressed him, "Neither, it's a new one". "A new one?! Where?!" Hange instantly perked up, "-Cool it shitty-glasses!" Levi shot her a look, before pressing Mike "Where is it?", "I-, don't know" Mike swallowed hard.

As the scouts grouped closer together for protection, they had their backs to each other, so to not miss an inch of their surroundings: here, the forest was especially dark and quiet. The thick canopy concealed the understory in darkness, and all around the air seemed to grow still and cold. A titan could be hiding anywhere in the gloom, but as they scanned the foliage for any sign of movement, the scouts began to get the unnerving feeling that they were being watched. Off to one side, some couple of hundred yards away, the sound of trees creaking and straining drew everyone's attention: something was moving out there, and no one could see what it was.

As the scouts kept their eyes and ears trained on the disconcerting sound: Oruo suddenly felt an uncomfortable itch begin to irritate him, right between his shoulder blades, below the back-support plate of his ODM gear harness; in that one spot that was almost impossible to reach. Wriggling to try and get rid of it, the itch refused to let up, but he knew he couldn't drop his blades to scratch it: he was stuck, and its was annoying to no end. "What's up with you?" Petra whispered, sensing his movement but not taking her eyes off the strange sound, "I got an itch!" he hissed, trying to keep his voice down, "Well stop it, you might give away our position!", "Yeah no shit!" he huffed.

Then suddenly, Oruo felt a something sharp and pointed through his uniform jacket; it slid down his back, and begin scratching hard, right where the itch was: replacing the annoying irritation with that sweet satisfying feeling of relief. He relaxed as he leaned back a little, and smirked as he closed his eyes in satisfaction, "Ah, Petra my dear, you have no idea how good that feels". "What?" Petra snapped her head round to face him, "What the hell are you talking ab-

She froze

Seeing the look of horror on her face, Erwin realized she was gazing up at something behind Oruo, _behind all of them._ As he silently turned, the commander felt his blood freeze, as he too gazed up and locked eyes with the entity: seeing the look on _his_ face and realizing they were now in serious trouble, everyone else slowly turned round, and stiffened as well; half out of fear, half out of astonishment...

Opening his eyes, Oruo noticed how everyone was staring up at something behind him, their eyes wide with shock: "...What're you all staring at?" he raised an eyebrow: and upon turning around, gawked in horror...

Squatting down low on the branch right across from their own, barely several meters away, was the giant female black and white titan. She looked to be about a fifteen meter class with a lean and voluptuous frame: her hair was as long as her whole hight and blacker than a raven's feathers with a violet iridescent sheen, while her markings were a stark contrast of obsidian black and bleached bone white, with her facial markings reassembling a skull, and part of her chest and abdominal markings resembling ribs and a spine. The more elaborate markings were on her back, while her arms and legs were completely black from the upper arms and thighs down: her fingers were tipped with long sharp claws, her face was fair and elegant, and her skin was as smooth and flawless as porcelain. With pale purple lips and rich amethyst eyes had the most piercing stare anyone had ever seen, like that of an alpha predator: fearless, commanding, dominant; and terrifying to the point it made one's blood freeze.

It didn't take a genius to realize _she_ was the one who'd been scratching Oruo's back, as the tip of her claw still hovered within inch's of his torso: "YAH!-" Oruo panicked as he shot up and off into the canopy, followed hastily by the others, "-WHAT THE HELL?!" the scout continued to panic as he fumbled to try and get a footing on a branch, "-WHERE THE FUCK DID THAT THING COME FROM?!". Looking back, everyone saw the titan smirk slyly up at them, as she rested her elbow on her knee, and rested her chin on the back of her hand: gazing up at them in a mix of fascination and amusement.

"This must be Midnight, and it would appear she's found us..." Erwin frowned as he watched the titan stand up on the branch, step across to the one they'd been standing on, and leaned against the truck as she tried to get a closer look at them: "Yeah no shit" Levi frowned as he glared down at the giant. "-Oh sweet Sina! She is _gorgeous!_ " Hange practically salivated, "Hey sweetie! Nice to meet you at last! Your lil' friends told us all about you!" she waved to her, to which the titan waggled her clawed fingers at them, "-Don't encourage it! That thing's a killing machine with those claws! Holy shit I can't believe it _touched_ me!" Oruo continued to fret as he swatted Hange's arm down. The titan then smiled up at them, revealing a mouth full of sharp teeth, and two prominent upper canines, " _-Shit!_ That thing has fangs!" Gunther swallowed hard. "Oh what nice big teeth you have!" Hange cooed, "-All the better for eating titans with, am I right?"

The titan didn't reply, as she stepped off the branch and landed softly on the ground some twenty five meters below, without making so much as a booming thud: as if she hardly weighted anything at all, "Whoa, she didn't even make the ground and trees vibrate" Mike blinked in surprise as he watched her stand back up, and proceed to slowly circle around the base of the tree, trailing one hand over the bark as she watched the scouts with that sly sultry smile: like a cat eyeing up a nest of birds, and contemplating how to get to them.

"How the hell did she sneak up behind us like that?!" Eld frowned, "I didn't hear anything, did you?" he glanced over at the commander. "None of us did," Mike frowned as well, "I didn't even smell how close she was", "Obviously those claws must be able to afford her a bit of manoeuvrability up in the trees, they certainly look strong enough to hold her weight" Hange smiled as she leaded over the side of the branch. "A titan that can climb trees? That doesn't sound like something I want to contend with" Petra thought aloud anxiously. "Question is though," Levi glanced down, watching as she circled behind the tree, "What does she want now?"

"Uh? Where did she go?" Oruo swallowed hard as he gazed down the opposite side of the trunk: worried, everyone scanned the forest floor below, but the titan was gone. "What? How does a titan that size disappear without making a sound?!" Hange snapped her head back and forth, desperately trying to locate her, "The same way she snuck up on us," Erwin frowned as he began to feel the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end, "Stay sharp, she could be anywhere...". Drawing their blades, the scouts watched and listened, checking the shadows for any hint of movement: then suddenly, Erwin felt himself jerk backwards as someone tugged on his cloak. Snapping his head round, he felt his breath hitch as he saw a giant black clawed hand retreat behind the trunk.

"There!-" Mike shouted as he caught a glimpse of the huge hand behind the commander, only to see the black and white giant emerge from the other side of the trunk, and jump down to the forest floor, where she darted into the understory: she stood still and silent, watching them as her purple eyes glowed in the darkness. "Eyes on her!" Erwin ordered, "Don't loose sight of her!"

"If that's her idea of fun, I'm not game" Levi scowled down at her, "...If she could climb up into a tree without making a sound, what else could she do if any of us loose sight of her again?" Eld concurred, "Or even better, what might she do if a titan comes along?" Hange threw in. "That might be something" Petra agreed, "At least we could slip away", "Unfortunately, I'm not smelling any other titans nearby," Mike frowned, "Okay, so what do we do?" Gunther worried.

"...The children said she has a thing for games: well that could mean anything. We don't have the time to indulge her, and we can't take the risk anyway, since we don't know what she has in mind" Erwin thought aloud as he watched the titan smiling up at them, "And if what they said is true, we can't risk provoking her either". "So _what do we do?_ " Levi deadpanned. Glancing back the way they came, Erwin could just make out the river through the dense forest, a slither of blue broken up by the endless green: calculating roughly where the bridge was in relation to their current position, the commander had an idea; "We split up: all of us scatter in different directions, and whoever she chases will be the one to keep her distracted, while the rest of us head for the bridge, a few miles in that direction. Once back at camp we'll bring reinforcements to rescue whoever's keeping her put" he pointed in said direction, north-eastwards. "Okay" Levi nodded, "This should be interesting!" Hange grinned excitedly.

"But remember, _do not engage_ unless you absolutely have to: simply keep her attention on you, and don't lead her to the bridge" Erwin added.

* * *

" **So, that's how your going to play it huh?"** Hecate thought aloud.

As she read their aura's, the black and white goddess easily picked out the captain's, and could 'see' the direction he was intending to go in. "GO!-" she heard Erwin bark, and all at once the scouts scattered throughout the canopy. Emerging from the understory, Hecate followed Levi: hearing her unusually light footfalls, the scout glanced down and shot her a hairy eyeball, "Shit!" she heard him curse under his breath "-Guess I'm the lucky bastard who gonna keep you company"

" **You guessed right handsome"** she smirked to herself, **"Though, I'm gonna have to throw a little hiccup into your commander's plan..."**

* * *

As Levi sailed through the trees, he glanced behind him again, and was horrified to see the titan running in the opposite direction, right for the bridge: "SHIT!-" he banked hard and started chasing after her. As the giant managed to stay several meters ahead of the captain, she glanced over her shoulder and shot him a smirk: Levi felt his stomach tie into a knot, 'Did-, Is she able to understand our language too?' he thought anxiously, 'If that's the case, then we're seriously fucked!'. Determined not to let her have her satisfaction, Levi stayed on her, waiting and watching for an opening to present itself...

A little ways behind, the rest of his squad kept their eyes on him, as they too chased after the titan: "Come on, he's going to need our help!" Eld frowned.

Glancing through the trees back the way he'd came, Erwin was surprised to see the black and white giant running straight for the bridge, with Levi in hot pursuit: "ERWIN!-" Hange called to him as she and Mike regrouped, "I think it's safe to assume she overheard everything you said, and understood all of it!", "It would appear so" Erwin frowned, "Change of plans, get ahead of her and regroup!" he ordered, "Looks like the captain has other plans," Mike pointed to Levi, as he put on a burst of speed and arced over the titan's head, with the rest of his squad splitting up and covering him from his flanks.

* * *

" **Finally, now we can have some fun"** Hecate smirked as the Levi squad moved into position, and readied themselves for action: confident they had her at a disadvantage. High above in the canopy ahead, she sensed the aura's of the second observation team, while behind her to her right, she sensed Erwin, Hange and Mike trailing from a distance, watching and waiting to see what would happen next...

Everyone was in position, just where she needed them to be...

* * *

The titan suddenly put on the breaks, leaning forward and kicked up dirt and leaf litter as her foot ploughed through the earth, stopping just five hundred yards short of the bridge. The Levi squad banked hard as they doubled back to attack: so well trained and rehearsed in their skills that Levi didn't need to issue any orders, they simply assumed their standard attack formation, and flew in for the kill.

As the titan straightened up, the scouts were alarmed to see a wicked smile grace her fair lilac lips; regardless, Petra and Oruo aimed for her eyes, and flew right at her at high speed. In practically the blink of an eye the titan did a full split, ducking down while also reaching up to grab their lines, effectively rendering them helpless: in the same instance, Eld and Gunther aimed low to go for her ankles, but just as the titan spilt her legs and dropped, her hands quickly flicked down and around to catch their cables too, taking all four squad members completely by surprise. In one fast move she rolled to one side, allowing her legs to close together and roll onto her back, and with the scouts cables still in her hands she thrust her knees up to her chin, using her weight and momentum to kick up and land back on her feet. After which she took all four terrified scouts in one hand, and dangled them helplessly by their cables: the whole confrontation ended in the same moment it began, barely lasting ten seconds.

"We-, failed?!"

"How the hell did she do that?!"

"-Dammit she's fast!"

"CAPTAIN! HELP US!"

Her smile still in place, the titan glanced over at a stunned Levi, who had managed to dodge out of the way at the last possible second, and watched helplessly as his squad was quickly rendered helpless. He couldn't believe it, for the first time ever, a titan had completely bested his squad, and in less than two moves to boot: from where they were watching at a safe distance, Erwin, Hange and Mike were equally stunned; "Where-, how did she learn to do _that?!_ " Hange gawked, unsure whether to be amazed or alarmed.

Infuriated, Levi readied his blades and eyed up the black and white titan with a hateful glair: she simply continued to smile at him, as if taunting him to come at her. Sure enough, the captain took the bait, and in one blinding burst of speed, the human flew like a bullet through the air: a blur against the greenery of the forest, as he circled her in rapid succession. The titan however, simply stood there: neither trying to defend herself or trying to run, as the captain shot by her huge form, missing her by mere inches; but it was as if she had been expecting this, as she was totally relaxed and calm. 'What is she doing?!' Levi fumed internally as he readied to make his move...

This particular attack _never_ failed to take a titan by surprise, even the fastest abnormal's were unable to dodge out of the way when he was travelling at this speed: this was when the captain's shortness was his greatest advantage, being smaller and lighter meant he could go much faster than most of the other scouts. And as his squad watched helplessly from where they dangled on their cables, the captain turned sharply, and aimed right for her nape at a ninety-degree angle: staying in her blind-spot. Titan hunter or not, he would _not_ be bested by any titan, not even this one...

Time seemed to slow as the captain brought this blades down hard, ready to perform his signature spinning attack. But just as he flew within a few meters of her nape, the titan whipped her head forwards, sending her hair flying upwards, and easily snagging the captain: tangling his lines and handgrips as he tumbled over and down her back, caught in the thick black hair; effectively disabling him.

"CAPTAIN!" Petra panicked as she watched him hang there in a daze. Before he had a chance to get his bearings, the titan reached around behind her and grabbed him by the torso with her one free hand, keeping his arms pinned to his sides while she pinned his legs against the heel of her palm. But the worst moment came when everyone watched her raise him to her mouth and part her lips: but instead of biting him in two, she positioned each blade between her teeth, snapping them off and spitting them out. She then teased him from out of her hair single-handedly, just as he snapped out of his dazed confusion. "Captain!" Eld called out to him, "I'm okay..." he called back, glaring up at the titan in a mix of astonishment and sheer annoyance, who simply smiled down at him as if to say: well that was fun.

"Put us down you oversized bitch!" he fumed, the titan simply rolled her eyes as she let out a sharp "-TCH!". The captain blinked in surprise, before glaring hard up at her, "What? You trying to mock me or something?". She ignored him as she gazed over at Erwin, smirking as he, Hange and Mike cautiously flew nearer: "...If she took out Levi with one flick of her hair, what the hell's she gonna do to us?" Mike worried, "I dunno, but I got an idea I'd like to try out!-" Hange grinned as she barrelled headlong at the titan, and perched up on a branch near her head: "Hey there! That was quite a performance! Where'd you learn to do that?!" she called over to her, "Hange you crazy shit! Get outta here!" Levi shouted angrily. The titan glanced up at her with a raised eyebrow and a smirk, half-curious as she continued.

"So I guess the game is over huh? You won and got your prize, now what?" the scientist asked eagerly, "Now you find a way to help us get outta this mess!" Levi shouted up at her: Erwin and Mike landed alongside the titan on another nearby branch, she glanced sideways at them but kept facing forward, giving another glance up at Hange and then down at the ensnared Levi squad, all of whom didn't dare to make a move. "She's being careful: now that she's got her hands full she's only got so many options..." Erwin realized with a frown, "...Although, this could _still_ be a very tricky proposition if she intends on dragging this out". "What about if we ask nicely?" Hange suggested nonchalantly, "Hey Midnight? Would you mind giving us our captain and his squad back? Pretty please?"

The titan shot her a sly smirk as she raised one hand with her index finger pointed, keeping the rest of her fingers tightly balled up so as to hold onto the squad, "On one condition?" Hange guessed aloud, to which the the titan nodded: "Uh, okay? What is it?". The titan pointed to her nape, and shook her head, waving her finger as if to tut-tut them. "-Oh! You don't want anyone going near your nape again?" Hange realized, "What?!" Levi exclaimed: the titan nodded, and gazed down at Levi with a satisfied grin, "If you seriously expect me to apologize, forget it!" the captain fumed, "Uh Levi? I don't know if you noticed? But she's kinda got you guys at a disadvantage," Hange pointed out teasingly, "I don't think it would hurt for you to say sorry this one lil' time?" she tried giving him her best puppy-eyes, to which the captain was immune to. But before he could retort, Petra beat him to it, shouting in a panic "Listen! We're sorry okay! We promise not to do it again!"

It was only then that the redhead suddenly realized what she said, and began to feel sick in her stomach as dread crept up her throat: as if making herself look the fool for being unprofessional was bad enough, speaking out of turn wasn't going to earn her any favours now (even under the circumstances), as the captain glanced down at her in surprise. But, much to her surprise (and everyone else's), Midnight leaned down and gently deposited the four squad members on the ground next to her foot, letting them recall their lines as she let go of the grappling hooks: none of them wasted any time in flying back up into the canopy and regrouping with Erwin and other two section commanders.

As a particularly sour scowl graced the captain's brow, Levi reluctantly swallowed his pride, and took a deep breath: "...I'm _sorry_ I tried to slice your nape: now put me down!" he grumbled in a sarcastic tone, to which Hange teased, "You forgot to say please!", "...Please..." the captain growled bitterly. Satisfied, Midnight opened her hand, and let him fall straight down. The captain quickly shot his lines and flew up to the rest of his squad, making a mental note to _not_ forget this.

"Happy?" he shot her another glair, which she ignored with that mocking smirk of her's. "Does that mean we're free to go?" Erwin cautiously asked. Midnight smiled as she waggled her fingers at them, turned, and walked back into the forest with an alluring sway in her step. "Okay, well, that was something," Hange sighed with relief as a nervous smile crossed her lips, "...You know? it's funny", "What is?" Erwin asked in bemusement, "That's the first time in a long while a titan's actually scared me: how the hell did she learn to move like that? And how did she know when to grab your lines?" she glanced over at the squad, "It's almost like, she _knew_ the formation you guys were going to use, and knew exactly what to do to counter it. But more than that, how was she able to tell which direction you'd be attacking from?" she gazed over at Levi in a stunned daze; the captain frowned as he let his gaze drop in a mix of shock and embarrassment, "I don't know, but I can promise you it'll be the last time that bitch catches us off-guard!"

Seeing the look of deep thought in the commanders eyes, Mike asked, "What's up?"

"She was prepared for us," Erwin thought aloud, "Not only does she understand our language, but she knew your standard attack formation well enough to anticipate which direction you'd be coming from" he gazed at Levi, "It's clear these titan-hunters have been doing more than just observing us," he gazed back at the area where Midnight disappeared into, "They've been learning our tactics and techniques"

"Then, what was _that_ all about back there?" Eld asked in confusion, "Think about it" Erwin glanced over at him with a canny look in his eyes, "If I wanted to send the message that I'm tolerating you, but won't stand for any nonsense: how would I do it?". Everyone paused as they tried to make sense of the commander's ambiguous question, but Hange was the first to realize where he was coming from, "-Oh I get it! That whole scratching Oruo's back and tugging your cloak, that was meant to be a 'look what I can do' kinda thing!"

"Seriously? She was just showing off?" Gunther knitted his brows together in confusion, "But then doesn't that put her at a disadvantage? Revealing her best strategy right off the bat? That's not the smartest move" Mike pointed out, "Neither was the standard attack formation" Erwin replied, "But we made the mistake of treating her as we do any other titan: the same goes for Shadow and the bird-titan. Understandable, given this is our secondary encounter, but we _must_ learn from this. After what we've seen thus far, we're going to have to seriously rethink how we approach these particular titans: as well as review our standard practises when out in the field. If we're to stay one step ahead of these titans, then we've got to start treating them as a far more capable entity"

"Sure, I get that" Levi frowned, "But what about the brats? No doubt you've already noticed, but we've only briefly seen 'mother' thus far, and no sign of 'dad' or any other adults anywhere. Judging from all those arrows we found near Whitefall we know they number well over a few dozen at the least. There's more of them out there, so how come they're sending their kids to deal with us?"

"We don't know that for certain" Erwin surmised, "However, the only line of logic that would make sense: would be to get us to lower our guard. Children that young, seemingly inexperienced, against a team of capable veteran scouts wouldn't last long in a direct fight: at least, that's what many of us would assume, and that would be a reasonable premise to go on. Send in someone who appears to be the weaker opponent, easy to take down should something go awry: allowing _us_ to believe we hold the high ground"

"It's a reasonable line of logic, but not the only one" Hange pointed out, "No" Erwin glanced over at her, "For all we know I could be totally wrong, and their interest in us is based on an entirely different reason; one's things for certain though. They _know_ how to observe us without getting caught: they've been doing this for some time, and know what we're all about. The question now is, how do we get the drop on them?"

"Easier said than done" Levi deadpanned, "For all we know they could be somewhere nearby, listening to us right now...". The rest of the squad gazed all around the forest in anxiousness: suddenly, every shadow, every bush, every dense thicket and even the canopy itself, seemed to appear more threatening, as they realized just how many good places there are for someone to hide out here. Knowing Levi had a point, Erwin coolly replied "Then we will continue this discussion, after we return to Trost. For now, let's get back to camp" he stated as he shot his lines, and headed back to the bridge with everyone trailing close behind.

* * *

At the same time, high up in the canopy above, the 'titan-hunters' watched as the scouts left the forest and crossed over the river: promptly returning to their encampment.

"Damn, he really is a smart one," Falken scratched his head offhand, both impressed and alarmed by Erwin's shrewdness: "Told ya" Ariana smirked, "He's _definitely_ going to keep us on our toes," Lucy sighed offhand, "Yeah, but it's not like we can't be sneaky either" Lucius smirked.

"Do you think it's a good idea sending in Boar next? After what those guys took away from Midnight's little 'encounter', they probably won't be caught out a second time now" Ash commented offhand, "Well? We'll wait and see what Tyto's team reports" Carla shrugged, "After all, this is an 'introduction' of sorts: and it'd be quite improper to leave one of us out just because our 'guests' got cold feet" she smirked.

"You enjoyed that little tussle, didn't you?" Ariana smiled over at the white huntress, "Hm, I'll admit, seeing that rude little so-and-so get put in his place was quite fun..." Carla smiled, before frowning in seriousness, "And if he does _anything_ to step out of line with us, you can be sure I'll be there to set him right". "Easy there Carla, you'd have to catch him first" Falken joked.

* * *

As they crossed the bridge and re-entered Neness, the scouts allowed themselves to feel a little relief, now that they were back in the protective shelter of the camp: "So if that black and white bitch is in that area of the forest, how're we going to get past her tomorrow? What do we do if she decides to have 'a little fun' with us? And what if that over-sized feathered shit decides to help itself to the supply wagon? Once we're out in the open we'll be vulnerable in _any_ direction from above" Levi frowned, "We can't go back the way we came either" Mike pointed out, "The nearest heavy-wagon bridges are over fifteen miles in either direction, we'll loose time if we take the long way round", "Then we'll go over the map and re-evaluate the formation, as well as our procedure for keeping the wagons safe" Erwin stated. "Or!-" Hange piped in excitedly, "How about we find one of the kids, and ask them if they can keep our new feathered friend off us until we're clear of this whole region! It can't hurt to ask? It certainly didn't with Midnight"

Erwin paused as he considered the idea, "...Hm,", "It's a long shot I know, but if these titans have some concept of manners, then surely they can't be totally unreasonable?" Hange reasoned, "I'll believe _that_ when I see it" Levi scoffed, "Perhaps: but if any of us run into the children before then, be sure to ask them" he ordered.

Mike was about to ask something, when unexpectedly, Nanaba came running up to them: "Nanaba?" Mike stiffened, seeing the alarm in her eyes, "What's wrong?" he demanded. "We've got a situation sir," she replied as she stopped to catch her breath, pointing to a whole other cluster of steam plumes rising up above the trees less than a mile away, on the opposite side of town. "...In the last five minutes the steam has been drawing nearer, no one can see or hear anything and no titans have been sighted: but no one knows what to do if any of the titan-hunters come within proximity of the camp perimeter"

"Maintain the perimeter, and call for additional support if needed" Erwin ordered, "The steam's not the only concern commander," the young woman added, "Come take a look..." she beckoned him to follow, as she fired her lines and flew off over the rooftops towards the north-western side of town: Erwin and the others all followed, and before long they reached a small cluster of houses that sat right alongside the treeline, next to a large area of understory that had dense bushes and trees below; essentially creating a 'wall' of foliage that seemed almost impenetrable.

"...Look down there..." Nanaba directed their gaze several meters back into the understory, where a small patch of long grass could just barely be seen. Swishing back and forth amid the long green blades, was a huge hairless tail with a tuff of red fur on the tip. Following the tail to its owner, the scouts were taken aback when they noticed the silhouetted outline of a _huge_ animal sitting motionless amid the greenery, and up where it's head was, they could make out an enormous pair of curved tusks, and a set of golden eyes; watching them from the gloom. The rest of it was obscured by the foliage, but it was clear it was a beast of massive proportions.

"Gelgar and I went to relieve Henning and Lynne from perimeter watch: but when we got here we both spotted _that_ thing. It must've been sleeping there this whole time: a colossal boar _that size_ doesn't wander near a campsite without creating a racket" the younger woman explained,

"A colossal boar? I thought those were only a myth?" Petra blinked in surprise, "Not out here in Maria: in the interior they're vary rare, but in the forests and mountains of the outerlands they can be found in most places; or so I've heard" Mike replied, "And with the wind blowing from the west it's no wonder he crept up on us: the only reason a boar would come so close to camp would be for an easy meal, and given how big those tusk are, as well as his bulk, it wouldn't take him a lot of effort to flip one of the supply wagons"

"In other words, we gotta see this bastard off before he has a chance to cause trouble" Oruo grinned smugly, "Hardly an issue I say,"

Petra was about to chastise him, when suddenly, the sound of trees crashing and breaking grabbed everyone's attention, as a three meter abnormal titan came barrelling over a ridge-line some thirty meters away, and was hurtling right for the scouts. Leaping through the understory on all fours like a frog, it had a head that was two sizes too big for its body, with crazy eyes that were darting in every direction, and a mouth full of horse-like buck teeth that were set in a wide comical grin; it would have been rather hysterical, had it not been so terrifyingly fast, as it reached them within hardly any time at all. "-Prepare for battle!" Erwin barked, in the same moment everyone reached for their blades.

But just as the titan pounced up at the roof they were perched on, the 'colossal boar' exploded out of the foliage: and in a rapid blur of movement, it grabbed the titan by the nape, swung it over its head, clearing the roof and scouts by six feet, and hurled it face first into the ground on the other side of the house, creating a small shallow crater in the paved street.

The boar was no boar at all: but rather, a very peculiar-looking seven meter titan with massive oversized muscular arms and hands, ending in large sharp claws with shorter but equally muscular legs, allowing him to walk on all fours like a gorilla. His face was somewhat extended with his nose and mouth protruding a little; more animalistic than titan, with those massive tusks curling out from his upper jaw, and ears that were long and pointed with little tuffs of fur on the tips. He sported a huge thick mane of fiery red hair that extended right down his back, while his skin was a deep tanned shade of bronze. And all over his back, arms, legs, neck, face and tail, where more of the same strange markings that Shadow, Midnight and the bird-titan had.

The regular titan tried to get back up, but the tusked giant wouldn't let it, as it gabbed the nape again and ripped it out effortlessly with one of its huge hands, tearing out part of the spine along with it. The scouts were left speechless for moment as the newcomer flicked the blood off his hand, grunting and growling as he sniffed his kill up and down, before gazing up at them with those golden animal-like eyes, and standing up on his hind legs to get a better look at them, easily standing a few meters taller than the rooftop.

The commotion hadn't gone unnoticed by the rest of the camp, and with the events of earlier still fresh in their minds, the rest of the scouts wasted no time in readying themselves for battle. Within half a minute, the new strange titan was surrounded on all sides as the scouts flew into position: eager to put this one in its place. The titan gazed up at the numerous humans flying around him, but made no show of aggression or any attempt to try and run, he stood there calmly as they assumed their standard defensive circle, and moved closer to try and cover the commander's flanks, "-NO ONE MOVE!" Erwin barked sternly. Given the risky situation, many of the scouts were confused, but no one questioned the commanders order, and everyone remained in place: waiting nervously as they watched.

Erwin and the others instinctively backed away: but Hange being Hange of course, instantly snapped out of her shock, and waved to the titan, "-Hey there! Who might you be?"

Levi and the rest of the squad grimaced: '...Good ol' Hange' Petra thought with an exasperated smile, while Erwin and Mike regained their composure: holding their nerve as the titan leaned down to sniff them over, all the while Nanaba was scared stiff, especially by the sight of those giant tusks. "Stay calm" Mike assured her, "It's another painted titan", "Seriously? I-I thought it was just the one," she swallowed hard, "Evidently not" Erwin frowned as the titan sniffed him up and down. "So: Shadow, Midnight; and judging from those tusks, I'm assuming you're the one called Boar" the commander gazed up at the titan, who replied with a deep grunt and a nod, giving a toothy smile which revealed a row of sharp teeth. "Which means the bird-titan must've been Angel!" Hange realized as she face-palmed, "-Oh of course, how the hell did I overlook that? Well never mind, now, let me get a look at those lovely ivories of yours!" she grinned manically as she nudged closer to the edge of the roof, trying to get nearer to the tusked giant, "-Like hell are you going to try and grab one of those things" Levi grabbed the scientist by the scruff of her collar, "You don't even know where they've been!"

The titan frowned down at the shorter man, and snorted a nose full of hot air right in his face, making him shudder: "... _Ugh!_ Disgusting!" he cursed under his breath, trying to conceal his revulsion: while Hange tried to muffle her giggles, and the titan chuckled in a deep gruff tone that resonated deep in everyone's chests.

"I take it you understand us too?" the commander addressed the titan: the creature smiled at him, and nodded, "Why are you here?" he pressed. The titan pointed up into the forest, in the direction of the steam plumes.: "You're hunting titans?" Hange grinned, to which the titan grunted and nodded; he then got back down on all fours, and crouching low, carefully weaved his way between the houses, being careful to keep his head below the rooftops. "What's he doing?" Eld frowned in a whisper, hoping the titan hadn't overheard him, "I don't know, but I got a bad feeling about this" Levi frowned as he readied his blades: "Shouldn't we do something sir?" Nanaba asked in worry.

Suddenly, the titan stopped and tilted his head to one side, his ear twitching back and forth as he listened to something far in the distance: quickly and quietly, he turned to face the scouts, lowering himself down on his legs and planting his claws securely in the ground, as if getting ready to jump again; this time, right up at them. "-Shit!" Levi cursed as he shot his lines, and just as before, his squad followed suit as they prepared to attack first, with the whole camp watching nervously: but in that same instance, a noise in the forest behind them grabbed their attention, and Erwin only had time to glance over his shoulder as a massive fourteen meter titan brought its hand down to clumsily grab him.

A loud bellowing roar thundered over their heads, as Boar leapt up over the roof again, and attacked the titan square in the face, knocking it backwards and landing it on its ass with a booming thud that shook the surrounding trees and houses. The scouts watched as the tusked titan leapt up and off the giant's head, and quickly galloped off until it was over thirty meters away, before turning on a pivot and charging the titan head-on from its side. As the fourteen meter monster sat back up, Boar leapt up sideways, violently slashing the titan's nape with his tusks. Blood arced up and poured out of the wound as the monster keeled over dead, while the blood on Boar's tusks evaporated away as he turned to sniff over his kill, as if to confirm it was dead.

"Ohohoh that was incredible!" Hange bounced up and down on her heels like an overexcited child, "Did you see that?! Did you see how those tusks cut right through its nape?! What an adaptation!" she squeaked. "Holy-, I didn't even hear that titan sneak up behind us!" Gunther realized, "None of us did" Erwin sighed in relief, "But _he_ did..." he gazed over at Boar.

* * *

At the same time, some forty meters away:

" **That's cutting it a bit close,"** Elysia sighed with relief as she invisibly watched Herne and the scouts from up in the canopy, with Javorin and Hecate below her, **"Dropping the concealment spell at the last second"**

" **Herne already heard the titan coming"** Hecate replied coolly, **"Relax brat, he's got this"**

" **So, any thoughts?"** Javorin asked offhand as he carefully studied each of the scouts and their auras: **"Haughty-shorty's gonna keep us on our toes,** _ **that's**_ **for sure!"** Elysia glared daggers at the short man, **"We already knew that"** Hecate smirked, **"But it would seem I dampened his winning streak a little: the great captain Levi being bested by a titan? His buddies probably won't let him hear the end of it"**.

" **With that austere aura of his? I doubt they'll even dare to talk behind his back"** Javorin smiled as he watched Boar take down another titan, with his captivated audience looking on, **"Still though..."** he thought aloud, **"His proficiency is no less than what I expected of him: even going up against you he had the right idea of how to assure a quick defeat, (if you were a regular titan that is)"** he glanced over at Hecate, **"He's fast, but I can be pretty fast when I need to be too"** she smirked cunningly, **"Seriously? He took** _ **me**_ **completely by surprise! I didn't even see him go for my wing like that!"** Elysia exclaimed in annoyance, **"I'm just lucky my feathers grew back fast"**. **"That's what you get for relying on your eyes alone: I warned you brat, don't take your minds eyes off his aura, even for a second"** Hecate stated as she folded her arms, watching as Herne continued to prowl around the treeline, while the scouts continued to watch. The commander and his section leaders whispering among themselves: trying to figure out what to do.

" **... And the rest of them?"** Javorin asked offhand, **"Definitely strong as a team,"** Elysia knitted her brows together, as she watched the scouts studiously, **"They know how to stick together, even in the heat of the moment. So how'd you think they'd handle being separated?** **That's not a bad idea, right?"**. **"The problem is how to split them up and not make it look obvious: Erwin will realize something's up if the brats make another appearance; we'd have to make it look like an accident"** Hecate pointed out.

" **Or? ..."** Elysia smiled cunningly as an idea came to mind, **"Maybe a blunder?"** , **"A blunder?"** Javorin glanced up at her with a raised eyebrow, **"Well? I am a Tempus goddess after all, throwing up 'the fog' along with a labyrinth spell wouldn't be a problem"**. **"The fog? ..."** Javorin suddenly realized what she was getting at. **"Well, it certainly would throw them for a loop: plus it would be a good opportunity to get to know each of them one-on-one"** Elysia pointed out, **"Maybe, but we don't want to scare them either"** Javorin replied, **"Plus, we can't allow them to see our more advanced magics just yet, not until we know they're ready to handle it"**. **"There's taking baby steps, and then there's learning to fly by jumping off a cliff: remember when we first allowed our little family to see our more advanced magics? Sure it was mind-blowing but it didn't scare them; maybe lightning will strike twice?"** Elysia suggested, **"Why not? The scouts are going catch sight of the fog sooner or later: the Garrison have already seen it. Plus, it'll dissuade Erwin if he gets any bright ideas about trying to trail it sometime in the future. We can't have them trying to get the drop on us, remember?"**

Thinking about it for a moment, Javorin finally agreed, **"Alright, but let them establish their latest supply depot first: we can always catch them on the way back to Trost. I'll talk to Tyto about it later"**

" **Don't want to leave it until next month?"** Hecate glanced sideways at him with a cheeky glint in her eyes, **"Why wait? No time like the present: and besides, our 'wings of freedom' have finally got the hint; any titan covered in tattoos isn't going to be making a meal out them"** Javorin smiled as he continued to watch the scene at the edge of the village...

* * *

Meanwhile:

"I think it couldn't hurt to try!" Oruo insisted in a hushed voice, "The titan-hunters have got to be somewhere just over that ridge-line, practically within a stone's throw of the camp! We can get a location on them easily!"

"But that's three titans that have come close to the camp, clearly whatever they're doing to lure them in, it doesn't involve that strange humming device we saw Magpie use last time, or the wind chimes for that matter," Hange pointed out, before suddenly realizing, "But then-, why not just use them in the first place? Why let some of the titans slip away and wander close to us?" Realizing what she getting at, Erwin glanced over at Boar sceptically, "...Unless that was the intention..." he frowned.

* * *

Hearing the commander's hushed words, Herne realized the jig was up, and it was time to make a discreet exit, **"Dammit,"** he thought aloud. **"What's up?"** he heard Hecate's voice echo across the ether, from somewhere in the forest, **"I've been rumbled: I need to get out without making it look obvious"** , **"Fine, just don't take too long"** she sighed dryly, **"I'll try..."** he smirked.

"-OI!" Levi barked over at the tusked titan, "We know what you're up to, shit-face. Take your act elsewhere!", "Yeah! You ain't fooling anyone!" Oruo chipped in,

Boar gazed over at the scouts with a mock look of confusion, "...When you return to your 'family' tell them we want to talk face to face: no more posturing," Erwin stated in his usual commanding tone, "If there's something they want to know, they only need ask; we're not unreasonable"

Boar stared at the commander with an unreadable expression, **"... You guys get all that?"** , **"Yep"** Javorin replied, **"I don't think we can bluff our way past him on this. What'd you reckon?"** Herne asked. **"Better not risk it"** Javorin thought aloud, **"Just say yes and pull out of there, we're done here anyway. Return to the rendezvous point and we'll head back to camp: we'll need to discuss this with everyone"**

" **Okay..."** Herne replied, **"I just hope we haven't screwed this up"**.

The titan gazed at Erwin with an understanding look in his golden eyes, and gave a discreet nod, before bounding away up into the forest.

* * *

"Well? I guess all we can do now is wait," Hange shrugged, "Do we stay put another day?" Mike asked. "No" Erwin stated, "We proceed on schedule: they'll find us again in their own time"; "And if they come back before we return to Trost?" Levi asked sceptically, "Then we'll deal with it: for now, concentrate on the supply depot" Erwin glanced at him, before shooting his lines and taking off for the camp's temporary HQ, "The rest of you, as you were!" he ordered, and the rest of the camp dispersed. "Return to your post Nanaba, I'll talk to you later" Mike added before following after Erwin. "I better go and get started on my journal! At this rate we've practically got a whole book on new titan discoveries!" Hange beamed, before turning slightly melancholy, "... I just wish I could've gotten some decent samples from our new friends, even a feather would've been enough" she thought aloud before taking off to look for Moblit.

"You guys get back to work, we've still got a lot to do before we move out tomorrow" Levi ordered, "Sir!-" Eld, Gunther and Oruo saluted, before flying off to resume their previously appointed tasks, except for Petra, who approached the captain apprehensively: "I-...I just wanted to apologize, for speaking out of turn earlier: when we were-

"-It's nothing," Levi replied stoically, before lighten up a little, "As unconventional as it was, you got us out of that situation without a scratch; not bad. But honestly, a titan with a thing for manners? What's next?"

"It is weird for sure sir," the redhead agreed, "But then, this whole thing is completely weird: and I fear we don't know what direction it's going to go in next"

"You're right..." Levi admitted, "They're obviously pulling our strings, trying to see what we'd do: and now that we've sussed them out, whatever comes next is anyone's guess" he thought aloud as he watched the forest, seeing a few more steam plumes appear above the trees, "Come on, we better get back to work: no doubt Hange will be begging for our eye-witness accounts of what happened here today" the captain added dryly as he unlocked his blades from his handgrips and stashed them away in their scabbards, before firing his lines and taking off.

As Petra followed after him, she wondered about the four encounters: and just what it was the titans were actually doing. Were they really pulling their strings as Levi believed? Was this all a test? A close-quarter observation of some kind? What was there to achieve from all this? Whatever the reason, it left everyone bar Erwin puzzled and on edge.

* * *

Later that evening, deep in the forest:

"So, no more posturing eh?" Pascal deadpanned as he threw another log on the fire, "Well he saw through _that plan_ in virtually no time at all: seriously though, is he _really_ that smart? Or just that over-confident?"

"It's not over-confidence" Bryson sighed, "From the way those 'encounters' went down, he was able to deduce the 'painted' titans are no immediate threat, nor are they aggressive when confronted by force (thank Sina). But he's not interested in being toyed with, now he wants to talk to us face to face" the former scout glanced up at Shadow, who regarded him with an understating gaze as he nodded in agreement.

"He's gotta be thinking we sent you guys out there to 'test' them," Dale thought aloud as he sat on Midnight's shoulder, stroking the side of her jaw, "Meaning, he thinks we're a bunch of cowards" Rowan frowned as he took a bite of his jerky.

"Not necessarily" Hazel pointed out, "He must've figured we'd be watching from a distance: which is pretty much a no-brainer by now"

" **And it doesn't look like your 'divide and assess' idea is going to do much else besides unnerve them some more at this point"** Hecate glanced over at Elysia, **"It seemed like a good idea at the time"** she sighed in disappointment, ruffling her feathers a little.

"So," Tyto addressed the whole group, "What's our next course of action to be? Erwin wants to talk, and it's clear our original plan is no longer going to work: not as long as he's able to read the situation and deduce what's what. So do we meet with him? Or do we try something else? Personally, I think meeting face to face would be the sensible option; straighten out any misconceptions he might have of us, _and_ our giant friends" he glanced up at the four god-titans.

"If he thinks we number about two dozen at the least, it wouldn't be out of the question for them to try setting a trap for us: seeing as they number well over a hundred" Fox thought aloud: "And what good would setting a trap do besides getting us pissed off? Erwin's got no reason to go after us," Clay rebutted, "As far as he knows, we're curious about the scouts and have been watching them for the past few years: that's all; we've not done anything to suggest we're aggressive, or unhappy with them in any way"

"Yeah, and if he thinks we can be possible allies: then that's what we've got to try and work on establishing" Ash threw in, "That's what we're ultimately trying to achieve here, isn't it?"

"Indeed it is," Tyto nodded: "But we have to be careful too" Pascal warned, "If we try too hard, or seem too eager: they're going to think somethings up"

"And at the same time, we can't risk them stumbling across the Hunt, even by accident; remember last month?" Carla chimed in, "If Erwin sees the tree, deer and bird titans, especially Stormwing, or any of the other god-titan's for that matter. It wouldn't be unreasonable for him to think we have an army: one that wouldn't have much difficulty in challenging them", "And no doubt Levi would certainly assume _that_ , (if that were the case)" Ashlyn agreed.

"My concern is Hange," Gale spoke up, "Considering how crazy she is, I'm kinda worried how far she'll go to try and get closer to you guys" she gazed up at Shadow, "And what she might do to try and get some 'samples'": "That's a good point" Falken nodded.

"So what do we do? Essentially we're still at square one: we can't let the scouts see the rest of us, for fear they might get the wrong idea, and at the same time we haven't yet discovered if they're all totally beyond the wall cult's influence. Look, today, we've established Erwin and his section commanders are legit, _that much_ we know for a fact: but the rest? We just can't take the risk one of them might be a spy for the cult" Rowan pointed out. "And it's no use having you trying to talk to them at this point," Ariana glanced over at Bryson, "Because A, the scouts think you died in Shiganshina, and B, there's no telling what assumptions they might make of you. Brainwashing, given no choice, disenchanted with the scouts: take your pick. Plus, you're our one and only advantage over the scouts Bryson, if it wasn't for your brains and experience we'd never be able to handle them the way we have".

"Thanks Ariana..." he smiled offhand, before changing the subject, "These are all valid points, but ultimately all moot. The problem here is us: _all_ of us. We're afraid to risk taking a chance: that's how we got sussed out today"

The whole group stared at Bryson in confusion: "What'd you mean we're afraid? We're already taking a big risk as it is" Carla frowned sceptically. "What'd you mean, exactly?" Ariana frowned, wondering where he was going with this.

"Think back to Midnight's encounter with the scouts, and think about what Erwin did..." Bryson clarified, "He knew his scouts would be at risk, and he knew one of them would be in further danger if they were the one to keep Midnight's attention on them. He could've turned back and ordered the others to intercept her in order to save them, but then, he'd risk getting them in trouble too... The point is, Erwin _knew_ it was either going to be himself, one of them: or everyone else back at camp. True he didn't know how it was going to pan out, but that didn't change the fact there was still a clear and present danger, (as far as he was led to believe): and when Midnight's encounter came to an end, he was able to see through that, because he took the risk of hanging back and watching what was going on" the former scout got up to fetch his water bladder, "...My point is, we know they know they're risking their lives, they knew that the day they signed up to become part of the Corps: and _they know_ we know they're not stupid. If we meet with them face to face and explain that we can't join them, for reasons that are too complicated at this present time, then we risk being thought of as a potential threat to humanity: but in doing so, we'll be keeping them and our own safe"

"Safe? How?" West raised an eyebrow, "Well for one, they'll still be focused on us: they haven't found anything that suggests anyone else besides us is out here, so that allows us to keep them (and any potential cult spies) looking in our direction, thus keeping the Hunt safe: and secondly, if we continue to stay close, it'll allow the god-titan's time and opportunity to suss out any potential spies, which is what we're here to do anyway," Bryson explained, "Also, if we continue to challenge Erwin with more 'posturing', it might give him something to think about, in the event he might try to come after us..." the former scout hesitated a moment, knowing everyone was not comfortable with this: "...I know this isn't a popular idea: yes it would mean the risk of being caught out will be higher, and yes we'd be taking a _huge_ gamble with this particular line of observation: but given what we've learnt of Erwin and his friends today, we're going to have to step up our game if we're to stay ahead of him"

Everyone glanced at one another in unsurety for a moment, before Carla spoke up, "... It would be a bigger gamble: but if it means we can make progress in trying to establish an alliance, then I think it's worth the risk". " I agree," Pascal nodded "We all knew this wasn't going to easy: and now that Erwin's figured us out (in some part at least), we might as well not insult his intelligence". "I'm not comfortable with this: but you have a point: so yeah, I'm in" Evrard nodded.

"So are we all in agreement?" Tyto asked everyone, "I guess we are" Rowan shrugged: though he wasn't okay with this either, he didn't contend the issue. "I'm in too: but if we want to establish the fact we're no threat to humanity, we're going to have to offer _some_ kind of reason as to why we cannot enter Wall Rose; even if we don't mention the wall cult by name, Erwin's going to need some kind of explanation. We owe him that at least" Hawk threw in, "And what if he doesn't believe us?" Fox frowned dubiously, "Then that's the risk we'll have to take: but at least we'll be honest with him. And let's face it, the man can smell bullshit a mile off"

"That's certainly true" Tyto sighed as he stroked his beard: "But explaining why we can't enter the interior yet won't be enough," Dale pointed out, "It's what's hiding out here, deep in the forests that just as much at stake: the stone circles, the god-titans tombs, the Hidden Land and the city of lost memories? The former secret Celt and Ranger encampments? We have a responsibility to ensure they're kept safe too you know"

"Not to mention our own reasons for hunting the titans and everything involved with it, isn't exactly cut and dry" Clay added, before Lucius threw in "Look, there's a lot to go over with the scouts if we talk to them about this: yes we're going to have to lie about a few details if we do; but, I don't think playing hide and seek is wholly the best idea. I believe Bryson is right, we're going to need to be more daring on this, and I think part of that will be having to talk to them face to face. If they don't believe us then they don't believe us; but Hawk's right, Erwin can smell bullshit, he's too clever not to. So being upfront with him would be the only option" the boy explained.

"Question is though, which of you brats will be the one to talk to him?" Pascal asked the kids.

As the whole camp sat quietly in contemplation for a moment, Ariana glanced up at Shadow, and nostalgically remembered back to that first year she spent watching the scouts with him: her mind then went back further, as she remembered the ODM gear lessons she and her family used to have with Bryson; long before the fall of Maria. Back when times were easier, and they used to have fun together. '...Why am I remembering this?' she thought offhand, '...It was more simple back then: we didn't have be so serious, and we didn't need to be-

It was then Ariana had an epiphany, a simple yet brilliant idea quickly began to take form, as she saw the heart of the conundrum, and realized what needed to be done: "...Maybe we're trying to hard," she blurted out. "Huh?" Rowan did a double take, "Lucius, you said you don't believe playing hide and seek with the scouts isn't going to work: but what if that's _exactly_ what we need to do with them?" she gazed over at the pale blonde, "I don't follow" he raised an eyebrow, to which Ariana explained, "We started this thinking we needed to meet the scouts level of proficiency and professionalism, that we have to dance to _their_ tune in order to send the right message. But what if that's the problem here? What if making a game of this is exactly the right thing to do: keep things light and fun rather than try to come off as intimidating? The scouts know we can handle them, they've already got the message: so instead of showing them how we can fight, why not show them how we can be friends?"

"Okay, you're really pushing it Ariana," Fox frowned in disagreement, "The scouts would _never_ take us seriously if we just fooled around playing games with them all the time: they've already sussed out what we were up to today, so what would be the point?"

" _The point is_ we'd be proving we're not to be feared" Ariana shot back, "And in case you forgot Fox? They're no different to us: take away the uniforms, the ODM gear, the bows, arrows and masks, we're all the same: we're just people. We feel happiness, joy, sadness, anger and fear: and that's what we need to get across". Fox was taken aback, and everyone was silent as Ariana elaborated further, "...Look, I don't know if this will work or not: but I do know, trying to prove we're better than them isn't the right way to do this. Yeah we're good hunters, but we're _not_ soldiers, and we can't pretend that we are, just to try and prove to Erwin that we're capable of meeting his level of thinking" she stated vehemently, "We've _always_ done things our way, _the only way_ we know how because that's who we are; I mean come on! How many people would be willing to keep a magically powerful titan secret for _years_ on end, never mind _four:_ and with the help of _a former scout and two former crooks_ no less! And who would be crazy enough to take on the titans with no prior military experience? (present company excluded). My point is, we've done some pretty crazy shit together over the years, and the only reason we have, is because we _already know_ how to be daring, we already know how to take risks; so why are we hesitating now?"

Everyone stared at Ariana in amazement, as she continued: "Erwin and his friends are no different when you think about it: yeah Levi and Oruo are stubborn as shit, but so are Rowan and Fox, and that's nothing new to us. Erwin could easily give Bryson a run for his money in a game of chess, and Shadow could charm the pants off of Hange any day of the week; the Levi squad too if given half a chance. They're brave, dedicated, bold, not afraid to think outside the box, and half-crazy too: you _need_ to be to do this job. Don't you see? We don't need to be more, we just need to be us!"

Everyone glanced at one another in mix of astonishment and bewilderment, before a smile crossed Belle's face, "You know... Back before Shiganshina fell, most people didn't even know what a titan looked like, never mind the fact they could eat you". "Or that they weren't supposed to exist _inside_ the walls" Poppy added with a cautious smile. "... There were secrets we knew about the world" Tyto sighed "Secrets our ancestors were killed for... For so long I didn't even know if any of them were real or not: but to find out that not only were we right, but that we played a part in trying to save the future of mankind? There are no words that can describe that: and we never would have found out, if we didn't take a chance on our friends" he smiled up at Shadow. Suddenly, Bryson started to laugh, as he pulled his bandanna off his head, "...You know? When I left the scouts I honestly thought that was the end for me: and when I came up with the missing memory theory, the world suddenly seemed a lot bigger, and more mysterious than it appeared... If someone had told me back then, what would happen if I moved to Shiganshina, and all the craziness that ensued after that fateful day, after the storm: I'd have laughed 'till I burst," he glanced up at Ariana with heartfelt smile, "...You're right Ariana: we've always done things our way, and we knew we could because we knew how to think outside the box... Just like Erwin"

As she listened, Carla felt a small smile tug at the corner of her mouth: not three years ago she was a housewife, dutiful and attentive to her family, and not wishing for any more than the average weight of the world upon her shoulders. Except for the fact she secretly hid Angel from the rest of the world, along with her kin: it was risky at times but she did it anyway. Now she was a titan hunter, and a damn good one: she struggled and suffered for it, but no one else was more determined, more fierce and relentless in their quest to exterminate the titans than her, and all the while her best friend Angel was at her side; her sweet and trusted companion who always carried her into battle. 'Who am I to say any differently?' she thought in amusement, 'Maybe this will work?'. "...Yeah" She chucked, "-You gotta be crazy to do what we do: and it's something we seem to excel at"

"You know? Of all things to come of retirement, becoming a titan hunter wasn't one of them" Pascal smiled offhand, "...So how come I don't regret this?", "Maybe because you know how to have some fun along the way," Shyla smiled, "Well? We didn't stop to question it to begin with: so why stop going with the flow now?" West smiled.

"Yeah, Ariana's right" Ash smiled, "We didn't start this to prove we can be soldiers, we did this because we want to help mankind achieve freedom, not just from the titans but from the wall cult too: we didn't let our fear stop us from doing this before, and we won't let it hinder us now. I say we prove we _can_ be friends, rather than strangers who's objectives align with the scouts"

"You know? Now that I think about it, that doesn't sound like such a bad idea sis" Dale smiled, "There is merit in it," the Cooper twins agreed, "And I have to admit, thinking outside the box is the only thing we know how to do" Lucius nodded, "Though, you'll forgive me if I maintain a 'healthy scepticism' about this particular plan, until we see it bare some fruit?"

"I don't mind" Ariana shrugged, "It's a huge gamble for sure: but I think its the right thing to do; don't try to be soldiers just to keep up with soldiers, let's just be us, and see what happens"

The rest of the camp voiced their agreement, to which Tyto decided to step in, "... Okay, so how're we going to set this up?"

"Well for one," Clay smirked, "We could have a little fun with this, and make some wagers"

As the humans continued to talk, Javorin glanced over at Elysia: **"...Looks like your idea might not be off the table after all,"** he smiled, before glanced down at the campfire, **"But still though, we're going to have to be extra careful about how we do this"**

" **Unless the scouts know how to counter concealment magics, I doubt there's very little they can do to catch us out"** Hecate shrugged.

" **It's not our ability to hide that has me worried..."** Javorin thought aloud, as he 'listened' to the distant ripples of the scouts life-energies through the roots of the trees: feeling the peacefulness of sleep as they rested in their hammocks, dead to the world; except for one...

He could feel Erwin's eyes gazing deep into the forest: he knew they were out there, watching them, listening to them: as the man lay in his hammock, he could practically hear the cogs turning in his head; trying to figure out what their next move might be. Today was a test of restraint and assessment, now, the man wanted to know what he and his scouts were being tested for.

For the first time in many lifetimes, Javorin felt a very human chill creep up his spine: were he not a god, Erwin would've had him on tender hooks; but as things stood, he made a mental note _not_ to get careless with him, not even for a second. After two years of observing him, he knew this human was the one to watch: spy or no spy, he was a man of shrewd perception and careful deduction, along with a line of logic that was easily on par with Bryson's; and today's little 'encounters' confirmed that.

At the back of his mind: the blue-eyed god couldn't help but think: '...I wonder what will happen, when those two finally meet?'

* * *

Two days later:

After yet another successful mission, the scouts were finally on their way home, by way of the river yet again: as they crossed the bridge at Neness, the scouts saw no steam plumes this time, and no titans for that matter. Thus far, they hadn't seen a single titan since leaving their latest supply depot, and none of the monsters were anywhere to be seen whilst retracing their steps along the river and through the forest.

"Huh, I guess they decided to clear off home- GHA!" Oruo thought aloud as he accidentally bit his tongue, "Maybe they're hunting in another area of the forest today?" Petra glanced over at Eld, "Who knows? But if they ain't here now, then we're not going to see them again, until next month probably..." the blond man shrugged offhand, "Unless they're watching us right this minute" Gunther hesitantly suggested as he gazed up at the giant trees.

After the strange encounters a few days ago, the entire expedition were on their toes: as if having to worry about the regular titans was exhausting enough, now they had to keep an eye out for four whole new titans; and passing through the location they last saw them at, didn't help the nerves of the more fresh-faced rookies. "Well? I can wait a month" Hange thought aloud with a smile, "I have a feeling we're going to be playing the long game with our new painted friends, and I'm just going to have to be patient if I want to get some samples", "Oh please..." Levi deadpanned, "What makes you think they're going to come back any time soon? We figured out their little game, it'd be stupid to come back and pull the same trick twice", "Oh I don't know Levi," Hange purposely teased him, "That Midnight might try going a second round with you: she certainly seemed to enjoy your company".

The very mention of Midnight's name made the captain's face contort into a bitter frown: "If that oversized bitch ever shows her face again, I'll carve it off before she has a chance to get the drop on me again" he coldly stated. "Well just be sure to let me know okay? A nice long lock of her hair would be a perfect specimen!" the scientist grinned.

As the scouts continued to gallop through the forest, Erwin kept his head on a swivel, gazing up through the canopy as well as through the understory: at the back of his mind he was hoping the painted titans and their human friends would show up again; but given the events that transpired a few days ago, there was no guarantee they would show up at all now. It was clear they were deliberately approaching the scouts, no doubt to provoke a reaction and gage what they would do: it was a good plan, a risky yet prudent way to test the waters; but by confronting Boar the way he did, had he unintentionally spooked them off, and now they might keep their distance for good? It wouldn't make sense: and something in his gut was telling him that this wasn't the end of the matter. As much as he would have liked to have stayed in Maria and investigated a little further, he had to make sure his troops got home safely: whatever the titan-hunter's next decision might be, it would have to wait until next month.

As they left the forest and galloped out onto the plains, the horizon opened up and the trees gave way to vast open space: but just as Erwin was about to order everyone to assume the long range formation, something up ahead made him pause...

The clear blue sky was not so clear, as a giant swirling mass of pure white fog and cloud towered several miles up into the sky, concealing a small area of the wide open grasslands: it was the most bizarre thing any of the scouts had ever seen, the strange weather couldn't be more than three or so miles up ahead, and as they crested a row of knolls, they saw up to fifty or so titans lumbering towards, and into the fog; seemingly in a daze. Slightly to the left of the strange phenomenon, everyone could see the lifeless bodies of numerous titans littering the ground: many were still very fresh, as if they'd been killed only minutes ago; one after another the monsters entered the white haze, and vanished from sight.

"What-, the hell is that?" Petra stared wide-eyed up at the vast tower of fog, "That's no fog I've ever seen before" Mike frowned in dubiousness, "OH MY GOD!" Hange exclaimed, "-It's the titan-killing fog! The rumours _are_ true! And look! It's leaving a trail of dead titans in its wake!" she pointed to the dead titans, "How the hell's it killing them like that?!" Oruo panicked a little, "It's not the fog..." Erwin suddenly realized, "It's _who's_ hiding inside it"

"OH MY GOD! WHAT AN INGENIOUS WAY TO HIDE AND KILL TITANS AT THE SAME TIME!" Hange cackled hysterically, "Erwin! I'm going on ahead to try and find them!" the scientist tapped her horses flanks with her heels, and soon she overtook the Levi squad, leaving everyone to eat her dust. "-Hange! Get back here!" Erwin barked, but to no avail, as the scientist left the front of the column and headed straight for the fog, leaving her assistant Moblit trying to catch up to her. But without success, as she vanished from sight amid the thick white cloud, "That idiot!-" Levi grumbled, "Come on!" he ordered his squad. "Uh, commander? Is it just me or is that fog coming towards us?" Petra began to panic a little.

Sure enough, the fog was slowly moving towards them: casting a shadow that stretched all the way across the plain as the top of the cloud blotted out the sun. At approximately over a mile in diameter, the circling mass of fog was too wide to go around, and as they came within half a mile of where it touched the earth, Erwin realized there was no other way to avoid it. "-HAAALT!" he shouted as loud as he can, much to everyone's alarm and confusion. As the horses and wagons came to a stop, the whole column fell silent as a strange noise began to ring on the wind.

It was the strange humming sound: deeper, and this time it was more than one, all coming from somewhere within the fog. As more and more titans continued to emerge from the forest and the surrounding landscape, the immediate sense of panic quickly subsided when the whole column realized they were paying them no attention; the titans just continued to walk on by, all seemingly oblivious to the scout's presence.

"Levi! Take your squad and go and retrieve Hange!" he ordered: Levi and said squad wasted no time as they took off in the direction Hange went, disappearing into the fog; Erwin then turned to address the rest of the contingent, "THE REST OF YOU REMAIN WHERE YOU ARE! WE WON'T BE ABLE TO SEE ANYTHING IN THAT FOG, THE SAFEST THING WOULD BE TO STAY PUT, AVOID ANY TITANS THAT COME TOO CLOSE, AND WAIT UNTIL THE FOG HAS PASSED!"

"B-b-but sir!" one nervous rookie raised his hand, "W-what if, whatever's killing those titans, m-might be a threat to us too?!"

"Call it a hunch, but I don't think it's after us..." Erwin coolly replied, "We're simply in the way": his answer did little to comfort the rookie, but what could he do? What could anyone do at this point? "Seriously though..." Mike discreetly grabbed his attention, "If it is the titan-hunter's inside that thing, what do we do?", "We'll find out soon enough..." Erwin replied as he gazed up at the fog: unafraid, and willing to face whatever was about to happen.

Within minutes, the fog gently blew over them, and within seconds the world faded into an eerie dark grey as everything disappeared from sight: the fog was so dense Erwin couldn't even see his horse's head, never mind his outstretched hand. The humming was all around them now, and as the scouts nervous whispers faded away into the strange droning, he glanced all around, trying to remember where Mike was, while also trying to spot any sign of movement.

Overhead, the sound of giant beating wings could be heard some forty meters up: fifteen or so meters away, giant footfalls echoed and vibrated all around, and the sound of ODM gear and pairing blades could heard slicing flesh, followed by the booming thud of a titan falling down dead; but no voices. Every now and then a little sunlight would pierce the greyness, and light up the fog in brilliant white: as it continued to swirl all around, Erwin could make out the silhouettes of titans moving about; the lower half of a set of legs, part of an arm, part of a torso or a head. But he couldn't see the painted titans anywhere, and no other humans either; no doubt they were here somewhere: but did they know the scouts where here too? Did they somehow catch sight of them as the fog passed over? They must have at least heard him shouting to his troops, but then why didn't they shout back to warn them of their approach? This question kept Erwin on alert, and made him wonder if something was up. There was no way to know for sure.

After a minute or so of silent anxious waiting, the gentle wind suddenly began to die down, until the air was as still as stagnant water: but the fog hadn't passed or lifted, it remained dark grey all around; exuding an almost spooky presence. It was then Erwin suddenly realized the humming had faded away, and only silence filled the damp air. "...Mike? ..." Erwin called out, but there was no reply: not even any nickering or snorts from any of the horses, "Mike!" he called again, but no one answered.

Then, Erwin saw the ground begin to reappear, and realized the fog was at last thinning out: before long he could see up to six to eight meters ahead; it wasn't much, but it was something. But as he turned around to locate Mike, the commander was stunned to see he was all alone: Mike, along with the rest of the column, were gone. This made utterly no sense, he didn't hear the section commander or any of the other scouts take off, nor did his own horse move at anytime; they were just... gone.

Turning his horse around in every direction, Erwin saw and heard nothing, there was only the grassy earth and endless grey all around, with a little sun lighting up the fog high overhead.

"...What the hell just happened?..." he cursed under his breath.

* * *

"HANGE!" Levi shouted, "Come on shitty-glasses, talk to me!". But no reply came as the fog remained in place, and silence hung in the air. This was getting worse by the minute, first Hange disappeared, and now his whole squad was MIA: "PETRA! ELD! GUNTHER! ORUO! CAN ANYONE HEAR ME?!" he shouted; but no one answered back.

The captain had ridden so far ahead, that it was now impossible to tell where the rest of the contingent was: even if they were remaining stationary, there was no way to tell which direction was which. And the fact that all the titans, along with the strange humming had somehow seemed to have disappeared, was also concerning.

Being lost in this fog was bad: being out in the open and separated from his squad was worse, and if he didn't find some sort of cover soon, Levi knew he'd be in even worse trouble. But he only had about six or eight meters of visibility at best, and with no signs of any roads or buildings nearby, his options were very limited.

"Wherever you guys are: you better stay safe" Levi sighed under his breath as he readied his blades, and listened out for any signs of movement.

* * *

"HEEEY! Can anyone hear me?!" Hange shouted out as she rode around aimlessly, "If any of you titan-hunters are out there, would you be so kind as to point me in the direction of my squad? I seem to have gotten a little lost!"

As she continued to let her horse walk on, the scientist scanned the fog for any sign of movement: "HEY LEVI! YOU OUT THERE? PETRA! ORUO! ELD! GUNTHER! ARE ANY OF YOU GUYS NEARBY?!"

No reply came, and as the scientist scanned the fog for the umpteenth time, she contemplated her situation: "Hmmm, Levi's more than capable of handling a little fog, the rest of the squad too: and no doubt Mike and Erwin are taking it in the their stride...I'm sure everyone's fine!" she assured herself, before her eager mind turned back to the subject at hand, "...But fog like this has _never_ been seen before, and on a clear day to boot! This is no natural weather we're dealing with here..." she smiled as her mind bubbled with ideas, "But what's causing it? A titan that can create fog maybe? Well technically they can breath steam, but what if one went an evolutionary step further, and not only created steam in abundance, but somehow, came up with a means of controlling it too? Oh that would be something!" she clasped her hands together in delight, "Now, where are those painted beauties ...HEY SHADOW! MIDNIGHT! ANGEL! BOAR! IT'S OKAY, YOU DON'T NEED TO HIDE FROM ME! LEVI'S NOT HERE SO IT'S SAFE TO COME OUT!"

* * *

"This doesn't make any sense," Mike cursed as he sniffed the air, trying pick up the scent of his friends: but with no moving air currents, the only smell present was that of his horse. "...Erwin was standing right next to me, and he didn't give the order to move...So what happened?" he thought aloud, trying to rationalize what just transpired.

The titans were gone, the humming had stopped, and everyone seemed to have been swallowed up by the fog: it was a bad situation to be in, and with no idea of where he was, Mike didn't know where to go, or how to back-track his way to the rest of the contingent.

With his blades at the ready and his nose breathing the air deep, he searched for something, anything that could offer him a way out of this conundrum...

* * *

Meanwhile, close by:

As the fog continued to spiral high up into the sky, Javorin kept his minds eye on each of the scouts auras: though their physical forms were obscured by the fog, their life-energies shone bright as candle flames, each a flickering light in the ghostly gloom: pinpointing their exact locations.

" **Well, I'd say everyone's well and truly lost now"** he nodded, **"Good that means we're ready to begin!"** Elysia smiled as she flew out of the fog, and swooped down to land with the rest of the group, **"The spell I wove into the clouds should keep it in place while we have a lil' 'chat' with our new friends, we have all the time in the world: just let me know when everyone's done and I'll release it"** she assured him, **"Are** _ **your**_ **lil' friends ready?"** , **"They know what to do, don't worry,"** Javorin smiled as he watched a few spirits dance around a nearby cluster of flowers, waiting to receive their prince's word on what to do next.

"It's like pea soup in there, we couldn't see anything" Lucy told the others, as she and her brother leaned over the side of Angel's neck, while Carla dismounted and rejoined the other grown-ups. "But Angel says the main column's okay, they're just skirting on the edge of the fog: they'll be out long before our friends even get their bearings, _and_ the repelling charm's in place. As long as they stay put, they'll be fine"

"Okay" Tyto addressed the rest of the kids, "You all know what to do: so keep your seeing stones at the ready, and let's get to it. Good luck..."

And with that, the humans paired off with their respective titan-gods, and made their way into the fog, vanishing from sight as the spiralling tower of cloud swallowed them up.

The spirits waited, as they sensed their kin inside the fog, watching and listening to their prince's human friends...

* * *

Petra was now really beginning to panic as she stopped her horse, and glanced around yet again: the fog showed no sign of lifting, and it was no use calling out anymore, as she hadn't heard or seen anyone else. "...This doesn't make any sense, the fog looked to be about a mile wide: _surely_ I should have reached the edge of it by now?" she thought aloud, but as the dull grey haze kept her visual range limited to about six to eight meters, it was clear she was still somewhere in the middle.

Gazing down at the signal flares in her saddle pack, she hesitated, "...I could use a flare to signal my position, but if there are any titans nearby, they'll see it too" she sighed in futility; thinking of the captain and her squad mates, and if they were lost too, "...I really hope you guys are doing better than I am: I don't even know which way to go" she glanced all around again, nervously keeping an eye and ear out for any sign of movement.

"Petra?"

"-AH!" Petra nearly jumped out of her saddle in fright: quickly turning her horse around, she was astounded to see Mountain Bluebird, Yellow Warbler and Flame-coloured Tanager all standing together, "Wha-, where the hell did you guys come from?!" she exclaimed in disbelief. There was no one behind her not two seconds ago; 'How did they sneak up like that?' she thought. "It's okay, we're here to help," Warbler assured her, "We were busy seeing to the titans when we heard someone shouting" Tanager added, "We listened again, and realized it was you" Warbler explained, "So we left our post to come take a look, and here you are!" Bluebird smiled beneath her neckerchief. "How the hell did you end up here? Were you guys heading back to Trost?" Warbler asked concernedly.

"Uh-, yeah. We got separated chasing after Hange" Petra admitted sheepishly, before begging, "-Listen, have you seen her or the rest my squad? I've no idea where I am or where I'm going, and there're titans nearby!"

"Oh don't worry about the titans, we've already taken care of them" Tanager waved off as she and her sisters stepped closer, "And if the scouts are all stuck in this fog too, the rest of our family are bound to run into them sooner or later" Bluebird added, "We got a little sidetracked chasing a few crazy abnormal's, so we kinda got split up too" Warbler shrugged, "But hey, we'll get you out of this pea soup"

"You-, know how to find your way out of this fog?" Petra dubiously asked, "Hell yeah! We know it back to front!" Bluebird smugly stated as she folded her arms, "Trust me, we'll be out in no time!"

"I'm not sure," Petra hesitated worryingly: the three sisters glanced at one another, before Warbler approached and stood next to her horse, "Listen," she spoke in a reassuring tone, "I know it seems scary, and I know you have no reason to trust us: but take it from me, this fog is not like regular fog: it's tricky, disorientating, and if you don't know how to navigate it, you won't find your way out... You're just gonna have to trust us on this, okay?"

Realizing she had no other choice, Petra reluctantly agreed, "Okay, but _you're sure_ you know what your doing?"

"Of course, we don't make a habit of boasting about anything we can't do" Tanager shrugged, "And trust me, navigating this fog is something we can do in our sleep" Bluebird scoffed: "Come on, let's get moving..." she beckoned the scout to follow, as they started walking away: Petra made sure to stay close, for fear of loosing sight of them.

"So," Warbler changed the subject, "What was Hange doing? Riding into the fog I presume?"

"Oh, she thought you guys might be hiding inside: I guess her assumption was right on the mark" Petra thought aloud. "Figures," Warbler smirked, "I don't get how someone like her can be both crazy _and_ smart at the same time? Kinda counter-intuitive don't you think?" Bluebird gazed up at the scout: "Well? Granted she can get a tad carried away with herself at times: but you know, she's actually pretty perceptive once you get to know her" Petra reasoned, "There's smart, and there's _thinking_ your smart; there is a difference" Warbler pointed out, "For sure, but Hange's no amateur when it comes to titan science: we've made great strides thanks to her, and the last few months have been, unprecedented to say the least"

"That's for sure" Tanager nodded, "Say, why did Levi pick you to be part of his special lil' squad? Don't get me wrong, you've got some _serious_ skills, but a guy like that in charge? How the hell are you able to stomach him?" Bluebird asked bluntly, to which Petra couldn't help but smile: "Yeah, he's not the most approachable guy: but he is a capable squad leader _and_ talented scout. They don't call him humanity's strongest for nothing"

"Humanity's strongest? Seriously?! _That_ lil' pipsqueak?!" Bluebird couldn't help but laugh, while her sisters tried to stifle their giggles: "You better not mention that to Midnight, or she's gonna take it as a personal challenge" Warbler playfully punched her on the shoulder.

The memory of the black and white titan wiped the smile off of Petra's face: "...Um? ...About her..." she grabbed their attention, the three sisters gazed up as she asked "What happened over the other side of the river a few days ago: were you-, watching us?"

"You mean did we see you guys get your asses handed to you by Midnight? …." Bluebird smirked, before turning and watching ahead as she continued to lead the way. "No, we three weren't there to see that, but Raven, Rook and Jackdaw filled us in on the details: from what I understand it was pretty quick, not as drawn out as a lot of us were expecting it to be. Which was kind of a surprise, given the Levi squad's level of expertise: guess you guys are gonna have to hit the training grounds when you get home huh?"

"Y-yeah I guess," Petra sighed anxiously, "Look, it wasn't anything personal, we promise" Warbler gently patted her on the knee, trying to sound friendly, "It's just that-, last month's encounter could've very nearly gone sour: and it got us thinking about what might happen if the scouts suddenly think we're an enemy. Hell with all the titans in Maria we got enough enemies as it is, we don't need the 'wings of freedom' giving us grief as well", "So we figured a lil' test was in order to push the limits of your guy's tolerance: and since the Levi squad are the best scouts around, it was kind of a no-brainer really" Bluebird shrugged.

"Okay, that makes sense," Petra nodded in agreement, before asking "But-, how did Midnight figure out our attack formation like that?". "We've been watching you guys for the last few years, _duh!_ " Bluebird shot her a deadpan look, "Seriously, we've seen you guys use that move, like a hundred times on the big fast abnormal's: it's not like you were going to treat Midnight any differently, right?" Tanager sighed.

"No, I guess not..." Petra admitted, 'Must remember to tell Erwin about that' she thought. As she drew in breath to speak, Petra noticed Tanager discreetly slip something out from underneath her larger neckerchief: a little blue crystal in the shape of a triangle, with a hole in the middle that was looped onto a long cord hanging around her neck. She watched as Tanager pressed it up to her eye, and seemed to be looking at something through the hole; much like a magnifying glass. It was odd, but she didn't ask about it: and simply continued with the conversation at hand; "... So, what happens if she comes back?". "Dunno?" Warbler shrugged, "I guess how things go down depends on you guys, how you treat her an' all: she may be a titan but she's not stupid; none of them are" Bluebird thought aloud in an unreadable tone. "If you treat everyone the same, you ignore the lil' things that set us all apart. Titans are no different, no two abnormal's ever behave the same: so it makes sense to be alert for absolutely anything, right?" Warbler reasoned.

"Yeah..." Petra knitted her brows together as she contemplated the girl's logic, "But hey, you never know: she might give you guys a sporting chance next time. She does love the challenge, and hates it when its too easy to win" Tanager smiled. "That's not exactly comforting," the redheaded scout swallowed nervously, "No, but someone needs to make sure you guys stay on your toes: can't have the scouts best being beaten a second around can we?" Bluebird smirked with a cheeky glint in her eyes. Petra was about to ask something else, when she noticed the dark grey fog was beginning to turn bright, and up ahead the dense cloud was beginning to thin out, until a haze of green could be made out in the distance.

"Well, this is the edge of the fog: just carry on following the sun and you should be out soon enough" Warbler smiled, "You're not coming?" Petra asked, "Nah, we gotta go look for the others: but don't worry, we'll be okay" Bluebird waved off nonchalantly. "Be careful, and be sure not to ride into it again" Warbler added, "We will, thank you" the scout smiled as she commanded her horse to trot on: pulling on the reins as something else came to mind: "Oh wait! I nearly forgot to ask-

But when she turned her horse, she saw the sisters were gone: that was spooky, but she decided not to dwell on it for now, and turned to ride out of the fog; wondering if this was yet another test of some kind. "I hope everyone got out okay" she thought aloud.

* * *

Elsewhere:

As he stopped to try and get his bearings: the fog just went on forever, and the fact there was absolute silence unnerved him even more than hearing a titans footfalls; "This is bad: where the hell could they have all gone?..." Gunther cursed under his breath,

"They're probably somewhere else?" a voice behind him spoke up: tugging his horse's reins to make the animal turn, the scout was surprised to see Swallow and her brother Swift standing some two meters away, "You two..." he suddenly remembered them from a few days ago, "How the hell did you sneak up like that?"

"We're hunters, it's kinda our thing?" Swallow shrugged with a sheepish smile beneath her neckerchief, trying not to come off as sarcastic: "We heard someone shouting and realized it wasn't one of us," Swift explained in an unreadable tone as he folded his arms, "Followed it to here, and here we find you"

"Are-, you lost too?" the older man asked in concern, "Not really, but we did kinda loose track of the others: the titans have been giving us the run-around today: and a few wild abnormal's forced us to split up" Swallow explained, "We were on our way back when we heard you calling out for your friends: did you guys ride right into the fog?". "Yeah, we did: and now I can't seem to locate anyone" Gunther sighed, "Have you guys seen them anywhere?". "Your squad? No, but we can lead you to the edge of the fog: they might have made it out already?" She suggested with a shrug.

"Wait, you guys know how to find your way out of this pea soup?" the scout gazed at them sceptically: "Pretty much: it's not like regular fog, so there's a technique to navigating it," Swift unfolded his arms as he and his sister approached closer, "You coming or not?"

"Guess I don't have much of a choice," Gunther sighed in slight frustration, making a mental note to be on guard, "Okay, lead the way": and with that, the two siblings walked off with the scout riding parallel to them. "Hey, you guys haven't seen Hange by any chance?" he asked offhand, "Crazy-bangs? I think we'd remember running into _her_ " Swallow chuckled, "The way she goes off her rocker like that? I could shoot her blind-folded in the dark" Swift replied nonchalantly in a monotone. "She can be a bit, _eccentric_ at times" Gunther admitted, "But she's no fool: there is a genius knocking around inside that crazy head of hers (believe it or not)", "Yeah, a mad genius," Swallow chuckled, "Given her 'eccentricities', how'd she get to be section commander anyway?" Swift asked offhand.

"She's just good at what she does" Gunther shrugged, "She knows how to lead her section, as well as assess the situation and determine the best course of action: a lot like commander Erwin in many ways". "Is that how he's able to get along with her?" Swallow asked innocently, "It's not a question of tolerance, but rather smart minds think alike; think what you want of her, it doesn't change the fact Hange's a good scout" he stated, before changing the subject, "And speaking of tolerance: what were your titans playing at while we were in Neness? I know you guys were hunting an' all: but why let them wander so close to our camp?"

"You think _we_ told them to do that on purpose?" Swallow blinked in surprise, "What they get up to when they're hunting solo is their business: everyone in the Hunt is accountable for their own actions, and have to handle themselves accordingly" Swift stated in an unreadable tone, "As long as no one got hurt, there's no real cause for alarm: right?"

Gunther frowned sceptically, this kid had a damn good poker face: he could tell he was smart, and not giving away anything, "Maybe, but that's not how the rest of the scouts saw it, and Erwin figured you guys were up to something". "Smart guy," Swift glanced up at the scout with a canny glint in his eye: being this close, Gunther noticed he had a large scar over his left eye, and there appeared to be more hidden beneath his neckerchief and long brunette hair; "He knows a parlour trick when he see's one" the boy commented offhand.

"You think this is a game?" Gunther challenged him, "Games are how we practise to use our brains and brawn: how to test our limits and learn from our mistakes" Swift replied in an unreadable tone, glancing up at the scout with an unreadable look, "No one gets the luxury of a second chance when they're out in the world and no longer playing: that's when it's for real, and that's when you've gotta know what your doing. Know what I'm saying?"

"Yeah..." Gunther sighed, getting the hint: "But tell me, what do you stand to gain from this?"

"Gain?" Swallow asked in slight concern, "You think we're up to something?"

"Aren't you?" the older man asked dubiously, "Everyone has a reason for doing what they do: you guys may be young be we know you're not stupid. So what do you and your giant friends take away from this?"

"The assurance that you and the other scouts aren't quick to assume anything without first stopping to analyse the situation" Swift explained, "And that you're not fools: which is a relief to be honest". Gunther blinked in surprise, but didn't ask as he listened to the boy: "The titans are enough of a threat as it is, we don't need 'the wings of freedom' letting their fear get the better of them, and allowing paranoia to dictate their choices. Being what you are, knowing what you were getting yourself into when you joined the scouts: we expected a certain level of professionalism from you guys; and a few days ago we were able to confirm as much. Albeit Midnight was the acceptation"

"She's fast, I'll give you that" the scout reluctantly admitted, "Fast? She's more than that: she's got plenty to offer in the way of a challenge" Swallow couldn't help but smile. "It's nothing personal you understand: but if you guys proclaim you're ready to face anything the titans can throw at you: then hell, we're happy to oblige" Swift regarded him with a serious look, "Someone wise once said: 'Don't ever make a deal with the devil unless you're prepared to die for him', the way we figured it? Don't ever follow a commander like Erwin unless you're prepared to do the same. A guy like him? You can be damn sure we'll be keeping an extra careful eye on you guys from now on"

"But what is the threat here? Clearly we're on the same side and fighting for the same thing: wouldn't it make sense to join us and combine our strengths?"

"Yes, but just because someone says they're on your side, doesn't mean they're fighting for the same reasons as you" Swift explained, "People can say whatever they want: ultimately its their actions that decide where they stand in the great scheme of things: and I'm afraid it goes both ways. Don't you think it makes sense to give this a little more time, and see where _we_ both stand with each other? After all, your captain's gonna need a little time to cool off after getting his ass handed to him"

"That's certainly true..." Gunther nodded, before getting back on track: "Look, you make a good point: it doesn't make sense to rush things before getting all the facts first; but what proof can offer us that you're above reproach?". "What proof can you offer that you're the same?" Swallow pointed out, "Right..." Gunther couldn't help but smile: "You know? With wits like yours, I shouldn't be surprised you guys have survived this long out here"

"We've lived in Maria our whole lives, hunted in the forests all the time: and camped out under the stars more times than I can count," Swift sighed, "There are many places to hide if you know where to look: and honestly? Hunting titans wasn't too great a challenge for us; it just presented a whole new set of requirements: ODM gear for one"

"Did you guys make that gear yourself?" Gunther asked, gazing down at the wooden scabbard boxes on their thighs, "Yep, the forest provides us with everything we need to survive, including iron bamboo and ultrahard steel" Swallow smiled. "There's iron bamboo and ultrahard steel in Maria?" the scout blinked in astonishment. "Yeah, but only in the places no one thinks to look" She replied offhand, "The forests of Maria hold many secrets: some of which, are known only to a scant few"

"The only place I know Iron bamboo is found, is on the slopes outside the Industrial city, along with ultrahard steel beneath those same hills: it's found nowhere else in the interior" the scout thought aloud. "Really?" Swallow asked in amazement, "I thought both that stuff was found all over the place, you're saying it's super rare in Rose and Sina?", "Yep, rarer than titan wings" Gunther nodded, before grimacing at the irony of his words, "... Titan wings; I suppose we're gonna have to change _that_ now" "Probably," Swallow couldn't help but laugh.

As they walked on, the fog began to thin out and the haze began to turn pale, as the sun's light penetrated the gloom: "Looks like this is where we leave you," Swift glanced up at him, "We can't go I'm afraid, we've got to find the others: but hey, nice talking to you" he waved good bye, "Just be sure not to go running into the fog again" Swallow smiled. "Thank you: guess I'll see you kids around" Gunther smiled, "Same here," the kids replied in unison as the scout tapped his horse's flanks, and took off for the sunlight. Glancing over his shoulder, Gunther saw they had both disappeared, 'Huh, guess I should've asked how they pull that off' he thought offhand as he galloped onwards.

* * *

Elsewhere:

As he stopped his horse to try and figure out where he was, Eld was having very little success: "...This is bad" he thought aloud, watching as the fog continued to hang all around him like a shroud, "No telling if there're any titans nearby either..."

"Then you're in luck..." he heard a small female voice behind him: turning in his saddle, he blinked in surprise as Cuckoo and Bullfinch approached, "Because there are no more titans in this area" Cuckoo added with a small smile beneath her neckerchief. Eld's mind began to spin as he realized this made no sense: there was no one behind him just a moment ago: "...Where did you two come from?" he asked, puzzled.

"From over the knoll and through the copses?" Cuckoo pointed away from him, which could be anywhere in this fog: "We got waylaid chasing some abnormal's when we heard shouting: and when we realized it wasn't one of us, we decided to go check it out" she explained, "And low and behold, we find a lost scout," Bullfinch deadpanned as he folded his arms.

"Yeah, I lost sight of my squad as we were chasing after Hange" Eld admitted, "Let me guess, Crazy-bangs wanted to check out the fog? Why am I not surprised" the older brother dryly sighed, "Bullfinch, be reasonable: it's not his fault he got split up from his friends..." Cuckoo glanced up at him in a not-too reprimanding manner, before approaching the mounted scout, "If you're lost, we can show you a way out: it won't be too far I promise" she assured him.

"You know how to get out of this fog?" Eld raised an eyebrow, "You doubt us?" Bullfinch glanced up at him sceptically, "Well? I just find it hard to believe anyone can navigate fog like this" Eld reasoned, sensing the boy's air of hostility towards him. "Well don't worry, this fog is not unfamiliar to us: we'll get you out. And who knows? Maybe your friends and Hange managed to get out too?..." she beckoned him to follow, "Come on, follow me"

With Bullfinch trailing behind his horse, keeping a watchful eye on him while Cuckoo walked by his side, Eld wasn't sure what to make of this: these kids were speaking as if they knew what was controlling this fog (if such a thing were even possible): and it didn't seem Bullfinch was a mood for friendly conversation, "...So, you guys got split up from your family?" he asked, trying to sound concerned.

"Kinda, but we know where to find them, so technically we're not lost," Cuckoo glanced up at him: "Are your 'big friends' about anywhere?" the blonde man asked, "Somewhere: we'll catch up as soon as we get you out of here first" she assured him, before changing the subject, "Speaking of which, you haven't seen them about have you? Only, with this fog as thick as it is, your squad might've run into them by accident". Eld felt a chill go up his spine, as the memory of Midnight flashed through his mind: "Uh, no I haven't," he replied bluntly, "And frankly, It'd probably be better if you guys tell them to leave us alone"

"What? Don't like getting your ass handed to you?" Bullfinch scoffed as he picked up the pace and trailed behind his little sister, "I thought you lot in the Levi squad could handle any titan?" he deliberately taunted, to which Eld shot him a look, "Don't take it personally, he's just doing what all big brothers do: being protective and being a jerk at the same time" Cuckoo assured him as she stroked the horse's neck. For the sake of avoiding an argument Eld let it go, and changed the subject, "So, what is this anyway? It's no fog I've ever seen before" he changed the subject.

"Just a trick we use for when we're hunting within sight of the walls: we can't risk having the Garrison see us," Cuckoo explained, "Titans killing titans alongside humans? No one would believe such a thing, and there's always the risk the Garrison might try to take pot-shots with those fancy new cannons of theirs; so it's best to hide"

"Makes sense," Eld replied offhand, "But Wall Rose is over twenty miles away, why hide at this distance?". "Even if they can't reach us, _you_ can" Bullfinch glanced up at him suspiciously as he folded his arms, "You're the only ones brave enough come out into titan territory, and you guys don't scare easily: thus we have to take precautions, not least from crazy-bangs and captain haughty-shorty". "I can appreciate that," the scout nodded: ignoring the captain's less-than flattering nickname. "But even if your titans are not a direct threat to us, you had to have figured that we'd take an interest in you. What you have, and what you can do is nothing we've ever seen before; such strengths would be a valuable asset in the war against the titans" Eld reasoned.

"For sure, but there's no guarantee someone might try to steal those 'strengths', and use them for their own gain" Cuckoo reasoned, before Bullfinch bluntly stated, "Just because you and the rest of the scouts all fight together, doesn't mean you all believe in the same thing. For all we know there could be one amongst your number who sees their position as a soldier, as a means to an end: fighting for their own reasons, _their own_ goals, and _not_ for the benefit of humanity". "How can you say that?" Eld frowned as his hackles began to rise, "We're out here risking our lives together, giving everything we have to try and learn the secrets of the titans, and how to take the world back from them: how can _any scout_ think so selfishly when so much is riding on them?"

There was a tense silence, before Bullfinch gazed up at Eld with a disconcerting look in his eyes: "... You have no idea, _the length's_ some people will go to for the sake of their own survival... If the colossus and armoured titans were to reappear, and break down Wall Rose? I'd guarantee you there'd be a whole bunch of people in the heart of this kingdom who would _scream_ at the king to have the gates of Sina permanently sealed, and gladly leave the rest of humanity to its fate... There are those who're willing to give everything to see the people they love survive, and there are those who will give nothing, and will abandon their family's without a second thought... Just because _you say_ you believe in the same thing, doesn't mean you're on the same side"

"And are _you_ on the side of humanity?" Eld frowned in an accusing tone, "I dunno? Are _you?_ " the boy shot back, "-Bullfinch" Cuckoo shot him a stern look, and the boy reluctantly shut up. "...You'll have to forgive my brother: he's not very trusting of strangers: I'm sorry to say we've learnt the hard way, that not everyone is so selfless when push comes to shove" Cuckoo apologized. Deciding to try and play it subtle, Eld let out a soft sigh as he tried to put on a more apologetic face: "...I'm sorry if I come off as bit hard: I guess that's just the soldier in me"

"That's okay, and my brother won't admit it, but he's sorry for being a jerk" Cuckoo smiled, while her brother grumbled something under his breath: "So" the scout changed the subject, "Is this 'test' of yours going to continue?", "Maybe?" she shrugged, "It's not like you haven't piqued our interest: and it would be neglectful to just assume whatever we want of you, without first assessing what's true and what's not. Leaving things to chance is very dangerous: and we don't have the luxury of a wall to keep the titans at bay out here; well? Until the breach at Shiganshina is fixed at least"

"Speaking of which," Eld decided to indulge his curiosity, "Have you guys tried to do anything about that?". "Are you kidding? The outer breach alone is over twenty-five meters high and seventeen meters wide, we don't have anything that can plug a hole _that_ big" Bullfinch retorted. "We hunt the northern end of Shiganshina district regularly: with the amount of titans that pour into Maria on a regular basis, it's more a question of managing their numbers than trying to wipe them all out in one go" Cuckoo added.

"Ever wondered why your mortality rates have been consistently going down over the past year?" Bullfinch deadpanned, "You're welcome", "We figured you guys had a hand in it somehow" Eld replied offhand, "So how many of you are there?", "Enough to keep the titans in check, and that's all you need to know" Bullfinch bluntly replied.

Eld was about to demand to know what he meant by that, when he realized the fog was beginning to thin a little, and the eerie grey was turning bright with a faint haze of green just noticeable through the mist: "... Looks like this is our stop, and your way out" Cuckoo smiled. "Your stop?" Eld frowned in confusion, "Well yeah, we gotta go back and catch up with the others, but you'll be okay from here: just ride towards the horizon, and you'll be out soon enough". "Okay. Thanks for your help" the scout nodded respectfully, and took off at a full gallop: glancing over his shoulder, only to see the siblings had vanished: '...No way was that just luck' he thought offhand dubiously.

* * *

Elsewhere:

"CAPTAIN! CAN ANYONE HEAR ME?!..." Oruo shouted, "Ugh! Where the hell are you guys? And where the hell am I?!" he sighed as he stopped to rest his voice, having been shouting non-stop since he lost sight of his squad.

Pulling on his horse's reins and coming to a stop, the scout was now on the verge of panicking: with no idea where he was, and the fog seemingly going on forever, he was getting desperate. Looking around, he could only see about six to eight meters ahead, and with no buildings, trees of any other noticeable point of reference, he could be going around in circles for all he knew. "Damn you Hange! Why the hell did you have to take off into this shitty fog!" he growled as he tapped his horses sides with his heels: telling it to walk on.

Soon, a shape appeared out of the gloom, and as he rode closer, Oruo saw it was an old log with a long-since dead tree stump right next to it. Stopping again with the log and stump behind him, the scout pondered on what to do, "Okay, the fog was only about a mile wide when we rode in, so _technically_ I should have ridden out of it by now..." he reasoned, before realizing, "Unless it grew and spread out between now and then! _UGH!_ " he fumed, "- _This is useless!_ How the hell do I get outta here?!" he shouted in frustration.

"You can always ask for directions?" a cocky voice spoke up from behind,

"-AGH! _-GHA!_ " the scout nearly jumped out of his saddle in fright, accidentally biting his tongue in the process: spinning his horse round, he gawked when he saw the Jay twins sitting on the log and tree stump, looking rather nonchalant as they smiled beneath their neckerchiefs: "What the hell?- Where'd you brats come from?!" he demanded angrily, not at all amused with being sneaked upon: "We heard someone making a racket and realized it was you," Stella's Jay stood up from her seat on the stump, "We assumed you either got lost riding into this pea soup, or you'd bitten your tongue off for good this time" her brother smiled as he got up off the log.

"Ha ha very funny," Oruo deadpanned dryly, before putting on a stern authoritarian face and demanding "What the hell are you doing out here? And where're the rest of your lot?". "Probably regrouping by now: the titans have been keeping us busy all day" the sister replied with a shrug, "Lots of crazy abnormal's usually means lots of chasing and splitting up: we heard you shouting for your friends and figured you must've ridden into the fog by mistake" her brother continued without missing a beat, "So we decided to take some time out of our busy schedule, and show you the way out" she added with a cheeky tone, also without missing a beat.

"Show me the way out? Ha!" Oruo scoffed, "Have you _seen_ how thick this fog is? No one can find their way out of it! And besides, how do I know this isn't some kind of elaborate trap set up to ensnare me and the rest of the scouts?"

"You don't" Blue Jay shrugged, "You'll just have to take our word for it: we know the way out" his sister added.

"Tch!-" Oruo scoffed with an obnoxious smile, "Thank you for your 'concern', but I can find my way outta here just fine!" he turned his horse around and galloped off. He rode onward through the fog at top speed, not at all knowing where he was going, but right now he didn't care: " _Pah!_ It's gonna take a lot more than _that_ to get the drop on _this_ scout!" he thought aloud with an air of pride, thinking he'd managed to avoid trouble.

Up ahead, something began to appear out of the fog: two figures standing together: "Finally!" Oruo sighed with relief, but as his horse galloped towards them and he commanded the animal to slow down, he stared wide-eyed at the figures: the Jay twins, who simply stared up at him with a cheeky glint in their eyes; "Any luck?" Blue Jay grinned beneath his neckerchief.

Oruo just stared in disbelief, he was at a complete loss for words: 'How the hell do you ride _away_ from someone in a straight line, and come back to them?!' his mind began to backflip as he tried to compute what just happened. Shaking his head like a wet dog, as if his confusion were fleas: he grumbled something incoherent and ordered his horse to take off again, making sure to look behind to check the twins weren't following; which they weren't. But no sooner had he faced forward, the same two twins, along with the same tree stump and log appeared up ahead again, "WHAT?!-" he blurted out as he tugged on his reins.

"Back again?" they both smirked. The scout stared at them both and frowned in a mix of disbelief and annoyance, "Okay! _How the hell_ are you doing that?!" he demanded angrily, "Doing what? We're just standing here" Blue jay shrugged, "Don't get clever with me brat! How the hell did you managed to get ahead of me so fast?!" Oruo shot back, "Maybe you're going around in circles?" Stella's Jay shrugged, "Or maybe your starting to loose it; the fog can do that you know" her brother offered, "Make you see things, throw your sense of direction right off: if you're not careful you could become totally lost with no hope of ever getting out,". "Unless, you ask for directions," Stella's Jay smiled: "But hey, you seem like a guy who knows what he's doing; so I'm sure it's nothing you can't handle"

" _Damn right_ It's nothing I can't handle!" Oruo fumed as he turned his horse and galloped off in another direction: this time without stopping for anything. He passed by the twins a forth time, then a fifth, a sixth, a seventh, an eighth: "This is not real. This is _not_ real!" he grumbled through his clenched teeth, passing the twins for a ninth time, "How the hell is this even possible?! It can't be the same two brats, surely?!" he panicked as his mind continued to spin; and the more he panicked, the more logic began to give way to paranoia. What if they were right? What if the fog really was making him loose his mind? He hadn't found anyone from his squad, never mind the rest of the contingent, what if he was stuck here? And damned to be lost forever? Seeing the twins reappear up ahead for the tenth time, Oruo grumbled and growled a string of curses under his breath as he pulled the reins and came to a stop alongside them: "...Would you show me the way outta this fog ..." he glared at them with a hairy eyeball, "Please..." he growled: remembering the captain's encounter with Midnight, and deciding not to leave anything to chance.

"But of course," Stella's Jay smiled sweetly as she she and her brother lead the way, "Come on"

Oruo tapped his horses flanks with his heels, and walked on, following the twins at a safe distance, "...Witchcraft... Gotta be: there's no other explanation for it!" he grumbled under his breath, "I hope the captain's having better luck than me"

"So, how's that supply route coming along? You guys must be well over the half-way point by now" Stella's jay smiled, trying to make pleasant conversation: "You should know, you brats have been spying on us for the last few years now" the scout grumbled, "True, but it never hurts to show you're interested in someone else's good works" the brother smiled, "And spying is such a nefarious-sounding word: we like to call it, 'long-term curiosity and observation'"

"And besides, it's not like we're stealing from you: we've had _plenty_ of opportunity for that, believe me" Stella's jay deadpanned. Oruo had to admit, these hunters were ambiguous but they weren't thieves: following the close encounter at Stinestadt, the scouts decided to check several of their supply depots along the route, but none of the buildings had been broken into, confirming the hunter's were not looters. But right now, Oruo didn't care: after what happened between his squad and Midnight, his bruised ego wouldn't allow any forgiveness. "Yeah well, you were pretty ballsy the other day: sicking that titan of yours on us!" Oruo frowned, "We barely got away with our lives! One of us could've been eaten! We'd have all perished if captain Levi hadn't swooped in to show her why he's humanity's strongest!"

"From where we were watching, I'd say he got his ass handed to him pretty quick" Blue jay smirked up at him: Oruo froze in his saddle, "You-, you were watching?" he swallowed nervously; his sense of superiority quickly flying out the window, "Oh hell yeah!" Stella's jay waved off, "But don't let it be said you guys didn't try your best"

Oruo blinked in surprise, before his obnoxiousness got the better of him yet again: " _Tried our best?!_ " he exclaimed angrily, "-Listen up brats! I'll have you know we're the _Levi squad!_ The best of the best of the _best!_ Every rookie that joins the scouts can only _dream_ of becoming part of our elite team! To rise up through the ranks to become part of the select few! Chosen by Captain Levi himself, we're the best there is when it comes to fighting the titans, and there is no titan we've ever encountered that we've never been able to put down!"

"Until a few days ago," both twins smirked, much to Oruo's ire: "Look, there's no shame in admitting you got beaten" Stella's jay offered in a more friendlier tone: "And what would you have preferred? A titan that beat you and then let you go? Or a titan that beat you and proceeded to eat you?" Blue jay reasoned. Oruo couldn't argue with that logic, and begrudgingly admitted "... I suppose being taken by surprise is a small price to pay for being able to see another day?"

"Hey, look on the bright side, at least she didn't use your cables to floss out all the titan flesh: you know she had a pretty big breakfast that morning" Blue jay offered offhand, "You don't say?" Oruo sarcastically replied as he straightened his cravat. "So, _why did_ Levi choose you to be part of his squad?" Stella's jay asked, sounding genuinely curious: "Because I have the highest kill rate of all the scouts to date, seconded _only_ to the captain: thirty nine solo, nine in-team, forty eight in total" Oruo smugly boasted.

"Huh" both twins glanced at one another in bemusement, before grinning: "So you must be the rookie, seconded only to the captain", "What?!" the scout exclaimed in dismay, "Well? Forty eight's okay, and the captain's kill rate is fine, but if we're talking about raking up the numbers: then you two have got a way to go before you can beat our combined record of two hundred and sixty" Blue jay shrugged nonchalantly. "TWO HUNDRED AND SIXTY?!" Oruo nearly bit his tongue again, "You're bullshitting me! No one in the history of mankind has ever raked up _that_ many kills!"

"Maybe not when _you're_ out here for only less than a week each month, but we _live_ out here: it ain't unusual for all of us to kill a few titans every day, even when we're not hunting; and those little numbers soon all add up" Stella's jay smiled, "Besides, raking up the numbers is how we manage the population: Midnight, Shadow, Angel and Boar take care of the herds, and we manage the stragglers and solitaries; it's the reason why you guys have been able to enjoy such a long drop in your fatality rates over the last year"

Oruo sceptically raised an eyebrow: he was dubious of their claim, but couldn't think of a sharp enough remark to come back with; "So don't feel bad about it, okay? You kill as many titans to the best of your ability, just as we do; after all, there're only so many we can kill in a day before we run out of gas and food. You do what you can you know" Blue jay offered in a more friendly manner. "And, there's no shame in admitting you're wrong about something: just as long you remember to learn from your mistake" his sister added in a more serious tone.

"Wrong? Since when the hell have we made any mistakes?" Oruo frowned, "Well? You're not going to try and come at Midnight the same way twice, are you?" Stella's jay glanced up at him with a serious expression, "...Maybe not," the scout reluctantly admitted, "But it's not like you're going to pull _that_ same stunt twice either!"

"Maybe, maybe not: thus far you haven't caught sight of us: and believe me, you won't catch us unless we want you to catch us," Blue jay cautioned, "There's not a leaf that falls in the forest without us knowing about it, and not a titan that's allowed to step foot into our home without our permission. When you step beneath the shade of the giant trees and walk among their roots, _we know_ where to find you guys"

"Oh yeah? Well _we_ know you live out here, _and_ we know where to find you too, so how the hell are you gonna get around that?" Oruo scoffed, which the twins ignored. "... Serious though?" Blue jay spoke in a more serious tone, "Pride usually comes before a fall: and the reason Shiganshina fell is because the military and the wall cult were so sure nothing could ever happen to Wall Maria. I've heard it said that they never even bothered to place cannons up along the outer walls of the outlining cities... It's one thing to profess you're ready for anything, but when the moment comes and everything you prepared for proves to be something else entirely, what do you do then?"

Oruo was silent, as Stella's jay continued: "...I think there must be a lot of people in the interior, regretting how much they took Wall Maria for granted: god only knows we were no different. It wasn't until we saw our neighbours being eaten alive and we were fighting for our lives, that we truly understood just how much pride can cripple you"

Oruo didn't know what to say to that, as he suddenly felt his self-importance being deflated. He was about to change the subject, when he saw the fog begin to thin out up ahead, and the sun's light lit up the mist to reveal part of the horizon: "Hmph! Looks like you brats got lucky," the scout scoffed as he commanded his horse to trot onwards, "Well, I'm sorry to say this is were we part ways, and hopefully for the last time, because I don't want to see-

The scout paused as he glanced behind him, only to see the twins were gone: "What the?!-" Oruo swallowed hard, searching for them amid the dark gloom, but with no success; he quickly took off at full gallop, "... _Witchcraft!_ " he cursed beneath his breath , "I should've followed mother's advice and become a pastor instead!"

* * *

Elsewhere:

Having been wandering around and realizing the fog wasn't going to lift any time soon, Levi had opted for trying to walk in a straight line: he figured he was bound to find someone or something eventually, maybe even an area were the fog was thinner; but thus far, he'd had no such luck.

With his blades still at the ready, the captain kept his head on a swivel: the fact it was so silent should've been a reassurance, as he'd be able to hear any titans from well over tens of meters away. But somehow, the eerie silence had a forebodingness about it, a kind of lonely feeling: and the way the fog remained thick, grey and encompassing gave the impression of being stuck in some kind of ethereal world; one devoid of the living, where only ghosts and damned souls might reside.

Then, the captain began to feel the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end, and an ominous feeling of being watched: it was then, he realised he wasn't alone...

"Need directions?" Jackdaw smiled beneath his neckerchief as he walked out of the fog with his brothers in tow, "You-..." Levi blinked in surprise, pulling his reins and coming to a stop, "What're you three doing here?", "Looking for you" Raven offered, "Midnight picked up your scent, so we figured you must've ridden into the fog by accident..." he pointed up behind the captain. Turning around, Levi nearly gasped when he saw the giant ominous figure of Midnight standing over him, smiling down at them with that sultry sly look of hers; as if she was scary-looking enough, seeing her in the fog was almost like looking up at death itself.

"Ergo, we figured you might need some help: seeing as you don't seem to know where you're going" Rook folded his arms.

Thinking this was yet another deliberate 'encounter' of theirs, Levi was in no mood to indulge their curiosity again: "I'll be fine," he frowned at the boys, before glaring up at Midnight, "And _you_ , don't even think of following me!" he then rode off at full speed, glancing over his shoulder to make sure she didn't chase after him. The black and white titan simply stood there watching him as the fog rolled in around her, breathing a sigh of relief, Levi galloped on: he covered another thirty meters through the silent grey, before the outline of a fifteen-meter class began to materialize out of the fog: "-Shit!" he readied his blades and prepared to engage. But to his shock, he saw it was Midnight, with the three brother's standing by her right foot, "Well? She didn't follow" Rook deadpanned with a shrug.

It was the same Rook he just left behind, along with Raven, Jackdaw _and_ Midnight: but how was that possible? How does a fifteen meter titan run that far ahead without making a sound? Even a light-footed one like her would make light thuds at the very least, and at what would have had to have been an impossible speed, even for a titan with legs as big and strong as hers. 'What-, just happened?' Levi thought as a look of confusion graced his otherwise sour demeanour, before an annoyed scowl quickly fell back into place: "... I don't know what the hell you're trying to pull, but it won't work brats!" he shot back, riding off again.

'What the hell-, how did they do that?' the captain felt his mind spun in confusion, he rode on for another fifty meters, before Midnight reappeared yet again, along with the three brothers: "... What is it we're trying to pull, exactly? I mean, you just kinda rode off without giving any real explanation" Jackdaw teased. "What the hell is going on?!" the captain angrily demanded, "I dunno? You tell me," Raven shrugged nonchalantly, "Look, we can stand here and argue all day, but frankly? _I'd_ like to go home: we've had a long day, and the sooner we get you out of this fog so I don't have to listen to you bitch and whine about it, the better" Rook gestured for him to follow, "So do you want to get outta here and find your friends, or not?"

"...Do I really have a choice?" Levi fumed, before passing a reluctant huff, " _Tch!_ Fine. Whatever. Just don't try anything clever"

"Hey, no problem: and if you still don't want her Ladyship here to follow you, why don't _you_ follow her instead?" Jackdaw suggested. Levi paused, being right behind the titan would give him a clear line up to her nape, and she was okay with this? Something was off. "...I'm fine just tagging along from the side" he assured them dryly: no doubt it was a trap of some kind, and he was in no mood to find out what exactly. "Meh, whatever," Jackdaw shrugged nonchalantly. As if on cue, Midnight kneeled down and offered her cupped hand to the boys, "Let's get going babe" Raven patted her on the thumb, and she stood back up, glancing down to make sure where the captain was. "Let's go!" Rook called down to him.

As the giant black and white titan began slowly strolling away, Levi trotted alongside from over five meters away, being careful not to loose sight of her in the fog, but being careful to maintain a safe distance too: he didn't trust her, nor did he trust the brothers either. There was no way they were just helping him out: there was something else to this, he could feel it; "Hey, I forgot to ask!" Raven called down, "How'd you end up in the fog anyway? We just assumed you guys would see it and ride right around"

"You can thank Hange for me getting lost, along with the rest of my squad!" the captain shouted back: "Let me guess, she saw all the dead titans on the other side and wanted to get a look-see?" Jackdaw offered, "Should've figured as much," he sighed offhand as he rubbed his forehead in exasperation. "If its the rest of your squad your worried about, don't fret: the rest of us might have found them by now" Raven added, much to the captain's disconcert, "Chances are, they're probably already outside the fog waiting for you" Rook threw in.

Levi knew he couldn't take their word on that: for all he knew they could be lying, and the Hange and the rest of the squad could still be lost in the fog; or worse, the rest of the 'family' could be giving them more of the run-around. Knowing his luck, Midnight was probably going to tangle him up in his own cables the second he flew off his horse: as much as the idea of a rematch was very appealing, the captain kept a lid on his anger, _and_ his professional pride; deciding to simply ride it out. " _I swear_ Hange, if we get out of this alive, you're cleaning my quarters for the next three weeks!" Levi grumbled under his breath; gazing up at Midnight, he nearly jumped when he saw her smiling down at him.

"What're you smiling at bitch?" he glared up at her: to which she shot him a cheeky wink. The titan moved her hand so that it was right above the captains head: Raven suddenly did a front-flip out of the titan's palm, and as he fell he shot his lines up into the back of her hand, extending his cables out so that he came to dangle alongside the captain: gently swaying back and forth as Midnight took each step. "So hey, no hard feeling's about that lil' 'tiff' in the forest right? I mean, it wasn't anything personal, okay?"

" _Tch!-_ " the captain scoffed: "Look at it this way, it's first time a titan ever let you live: not many can boast _that_ " Raven offered. The captain glanced at him with an unreadable expression, before facing forward and frowning, "I suppose?". "You suppose?" Raven couldn't help but chuckle, "Midnight was being _very_ generous with you guys: seeing how it was the first time you'd encountered her an' all"

"But _not_ the first time she's seen us I bet," the captain glanced sideways at the boy, "Well? I'd be lying if I said we hadn't seen you guys working from a distance: and before you ask, yes, she _was_ well aware that particular move of yours is your standard form of attack on large abnormal's. Which, come to think of it, you might have to re-work now?" Raven dithered, to which the captain only stared daggers at him. "Oh come on," the boy waved off, "It wasn't _that_ bad". "It was in front of the commander, _that's_ as bad as it gets" Levi growled, "Oh I'm sure he gave you pass: after all, it's not everyday you meet a titan that knows how to fight a scout"

"And _why_ would she be prepared to fight a scout? Exactly?" the captain glanced at him accusingly.

"I dunno? You guys might assume the worse and come after us? We just figured it'd be prudent to have a back-up plan in case you guys got pissed off at us for some reason or another" Raven shrugged offhand, "Although, if _you_ intend on holding onto a grudge because you got your ass handed to you, then _you're_ a no-brainer: but Erwin looked pretty impressed from where we were watching; thus far I'd say we're in his good books for the time being"

"For the time being," Levi frowned sceptically, "But I wouldn't bet on it staying that way for long". "Why not?" the boy blinked in confusion, "Things change: and if its determined you and your titan friends are a risk to humanity, we won't hesitate to come after you". " _Pft!_ \- Like we didn't figure _that's_ always a probability," Raven deadpanned, "Especially if you take your orders from a bunch of old geezers sitting in a fancy office wearing a bunch of medals on their chests for stuff they probably didn't do themselves, but took credit for none the less," he smirked.

Levi ignored the remark: this kid was trying to bait him, it was obvious; he wasn't going to fall for it, "Can't say I have much sympathy for bureaucrats either, but it doesn't change the fact your an unknown entity who's true motives we don't yet fully know or understand"

"The same goes for you too you know?" Raven pointed out, "We may have been watching you for the past few years? But what we've seen is only a small percentage of the sum total: we don't know what's really going on in your heads. Hell, for all we know you guys might be out here for a totally different reason, other than the preservation of humanity: which as ludicrous as it sounds, is not totally impossible; especially when you consider the lengths some people go to get what they want. Whatever it might be"

"You think we're here to purposely deceive humanity?" the captain glared at him: "I'm just saying," Raven threw his hands up in his defence, "We don't fully understand you guys, and you've only just met us: so let's not go jumping to conclusions before we've had a chance to get to know each other a little better; sound fair?"

Levi had to admit he had a point, and reluctantly agreed, "I suppose that's a fair observation," he glanced up at Midnight, "But how do these giant shits factor in? Where did they come from anyway?". "Who knows? One day they just-, showed up in the forest, and it didn't take us long to realize they weren't your average abnormal" Jackdaw grinned as he and Rook joined Raven at his side, hanging from their lines as Midnight continued onwards. "What's with the weird patterns?" Levi gestured to the markings on her back, "Dunno, they won't say: but it must mean something to them" Rook shrugged; Levi could tell they were lying, but decided to play it cool and not push the subject: least he might piss the titan off.

"...So where about's in the forest do you live?" the captain asked offhand, "Everywhere, we have to move around in order to find food and adequate resources: trust me, it doesn't take a titan long to find you, even with four friendly ones covering your back" Raven replied casually, "We were hunters long before Wall Maria fell, so the forest provides us with everything we need to survive"

"Uh huh?" Levi deadpanned as he glanced at their ODM gear, "Including gas?"

"You'd be _amazed_ what you can find in the wilder places of Maria: hell, its not unusual in the more remote parts to wander some few hundred yards off the path, and be standing in a place no one has stood for decades, even centuries. The further in you go, the older it gets" Jackdaw explained, "And unmined iceburst stone caves are the least of Maria's secrets"

"Don't be ridiculous, iceburst stones are only found in the interior: beneath the Industrial city" Levi shot back, "That's what _you_ think: and I can assure you we've not had to pillage the corpses of your fallen buddies to get our gas," Rook frowned as he folded his arms, "There are so few scouts dying these days that it'd be impossible to get the gas we need from you guys alone anyway: so do the maths and stop being so naive"

Levi frowned, "What about the smaller military depots? The MP's half-way points between the major riverside towns?". "We looted them not long after Maria fell, some of their gas supplies are long gone: with the acceptation of your supply route depots, we haven't touched them" Jackdaw shrugged. "I find _that_ hard to believe" Levi deadpanned, "All that food and equipment just sitting there, ripe for the taking, and you don't even consider stealing it for yourself?"

"We're many things, but like I said: the forest provides us with everything we need. And besides, our dad would kill us if he found out we stole from the scouts". "Your dad?" Levi raised an eyebrow, "The Grey Owl: he's the Master Hunter of the Marian forests, kinda like the commander, only more informal" Raven explained, "And he's the leader of your family?" the captain pressed him, "Yeah, there's nothing that goes down in the forest without him knowing about it: he's the most experienced hunter of us all, and what he says goes"

"How come he's not here now?" Levi frowned sceptically, "Because he's hunting titans, along with the rest of the grown-up's, _duh!_ " Rook deadpanned. "And speaking of grown-up's, how the hell did a haughty lil' sourpuss like _you_ reach the rank of captain, never mind get permission to form his own 'special operations squad'?" he chuckled, to which the captain glared dangerously at him.

"Come down from there and I'll give you brats a first-hand lesson how" he gestured with a wave of his blade, "Thanks but no thanks, it doesn't take a genius to work out how you scare people into obeying orders" Jackdaw smirked, "And speaking of geniuses, Hange seems quite immune to your particular brand of sourness" Raven commented, "Yeah, you kinda balance each other out in a weird way" Rook smirked. " _Tch!-_ " Levi scoffed, " _Please_ , we have nothing in common: she's the scouts head titan scientist which means me and my squad are stuck babysitting her half the time. And by babysitting, I mean making sure she doesn't get her head bitten off (which would be somewhat of an improvement for her)"

"Oh I dunno, I kinda like her" Raven smiled, "Yeah, just give her a really weird abnormal and I could watch her go off all day" Jackdaw laughed, "Seriously, how the hell can you not find her just a little bit funny?"

"Because she's a reckless over-excited over-energized bat-shit-crazy lunatic who has the worst sense of cleanliness in the history of mankind, who snores like a three hundred pound pig that's been gargling tar, talks crazy shit in her sleep, never wipes her mouth after eating, rambles to herself like an idiot, and to date has never given a shit about personal space" Levi stated flatly without missing a beat. The three brothers stared at him in slight surprise for a moment, before a cheeky glint lit up in their eyes, "...You like her don't you?" Rook smirked. Levi snapped his head up in surprise, "What?!" he exclaimed, "How dare you-

"-Oh calm down, it's not like we'll tell anyone!" Raven threw up his hands, "Yeah, your secrets safe with us," Jackdaw chuckled: "Seriously though, given your line of work? You might want to pop the question soon" Rook grinned with a wink.

The boys then beat a hasty retreat up into Midnight's palm, before the Captain had the chance to go on the attack. In the same instance, Midnight put on a burst of speed as he chased after them, trying to get close enough to shoot his lines, but she wouldn't let him as she stayed just out of reach, chuckling in a deep horse voice as she glanced over her shoulder at him. "HEY!-" Raven shouted down to him, "IS DATING ALLOWED IN THE SCOUTS? PEOPLE WILL TALK YOU KNOW!", "DO YOU THINK IT'LL BE A SPRING OR AUTUMN WEDDING?" Rook laughed.

Angry, Levi stayed on the titan's heels, following her through the dense fog as it closed in around them both: until suddenly the sun shone bright and gloomy haze suddenly fell away to reveal the green horizon through the thinning mists. Glancing behind him, Levi saw they were gone, without even a sound; it was as if he'd been chasing a ghost.

" _Tch!-_ " he scowled, feeling stupid for letting them get to him like that: "YOU FOUR ARE OFFICIALLY ON MY SHIT LIST!" he shouted, before taking off at full gallop, making a mental note _not_ to let that happen again; and at the back of his mind, hoping and praying Hange wasn't near enough to hear what just went down. He knew she'd probably never let him live it down.

* * *

Elsewhere:

"Well this is beginning to get pretty repetitive..." Hange deadpanned as she gazed around at the fog: her eagerness waning as a quiet disappear began to niggle its way in. "And where did the hunters clear off to? Have they already gone? ...I do hope we didn't scare them off..." she sighed, hoping that wasn't the case.

Suddenly, the sound of giant beating wings made her snap her head upwards, just in time to see the shadow of a giant bird swoop downwards. Having a good guess as to what it was, the sparkle instantly returned to Hange's eyes as she took off for where it touched down: and sure enough, there was Angel, folding up her wings and licking a few stray feathers back into place: "Hey there sweety!" she greeted excitedly, to which Angel smiled down at her with a happy string of warbling chirps, as she bent down and started sniffing her over like a dog, "Oh-, sorry I'm afraid I got no ration crackers on me this time" she apologized.

"So your the one who was feeding her huh? ..." a small innocent voice spoke up from somewhere behind the titan's massive crest of hackles: Hange blinked in surprise as she saw the snow twins emerge from the thick coat of feathers on her back: the titan unfolded one wing, and let them slide down her shoulder and off her feathered limb to the ground, "Figured as much, she was pestering us to go back to your camp that day" the boy smiled as he dusted off a few stray downy feathers. "Wha-, how the hell are you able to ride her without sinking into all those feathers?" the scientist exclaimed, "Eh, there's a technique to it." the sister shrugged, before pausing "-Wait a sec, you tried riding Angel?"

"Ah-, heh..." Hange grinned sheepishly, realizing what she just let slip, "Maybe? I mean-, I wasn't going to take her for a joy-ride or anything: it was just to see if it was even possible, you know?". The twins glanced at one another, then looked up at Angel: "Is this true?" they both asked. Angel simply shrugged nonchalantly as she let out a dithering series of chirps, as if trying to brush it off as no big deal: the twins glanced at each other again, and then back at Hange, "...Well? I guess we can let it slide: just as long as Mother Dove doesn't find out. Okay?" Snow Finch glanced up at Angel, who nodded in agreement.

"Mother Dove? ..." Hange blinked in confusion, before gasping in realization "-Oh! Is she the Lady in white?!". "Lady in white?" Snow Finch glanced at his sister in bemusement, "Huh, I guess that figures" he reasoned with a nod. "You've seen her?" Snow Bunting blinked in surprise: "Yeah! Last month, right after meeting Magpie!" Hange nodded "Is she your mother?". "Not blood: but yeah, she's kind of like our mum," the sister shrugged offhand with a small smile, "I take it she doesn't take kindly to us scouts riding her darling Angel here?" Hange smiled up at the avian titan, "The scouts? Well kinda?" Snow Finch dithered, "I mean, we didn't know how you guys might've react to seeing Angel, so she made us promise not to let you guys get close to her; that was, until 'darling Angel' here decided to go and check out your camp without telling us," the twins shot the bird-titan a reprimanding gaze, to which she rolled her eyes and let out a long blasé huff; like a moody teenager.

"Oh, sneaking out and playing hooky huh?" Hange glanced up at Angel with a cheeky grin, "Ah don't worry, we've all done it at some point: your secrets safe with me"

"Speaking of playing hooky, we saw you ride off into the fog from up top," Snow Bunting pointed upwards, referring to the top of the fog column, "Took us a while to find you: but we figured you must be pretty lost by now". " _That's_ an understatement" Hange snorted, before realizing "-Wait a sec, you guys were able to locate me? In the middle of this pea soup?". "Well? Technically Angel did, she has a real knack for navigating through clouds and fog: being a bird-titan an' all, she has to be able to find her way through them when flying at high altitudes: you know? Like migrating birds do too?" Snow Finch explained. "Of course: it makes perfect sense" Hange nodded as she thought it over. "And speaking of finding a way: maybe we should get going too? Levi and his squad might have already found their way out by now" the sister suggested.

"Oh yeah, right! Can't forget about poor Levi!" Hange chuckled sheepishly, "He will be okay, won't he?": "Tough lil' guy like him? I'm sure he's doing fine" Snow Bunting waved off. "You're one to talk, you're at least seven inches shorter than him!" Hange chuckled, "Yeah, but we're sure he's used to all the short jokes by now" the twins smiled: "No one gets the chance, because he just shoots that scowl of his in their direction and they instantly shut up," Hange grinned as she watched them climb back onto Angel's wing, and get deposited back on her shoulder. "We bet that doesn't bother _you_ though," the twins chuckled as they took their seats: "Ha! He's been trying for years now and he still doesn't get to me: even when he tries to kick me in the ass!" she giggled.

"Nice to know one of you guys knows how to keep their sense of humour around him: he's damn-right scary, and rude to boot" Snow Bunting smiled as Angel slowly started walking away, her metal talons clicking and clanking as they struck the ground: "Ah Levi can be a tad 'austere': but you know, he's really not that bad once you get to know him: he's just an acquired taste is all, like a rare wine" Hange waved off, "Yeah, a wine that's been corked" the twins deadpanned, to which Hange couldn't help but laugh, before her zealousness got the better of her yet again. "I gotta say, I'mso very happy we ran into each other again! I've got _so_ many questions I want to ask you guys. Like where did the painted titans come from? Did they come with those markings or were they painted on? Why don't they eat humans? How is it they're able to understand our language and communicate as such? How did you guys manage to survive out here for so long? And how did-

"Whoa whoa slow down!" The twins threw up their hands, before Snow Bunting answered "...Okay, in order: They showed up in the forest outta the blue one day. They came with those markings already in place. Because they hate the taste of human flesh. Because they got brains with intelligence equal to our own, and linguistic skill are the least of what they can do. And we survived because we're hunters". " _Smart_ hunters" her brother added.

"Okay, okay, sorry" Hange smiled sheepishly as she tried to curb her jittery thoughts: "But seriously though, why are you guys doing all this?", "Why not? This is our home, and we want to take it back: for all mankind as well as our family" Snow Bunting stated. "Well yeah I _get_ that, but this is a _massive_ undertaking you guys have invested in! Time, resources, supplies, _titans_ , how on earth did you put it all together?" the scientist pressed them. "We're a family" the twins stated in unison, "There's nothing we can't get done together: our strength lies in each other, just like you guys" Snow Finch stated.

"A good philosophy to live by, for sure" Hange nodded, "But tell me, why did the painted titans join you? How did you convince them to fight for humanity?"

"We didn't convince them to do anything," Snow Bunting replied casually, "They saw what the titans had reduced mankind to, and took pity on us; _all_ of us" Snow Finch added without missing a beat, "It's in their nature to be wise, compassionate and understanding: an alliance was never out of the question. Besides, they've been part of our lives for so long that they're family now" Snow Finch smiled as he stroked Angel's cheek: the bird-titan smiled with a happy chirp.

"I see..." Hange stared in wonder up at the titan, "But, have they told you anything about their past? Where they come from? How they learned to communicate? Why they're sympathetic towards humanity? These are the questions I need answers to!" she begged desperately. The twins glanced at one another, before gazing down at the scientist: "One day" they both replied in a regretful tone, "When?!" Hange pressed them excitedly, "When humanity is ready for us"

"-Oh..." Hange realized in a deflated tone, "... Yeah, I guess the idea of human-friendly titans is bit much for people to get their heads round..." she sighed in disappointment, before instantly perking up again: "-But still, this is knowledge _we_ the scouts can learn in the meantime! Thanks to you guys we've learned more in the last few months than humanity has learned over the last twenty years! I mean, the possibilities for beating back the titans and exploring the outside world are endless! Think of the potential you and your giant friends could offer!"

"We know" the twins stated in unison, "And while you guys may have humanity's best intentions at hand: not everyone in the interior will feel the same" Snow Finch added in a cautious tone, "For some, like the wall cult, we'd be an affront to everything they believe: they'd call for our executions without a second thought". "Those wall-loving nut-jobs?" Hange scoffed, "- _Oh please_ , no one's taken them seriously in years! Even after Wall Maria fell and they made all that hoo-ha about the 'coming of the great architect'; seriously, I wouldn't worry about them" she smiled.

Both twins glanced each other, and passed a quiet sigh beneath their breaths. "... Hey Hange?" Snow Bunting changed the subject: "How'd you get to be the scouts titan scientist? I didn't know the scouts had such a thing"

"Oh, well?" Hange smiled sheepishly, "It's kind of one-off thing I guess? Well I mean, the scouts have always had a scientist who specializes in titans, but it wasn't really given the credit it deserves, until I decided to take the position and shake things up," she explained eagerly, "Believe it or not, I wasn't always as keen on titans as I am now: after first joining the scouts and seeing my friends get killed, I used to cut them down in a fit of blind rage. But then one day, I kicked the severed head of a three meter out of pure anger, and the thing flew up into the air as if it were made of dandelion seeds"

"Yeah, it's weird how their bodies are so light like that" Snow Finch nodded.

"I know right?!" Hange smiled, "Over the course of our various expeditions I studied them as much as possible, whenever the opportunity presented itself, I never let it be squandered: it's dangerous for sure (and Levi certainly gives me plenty of flack for it), but I believe the risks are worth it if we can glean something we can use to our advantage," she gazed up at Angel, "You guys must've been spoilt for choice, having _four whole new species of titans_ to study and catalogue! And a bird-titan hybrid to boot!" she grinned, "This is exactly what I've been saying this whole time! There's _so much_ about the titans we just don't know! And with you guys, it's thrown up a whole new field of knowledge we didn't know existed!"

"Glad we could impress," Snow Bunting smiled, "But seriously Hange?" Snow Finch sighed, "We're taking _a big gamble_ letting the scouts know of our existence: watching you guys from a distance for the past two years was fine, Magpie saving Petra was one thing, Shadow saving you guys from all those titans was another, but now the cat's out the bag, what happened near Neness was kind've necessary: we had to see how far you guys could be pushed, and how well you could hold your nerve in the face of the unexpected"

"Ha! _I knew it!_ I knew you guys were testing the waters to see if we-" Hange blinked in confusion,"... Wait-, _Letting_ _us_ know?" she blinked up at the twins in further bemusement, "You mean, you guys _deliberately_ revealed yourselves? Even though you could've stayed hidden this whole time?". "It was an option we considered, but in the end we don't think it will get us to where we're hoping to go," Snow Finch explained, "Hiding from the scouts isn't a problem for us: you won't be able to catch us unless we wantyou to catch us"

"Then what are you hoping to achieve by revealing yourselves to us? An alliance maybe?" Hange thought aloud, "Because you know, I think Erwin would be delighted at such a prospect!" she smiled. "I'm sure he would, but until we know for sure you guys can be trusted with the future of humanity, we'll continue to hang back and observe you; maybe test the waters a little more," Snow Finch replied.

"Trusted with the future of humanity?" the scientist blinked in surprise, "Hey, this is the scouts you're talking to! No one's more dedicated to protecting and enlightening humanity more than us!" she smiled; " _You_ maybe, Erwin Mike and the Levi squad too: but we can't take any chances until we know for sure you're _all_ in this together" Snow Bunting stated.

"Huh?" What makes you think we'd be a risk?" Hange asked, until something suddenly came to mind, "... Wait a minute, does this have anything to do with why you guys won't go into the interior? Who do you believe is a threat to the well-being of mankind?". "We can't say," The twins stated, "If we told you their name, and you started asking questions about them: they'll make you disappear, or make it look as if you died in an accident; and no one, not even your closest friends and family would know any different"

"Please Hange, for your sake as well as Erwin's and the scouts, don't ask anymore on the subject" Snow Bunting pleaded. "If it's your identity your worried about, we could take steps to ensure no one knows: we could even try to sneak you inside Wall Rose under the cover of night if that's what it takes?" the scientist offered with an encouraging smile. "It's far more than our identities; who we now and who we were in our previous lives is not important," Snow Finch explained, "It's what _we know_ that would be at risk; the things we know about the painted titans, and so much more could be destroyed by those who would seek to keep mankind subdued in a blanket of ignorance and naivety"

"One day we will ready to confront those people: but not now. Not when the titans are still a raw thought in everyone's minds; at least, that's what we _assume_ has been the attitude of the interior since Maria was lost"

"Eh, you're not wrong there" Hange sighed, "Things are still uneasy in places: and the attitude of the upper-classes in the heart of Sina doesn't help". "They never do: and I'll bet they've never even once taken pity on the Marian's who were displaced" Snow Bunting sighed "Especially after the failed retrieval operation" her brother added. Hange stilled, as she suddenly remembered what he was referring to: "...You, know about that?"

"All those poor people, sent to die simply because there were too many mouths to feed and not enough roofs to cover everyone's heads? ..." the boy gazed down at her with an unreadable gaze, "Yeah, we figured us much... You know? That summer was the worst: some days when we were near the plains, you could hear this sweet ringing sound, and from a distance it sounded like lots of people singing in a choir. But then you get closer, and you realize it's actually the buzzing of thousands upon thousands of insects, all feeding on the rotting corpses". "Some might've fled from that horror: but we looked upon those poor unlucky dead, and all it did was remind us of the reasons why we must continue our work," Snow Bunting offered, as she gazed down at the scientist: "...You guys too: you can't stop now, not when so many are depending on you to reclaim Shiganshina"

"I know," Hange sighed, trying to look on the brighter side "But we're getting there, one supply depot at a time: I don't know how we'll do it yet, but we'll plug that breach, somehow"

"... So, what do you think the scouts will do now?" Snow Finch asked offhand, "Seeing as we've revealed ourselves an' all". "Well? You can expect to be seeing more of lil' ol' me!" Hange beamed, "You guys may be the champions at hide an' seek, but that won't stop me from trying to study you guys and figure out your secrets", "Is that a challenge?" the twins both smirked, "... Maybe?" Hange smiled up at them with a cunning glint in her eyes: to which the twins chuckled, "You're on, crazy-bangs!"

"Well I-" Hange paused as she realized the fog was growing thicker again, as the avian titans and her riders vanished into the dark grey, "... -Uh guys? The fog seems to have gotten thicker"

But no reply came: "...Guys?" Hange called again, but to no avail: then, as if someone took a puff of air and blew real hard, the fog rolled away to reveal the horizon, and the endless green plains. Behind her, Hange marvelled at the towering column of fog and cloud, and was even more surprised Angel and the Snow twins were gone: "Huh, how'd they pull that off without flying away?" she thought aloud offhand, before she suddenly gasped in horror "Oh shit!-, I forgot to ask for a sample of feathers!" she face-palmed hard, "- _Dammit!_ "

But no sooner had she spoken, the sound of giant beating wings made he look up: and from out the side of the column of fog, three huge white feathers came gently floating down, and landed by her horse. Staring at the feathers as a big smile crossed her face, Hange bounced up and down in her saddle with excitement, and shouted out "THANKS GUYS! SEE YOU NEXT TIME!". The scientist then quickly dismounted, gathered up the feathers, secured them tightly to her saddle as best she could, and then galloped away from the fog, keeping an eye out for the rest of the scouts: "Hehehe! _I can't wait_ to share this with Erwin and the others! Even Levi will be impressed for once!"

* * *

Elsewhere:

Having long since given up calling for others, as his voice wore out soon enough: Mike decided to rely on what he knew best; his nose. Breathing in the air, the scent of grass and damp was all he'd been able to pick up, as he rode on through the dark grey fog.

But as he inhaled one particularly deep lungful of air, a familiar scent slowly wafted by: it was two of the kids. Who exactly he couldn't remember, but it was them without a doubt; deciding to take a gamble, he followed the scent, until a familiar titan appeared out of the fog...

"...Well, didn't think I'd be seeing _you_ again any time soon," he frowned up at Boar: the tusked titan smiled down at him as he took a few steps closer, "Nor we you," a voice spoke up from somewhere behind him, and from around the backside of the titan's left leg, Waxwing and Goshawk stepped out: "...I take it you rode right into the fog, rather than go around it?" Goshawk asked offhand.

"Actually, Hange decided to check it out, so Levi and his squad went on ahead to retrieve her..." the human hunting hound replied: being careful of what he said; he wasn't too sure how the kids would react to him explaining how he got separated from the other scouts. That was one mystery he didn't care to try and explain, "And you got split up too huh?" Waxwing sighed, "Yeah, the fog'll do that if you don't keep your wits about you: it can be very tricky like that"

"You talk as if you know it" Mike knitted his brows together in dubious curiosity, as he studied the children sceptically: "Well duh, we use it for cover" the boy scoffed lightly: "Hiding from titans and the Garrison, trapping titans: it's pretty useful if you know how to navigate it right" his sister shrugged, "And Boar here knows it inside and out," she patted him on the forearm, to which the titan hummed in a content tone.

"I don't suppose you guys might have seen Hange and the others?" Mike asked offhand, "We got a bit split up after chasing some abnormal's: if Levi and his squad are wandering around in this pea soup, I'm sure the others will have found them by now" Waxwing reasoned, "We'll lead you out too if you like?" Goshawk offered.

"Well? I've no idea where I am anyway," Mike admitted, "And if you guys know where your going, I guess I'm following": "Great," Waxwing smiled as Boar bent down, and he and his sisters climbed up onto his tusks: the titan then tossed his head back, allowing the kids to jump up into his thick mane of hair, where they took their seats on his back, "It shouldn't be too far to the edge of the fog anyway, come on"

Mike flanked Boar, and followed quietly as the titan strolled away: keeping a watchful eye as they walked through the fog together. As the siblings talked quietly between each other, he couldn't be sure if this was another deliberate encounter, or an actual accidental run-in: either way, if Boar's sense of smell was really that good, if not superior to his own, he'd have to be careful. Studying the kids from where he was, Mike could tell they weren't amateurs, their scent confirmed as much, as the rancid smell of dead titan blood emanated off them. Despite their friendly demeanour, they looked tough: but then, living in the wilds of Maria surrounded by titans was not for the weak or heartless: goodness only knows what they had to have endured to make it this far: and the incredibility of it? They looked about the same age as those just signing up for the military, and being carted off to basic training. 'Erwin might try to recruit them all if he could' Mike couldn't help but think offhand.

"You don't say much do you?" Waxwing glanced over his shoulder down at the scout, "Just keeping an ear out for titans" the section commander replied, "Fog this thick is a death-trap for any scout". "Maybe, but not today: we cleared out all the titans from this area, and they won't be coming back anytime soon, so don't worry" the boy smiled beneath his neckerchief.

"I wasn't talking about the regular ones" Mike stated bluntly: to which Boar glanced over at him with a raised eyebrow, "If it's the 'other ones' you're concerned about, I wouldn't worry, they're probably regrouping somewhere back in the forest" Goshawk deadpanned, none to pleased with what he was implying. "Hey, we weren't to know you'd be coming back this way: we figured after what happened at Neness, you guys would take the western river road up to Bellbridge, and cross over back onto the main road to Trost from there" Waxwing explained innocently. "Following the western river road would've taken an additional five hours, and every hour we're out here we risk being preyed upon by the titans: it's time we simply can't afford to waste" the older man explained in a serious tone.

"Fair enough" the boy shrugged, "But if you're still a little jittery from a few day's ago, it's okay. It's not everyday you meet guys like Boar" he patted the titan on his shoulder, and Boar gave an approving wag of his tail.

"Jittery? Hardly" Mike deadpanned, "The rookies maybe, but it'll take a lot more than your titans to dissuade us". "We noticed" Goshawk sighed dryly, "And for the record, we've no intentions of 'dissuading' you from your mission: you guys keep up your good work and you let us attend to ours; sound good?".

"And what is your 'good work', exactly?" the section commander asked, deciding to see what he could glean from this: "Same as yours," Waxwing shrugged, "Trying to help humanity beat back the titans: though, the idea of there being human-friendly titans is gonna be a tough one to sell to the interior"

"Undoubtedly" Mike agreed, "So what do you intend to do about it?"

"You make it sound as if we intend to do more harm than good," Goshawk frowned down at him: Waxwing placed his hand on her shoulder, and explained in a more frank tone "For now, nothing: it's been three years since Maria fell, but even we know things must still be tense among the populous. Hell, there are some nights when the winds blow from the north, and they carry the scent of all that fear with them: it's unnerving to say the least, and trying convince everyone there're titans that don't eat humans isn't going to go down well; or at the least, it won't come without it's complications. So we decided the best option would be to work in secret, as far as everyone in the interior is concerned"

"And what about us?" Mike asked: to which Goshawk replied "After last month's little 'encounter', we did some thinking: and we decided it probably wouldn't hurt if _you guys_ knew about us. Everyone calls the scouts the 'pinnacle of human wisdom'; and suffice to say you guys aren't stupid. Besides, with you being out here on a monthly basis, you were bound to run into us again, eventually" she shrugged.

"I get that," Mike offered in a more approachable tone, "But why not simply join us? Put your strength and your titans to better use as part of the Survey corp? Granted the public might still be wary, but under the banner of the scouts you'd be acknowledged as an ally of humanity". "A nice offer, but I'm afraid it's not that simple," Goshawk sighed, "There's far more to this than just 'painted' titans and us: there're things we know that would get us killed; regardless of whether we're scouts or not. Information that's forbidden by royal decree and governmental law, as well as by order of the Wall Cult"

"Knowledge of the outside world?" Mike blinked in surprise, "That's a pretty bold claim": "Bold, but true none the less, and I dare say it could get you and the rest of the scouts in trouble too; so for your sakes as well as our own, I wouldn't ask too many questions" Waxwing stated seriously.

"Fair enough, but how did you come by this knowledge? Did the titans share it with you?" the scout pressed him: "In a way," Waxwing dithered, "They, like the forests of Maria, have many secrets; some, mankind hasn't known for an age; and still keep beneath the shade of their canopies and the roots of their trees. It's not a question of whether we're enemies or allies of humanity, but rather, is humanity ready to know what we know?"

"And what do you know?" the scout raised an eyebrow. The siblings were quiet for a brief moment, before Waxwing sighed, "...More than I ever thought I could know in a single lifetime: and you know? I've never been able to look at the world around me the same way again; not this kingdom, not the people within it, nothing; but if anything, it gives me hope. Hope that one day all this will pass into history, and we will all look back on it and remember it as it was; the good, the bad, everything. No more secrets, no more hiding, and we'll all move on from it with something brighter in mind" he thought aloud, "... I know that must sound kinda stupid to you, and I know I sound like I'm reaching a bit; but if there's one thing I've learnt these past few years, it's that defeat is not a certainty as long as you keep on fighting..."

Mike gazed up at the boy, and stared at him with an unreadable expression: as strange as his choice of words were, there was a sense of truth in it: a truth that, as a scout he could understand. He didn't know what Waxwing was referring to, but he could tell there was something: something he was gazing up at that he couldn't see; and it sounded eerily familiar to someone he knew...

"Call me crazy, but I think Erwin would approve of you guys," the scout sighed with a slight smile tugging at the corner of his mouth, "You sound like you have the heart for this". "You think?" Waxwing smiled as he glanced down at him: "Living out here with titans all around? I don't know if I could do that," the scout admitted, "I don't know if you're really an enemy or an ally of humanity, but you don't strike me as evil"

"But, doesn't being an enemy of humanity mean you're evil?" Goshawk blinked in confusion, "There's evil, and then there's being compelled into doing something you don't want to do: people often forget the difference, and it's easy to see things in black and white. In the end it's the choices we make that determines who we are, and who we want to be. It's not easy, but those with heart know not to doubt their instincts"

Boar glanced over at Mike, and smiled at him with a deep rumbling hum of approval: "Well? Boar agrees with you, and he's a pretty good judge of character" Goshawk smiled as she stroked his mane:

"So, what are the other three like? Are they just as agreeable?" Mike asked offhand, "Meh, pretty much," Waxwing smiled, "Shadow's about as soft and friendly as they come, and patient to a fault. Angel's curious about anything and everything, and will sneak away to check out whatever's going on: and Midnight? Well? I think you guys already get the gist of what she's like". "She's a shrewd one, that's for sure" Mike frowned: "She's shrewd, yes: but she's kinda like a big sister really; kinda the sassy out-going fun-loving girl who's the last one out the Inn and first to the dance floor of every harvest festival" the boy smirked, "Seriously, she's not bad, just-, _ballsy_ is all", "And a bit cheeky" his sister chuckled, to which Boar couldn't help but chuckle.

"This is just a shot in the dark, but is it safe to assume that little 'encounter' the Levi squad had with her won't be a one-off?" Mike deadpanned up at the siblings, "Oh, you'd assume correctly: and with that rude lil' sourpuss leading his merry band of scouts, I think Midnight's gonna be getting plenty of kicks outta them" Goshawk smirked. "Still though, you really gotta hand it to the captain" Waxwing smiled, "Really? Why?" his sister blinked in surprise, "Because he needs a ladder to reach it!" Waxwing laughed with Boar sniggering through his nose, while Goshawk grumbled something incoherent as she rubbed her forehead.

"Came up with that one all by yourself huh?" Mike deadpanned dryly, "He likes to think he's funny" Goshawk droned, "Oh come on, it is funny!" her brother elbowed her, "-And I got a million more to try out on him!"

"Your funeral kid" Mike sighed, "But be careful, they don't call the captain humanity's strongest for nothing"

"Wait-..." Waxwing clambered over Boar's shoulder to lean down closer to the scout, "Humanity's strongest? _That's_ his nickname?!" he gawked, before bursting out into a fit of laughter, "Oh my god! I gotta tell Raven and the guys that one! Rook's gonna flip when he hears that!". "-No you're not!" Goshawk cuffed him round the back of the head, almost making him loose his balance: "-Captain Haughty-shorty's gonna rip us all a new one if we take the piss at him for that!", "-But sis _come on!_ The shortest scout in humanity's history compared to the stature of a giant! It's way too rich not to enjoy!" he protested.

"Like I said, your funeral kid" the scout shrugged, but his comment seemed to go unnoticed as the two siblings stared bickering with each other: Boar simply gave him an apologetic shrug and shook his head; as if to say: kids eh? What're you gonna do?. "Guess they're gonna have to find out the hard way huh?" Mike smiled offhand, to which Boar chuckled lightly. The scout was about to try and grab their attention, when up ahead, he noticed the fog begin to thin out, and he could make out part of the plains up ahead.

"Well? I guess this is where I-

But Mike stopped when he gazed back at Boar, only to see the tusked titan and his two riders were gone: it was alarming to say the least, as he didn't even hear them leave. Deciding not to hang around, he commanded his horse to go, and galloped out and away from the fog: "Erwin's never gonna believe me when I tell him about this" he thought aloud.

* * *

Elsewhere:

As his horse wandered aimlessly through the fog, Erwin was still trying to figure out how he got separated from the main contingent, as well Mike inexplicably vanishing while standing right beside him. It made utterly no sense, how could such a feat be accomplished? And for what purpose? Plus, the silence was just as much a puzzle, where did the titans and the humming disappear to? Was it the titans-hunters? Or something else entirely? As he gazed around at the featureless empty grey, Erwin began to get a cold feeling in his stomach: clearly there was something else at play here, and it started when they entered the fog. But for the life of him, he just couldn't find a rational explanation for it all...

He was so lost in his contemplations, that he almost didn't spot the outline of a massive fifteen-meter class titan some twelve meters up ahead: drawing his blades, the commander got ready for action, but paused when he realized the titan wasn't moving; it was just standing there, watching him. When he saw it turn and caught sight of the spear it was holding in one hand, he put his blades away: and watched as Shadow quietly approached, and bent down to kneel before him.

"Figured you be back soon enough..." Magpie smiled as she walked out of the fog, sheathing her blue crystal blades, "Boar delivered your message: what'd you want to talk about?" she asked seriously. Remembering the events from a few days ago, Erwin dismounted and approached her: "Were you sending your titans to toy about with us two days ago?" he asked bluntly; Magpie studied him dubiously, "... Not deliberately: they like to do their own thing when they're not with us, so there's no telling what they might get up to" she replied casually, "Though that being said, they certainly gave _you_ a few things to think about, huh?"

"So you _were_ watching us," Erwin gazed down at her with a canny stare, "Yeah, but that's not new to you, is it?" Magpie shot back in an equally cunning tone, folding her arms, " _You know_ we've been watching you for some time now: so how about we cut to the chase and discuss what's _really_ on your mind..." she walked off, beckoning him to follow. As Erwin grabbed his horse's reins, Shadow stood back up and followed from a short distance away: keeping his bright blues on them both as the commander walked alongside the girl. "For one, that was a smart move: testing us to see how we'd react to your giant friends at close quarters," Erwin glanced up at Shadow.

"It was inevitable: this month's expedition just seemed like good a time as any," Magpie shrugged, "And I have to say, you guys held your nerve a lot better than we expected," she smiled at him, "Glad we could exceed your expectations: but now that we've established our mutual curiosity for each other, where do we go from here do you think?" he asked bluntly.

"We may have established the fact we're curious about you: but that doesn't mean we trust you," Magpie stated as she gazed out into the fog: "You and I? We come from very different worlds, and how close those worlds touch is what we need to ascertain. What I said last month still stands: you've all got to learn before you can ask; least your questions will be informed ones"

"Informed of what?" Erwin frowned, before he realized: "Wait... Are you referring to what you said last month, about how there are certain things you're not allowed to know when you're on the other side of wall Rose?" he stopped. Magpie stopped after taking another few steps, and paused for a moment, as if contemplating how to phrase her words right. "...It's no secret there is certain knowledge that is forbidden from being known and discussed inside these three walls: but what would you do, if all that knowledge and more existed beyond the government's reach, and yet was practically right on your doorstep?" she explained, carrying on walking with Erwin staying close. "Ever since we started this endeavour to free mankind from the regular titans: we've come into possession of many of those forbidden knowledges, as well as other things the royal government and wall cult would never approve of: and for that, we _would_ be killed if we were to enter wall Rose. I doubt there's very little you and the scouts will be able to do to keep us safe: so for _your_ sake, and that of your scouts, that's all I'm going to tell you on the matter"

"Fine: but you do realize that without proof, I can't entirely take you at your word," Erwin cautioned, "We know, and we understand: but I'm just saying; when you return to Trost, it'd be best not to go asking questions" Magpie warned. "Why?" the commander pressed her, "...Because, you'll disappear: and probably die in a very dark place somewhere: and as far as everyone will be led to believe? You'll have died in an accident: with no witnesses to see what actually happened..."

Erwin was silent for a long moment, as memories of his father came back to haunt him: he _knew_ what Magpie was talking about; he didn't doubt the truth in her words, and knew it'd be best to leave it at that, "...I see..." he replied quietly, discreetly letting the subject drop: "...So, what questions are you expecting us to ask?"

"You're the genius of the scouts" Magpie grinned, "You figure it out, or else it defeats the whole point of your learning experience" she folded her arms, "Although, I suppose _one_ clue won't hurt... One of the things about learning right, is that you need to _want_ to learn: let go of any beliefs that aren't true anymore, open your mind, and just listen or see, whatever it is your willing to find. It's not easy, and not everyone can open their minds so freely: it takes courage, willingness, and above all choice. You can't just force people to learn if they don't want to, and if they don't want to learn because it may be too much for them, or because it goes against their beliefs, then there's not much you can do about that either. All you can do is try, and even if you don't get it, that's not a bad thing; at least you can say you gave it your best shot" she thought aloud in an honest tone, "And who knows? Sometimes you come across something you weren't expecting to find: life's weird like that"

"You sound as if you speak from experience," Erwin observed, "...There's a lot of

'forbidden knowledges' me and my family knew, even before we met Shadow and his kin," Magpie sighed, as she sided up next to the horse and gently stroked its neck and mane, "...Before Shiganshina fell, back when our lives were more simpler: we hid our true faces away, least we'd be led to the hangman's noose: but now? Living out here, free from the government and the cult's reach, we don't have to hide anymore: and we've been better for it. Yeah the titans are everywhere out here and it's dangerous as hell, but its a small price to pay for our freedom... We just wish the rest of mankind had that same freedom too; maybe then, there'd be no need for anyone to hide in plain sight anymore? And ultimately, _everyone_ has something they need to hide for the sake of their survival, right?"

"That's true," Erwin admitted with a discreet nod. Magpie added "There are secrets that have been buried in the forests of Maria for countless ages Erwin, secrets, that even this kingdom doesn't know exist: Shadow, Midnight, Boar and Angel being the very least of them...You may be worthy to know them, you might not: I don't know. Ultimately it's out of my hands: and it's up to my family to decide whether an alliance will be possible or not. It's nothing personal you understand?"

"Of course: in a way I'm in the same position," Erwin explained, playing along while at the back of his mind, he tried to figure out what she was really saying: "After last month's encounter, the top brass are eager to earn more about your family, and what their true intentions are". "Figured as much," Magpie shrugged, "What do _you_ believe we're up to?". "You seem to be the smart one" Erwin smirked, "Why don't you figure it out?"

"Ha ha very funny," she smiled, "Seriously though: as far as the 'top brass' are concerned, you and we are fighting for the same thing, humanity's liberation from the titans; _that's_ not in doubt I can assure you. We're just going about it very differently: fighting fire with fire for one, which is a concept I don't think many will take to lightly; ergo, we go about about our business in secret. Least everyone in Rose and Sina will freak out"

"Agreed, not many will be able to get their heads around such a notion. Titans helping humans to kill other titans? It wouldn't be a very believable idea" the commander reasoned, before something suddenly occurred to him, "...That's what the fog is for, isn't it? You use it to hide while you hunt. How do you control it?"

"Magic?" Magpie shrugged with a sheepish smile: seeing Erwin wasn't impressed, she got serious again "...Look, how we control it isn't important, and yes, we use it to hide when hunting within sight of the walls: it's very effective, but as you found out the hard way, it's nothing like regular fog. It's tricky, practically has a mind of its own, and if you don't know how to navigate it you could be stuck inside until you loose all sense of time and direction, and you wander around forever"

"You know that for a fact?" he raised a dubious eyebrow, "Nope, and frankly I don't want to see if its true" she smiled: "So what happened to Hange and the others?" he asked bluntly. Magpie glanced at Erwin with a smirk, "Nothing gets past you huh? With any luck they'll have run into the rest of the family. We're spread out all over the place today, so someone's bound to come across them, and before you ask, _yes_ they'll have led them out of the fog safely: we may be a bunch of rogues but we're not heartless"

"Good to know... One other thing," Erwin changed the subject, "The lady in white, is she your mother?". "Lady in white? …. -Oh, you must mean Mother Dove," Magpie realized, "Nah she ain't our blood mother, she's just a really close friend of the family who likes to make sure we don't go causing too much trouble for the titans: and make sure you guys don't get _too_ nosy either. You kinda left an impression on her after that little run-in at Stinestadt a few years back: ever since then she's warned us about getting too 'chummy' with you guys; has it in her head you might try to recruit us or something" she grinned.

"Who knows? You are at the right age for enlistment," Erwin smirked, "...Why is she and the rest of your elders reluctant to show themselves?" he asked offhand.

"It's not reluctance: there's only so many of us compared to you guys, and suffice to say it's the grown-up's who do most of the hunting: but they trust us to deal with the scouts accordingly, they know we're not going to give _you_ trouble, (not the kind you can't handle at least). Besides, everyone turned out to watch the show at Neness, so who knows? You might spot one of them, you might not: luck of the draw I'm afraid..." Magpie shrugged, before turning serious again, "...Though, I think it's only fair to warn you: _don't_ do anything to piss her off. She's one of the best titan hunters around, and I don't say that lightly given what I've seen you guys do: she could give the whole Levi squad the run-around, and I'm afraid the captain hasn't exactly left the best impression on her these last few years"

"He may be lacking in manners, but I can assure you Levi is one of the best scouts we have in our ranks" Erwin stated, "Oh _I_ know that: but as far as she's concerned he's a rude little sourpuss who's nothing but trouble. Some people say a bear fighting a pack of dogs is entertaining: but I'll bet if you put _those two_ in a room together? _That_ would be a show," Magpie grinned. Shadow let out a long exasperated hum, "Oh come on!" she called up to him, "-Everyone's still taking bet's on _that_ one!"

"There's a pool?" Erwin raised an eyebrow, "Oh yeah, everyone in the family's been taking wages: so far I'm down to my last good piece of smoked jerky and three copper coins; but Hange though? _She's_ the favourite at three to one"

"In a fight against 'Mother Dove?'"

"Hell no! she wouldn't last five seconds against her: the wager with Hange, is how crazy she'll be trying to collect new data on our 'giant friends'". Erwin couldn't help but smile, "Well? I don't think you'll loose that bet"

"Oh I know I won't," Magpie smiled as she beckoned Shadow to come down, the giant leaned over, and handed her something he'd been holding in his hand: a large lock of his hair tied up with a leather cord, and a piece of his blue crystal the size of a small courgette. "Here, give these to Hange when you next see her: least she might try something _really_ suicidal to get her hands on them," Magpie handed him the gifts, "Think of them as samples, to show to the top brass when you get home. They want proof we're real? Hey, it's no skin off our noses: but samples from the others though? I can't make an promises; you'll just have to wait and see" Magpie smiled as she reached for one of her crystal blades, and offered it to Erwin, "...All we ask, is that you allow us to continue what we're doing unhindered, and let the subject of an alliance wait, until we know you're ready. Until _everyone_ inside the walls is ready. Okay?"

"Okay" Erwin nodded, as he graciously accepted the offerings, "Thank you. But I make no promises either"

"That's okay" she waved off, "It just seemed the sensible thing to do: and besides, being a rumour might present some complications; better to give some form of confirmation and know what's what, rather than keep the guys in charge guessing (even if it is kept in secret). Besides, regardless of what the top brass order you to do next, you and the scouts are the only ones who're willing step foot into titan territory, so ultimately it'll be up to _you_ what happens hereafter"

"That is probably the most likely scenario" Erwin agreed, "So what will you do now?"

"Eh, we've still got a lot of titans to manage, a lot of herds that are way overdue for culling" Magpie thought aloud, "We'll be around though, we'll check in every now and then to make sure that supply route is coming along nicely: and maybe throw Hange a bone or two? Keep Levi and his squad on their toes: you know, just general stuff". "General stuff?" Erwin couldn't help but smile, "Is that your way saying we can expect to see more of you and your giant friends in the not-too-distant future?". "Pretty much" Magpie smiled, "That, and I apologize in advance for my idiot brothers and Midnight". "Apologize in advance? For what?" Erwin glanced at her weirdly, "Oh, you'll see: believe me" she deadpanned.

Before long the fog began to thin out, and as the dark grey gloom peeled back and gave way to the sun's light, the lush green plains could been seen at a distance: "Well? Looks like this is where we leave you" Magpie smiled, "We gotta go back and regroup with the others, but I don't think you'll have much trouble finding your friends: just ride straight ahead and don't let the fog envelop you again. And the next time you guys see it, just ride around it okay?"

"Will do... " Erwin nodded as he remounted his horse: once comfortably in the saddle, he then placed the lock of titan hair and crystal sample into his saddle pack, and sheathed the crystal blade into his left scabbard box: "Thank you Magpie: I will do my utmost to abide by your family's wishes, and leave you to your work: but as I said before, I make no promises. Whatever the top brass decide to do, I have no choice but to obey: and if they order us to capture you and your titans, we will come for you"

"We know," Magpie nodded with a cunning smile, "But if that happens, you gotta catch us first: and I'll warn you right now; you won't find us, unless we want you to find us". "That remains to be seen," Erwin smirked slightly, "But seeing as you've given fair warning of your intentions, it would be rude of me not to do the same". "How considerate of you," Magpie smirked as she wandered over to Shadow, fired her lines up at his collar bone, and flew up onto his shoulder, "-That might just earn you brownie points!" she called down as the titan walked back the way he came, vanishing into the fog "Good luck, Erwin!"

As he watched the giant fade from the sight, the commander then turned his horse, and took off out of the gloom: riding onwards until the air was clear and the sun shone down on his face. Gazing back, he saw the towering column of cloud and fog gently moving away towards the river: still swirling round, propelled by a silent wind; while the titan corpses he saw before, were now bones vaporizing away.

Looking ahead, the commander scanned the horizon for any sign of movement: until a familiar voice shouted behind him, "ERWIN!" Hange waved to him as she, Petra, Gunther and Eld came riding up alongside him. The first thing that caught Erwin's attention were the three giant white feathers Hange had tied to her saddle, "Erwin! Holy hell you're not gonna believe what happened! Angel came back, and she had Snow Bunting and Snow Finch with her!" the scientist beamed: "We all got found by the kids, and led out of that fog" Eld added. Gunther was about to speak up, when suddenly, another familiar face came riding along in the opposite direction: "HEEY!" Oruo shouted as he circled around and fell into place alongside the others.

"-Holy shit am I glad to see you guys!" he exclaimed in relief, "You wouldn't believe what happened to me! I nearly got spirited away by those two brats, Blue jay and Stella's jay!" he explained in a fluster, "At first I was lost, calling out for you guys, when suddenly they appeared: I could tell it was a trap so I rode off, and then-. The others all gazed at him weirdly, "... Then what?" Petra pressed him: suddenly realizing how ridiculous it sounded, Oruo decided not to tell them, "-Never mind, the point is, I gave them the slip before they had a chance to get up to no good!" he simply stated.

"Hey!-" Mike shouted as he rode up from behind, "You guys okay?". "We're fine, you?" Erwin asked, "Alright, I had a little help from our tusked friend". "Boar? You saw Boar again?!" Hange rode up alongside him, "-Tell me, did you manage to grab a sample of something?!", "No dice I'm afraid" Mike shook his head, "But Shadow was kind enough to give you these..." Erwin opened the flap of his saddle pack, and revealed the lock of titan hair and blue crystal, as well as the crystal blade in his scabbard box, "He and Magpie showed me the way out, and wanted you to have these, so you don't risk breaking your neck trying to get them" he explained. The smile on Hange's face could have outshone the sun, as nothing but pure happiness filled her eyes, "Oh-" she squeaked in delight, "This expedition couldn't get any better!"

"Are you shitting me?!" Levi exclaimed as he rode up from behind, and joined his squad, "The sooner we get home the better!". "I take it you got some help out of the fog too?" Erwin regarded him with a curious look, "If you can call it that: that giant black and white bitch showed up again, along with those three brats of her's"

"Midnight?!" Hange squealed, "-Don't even start shitty-glasses, I'm not in the mood right now!" he huffed. Erwin led the scouts away from the fog, and pulled up into a small cluster of trees, partially hiding them from sight: "I just realized we haven't spotted the main contingent, better wait until the fog has completely passed, then we'll have maximum visibility" he stated, before changing the subject, "So _all of you_ came across the children?". "More like _they_ came across me! The lil' brats have a sixth sense or something," Oruo grumbled, "It was rather spooky, they practically appeared out of nowhere, and without making a sound either" Petra commented offhand, "The air was still in there, so I didn't smell Boar until the last second," Mike offered as he watched the fog slowly pass by, "Which-, doesn't make any sense, given how that fog seems to be moving along". "I didn't hear or feel any wind either" Gunther agreed, "And how come none of you answered? I was shouting for fifteen minutes straight!" Oruo huffed.

Everyone glanced at him in confusion, then at each other: "How-, is that possible? I was shouting too; didn't anyone hear me as well?" Petra asked worryingly, "I was listening but didn't hear anything, so I shouted as well" Eld offered, "But how's that possible? I was the one calling out, so how come you didn't respond?" Gunther frowned in alarm, "I shouted too, but I must've been too far away to hear anyone" Hange thought aloud, "Too far away? The fog is barely a mile wide, one of us should have been able to hear you" Mike commented. "...This makes no sense" Levi frowned, "How the hell is it possible for all of us to be shouting for one another in a square mile radius with hardly any wind, and not be able to hear one another?"

A moment of uneasy silence hung in the air, before Erwin stated: "It's clear something happened to all of us in that fog: and we'll try and figure it out. So the first thing we do when we get back to Trost: quills to paper and write down _everything_ that happened, the conversations you all had, as well as what happened, no matter how ludicrous or strange it might sound; understand?". "Yes sir!" they all saluted: "Commander, do you think this really was an accident this time, running into them when we did? Or was this deliberate too?" Petra asked worryingly.

"...I've no doubt this was deliberate" Erwin replied, watching the fog as it now moved along the edge of the forest, "The question is, were we all paying attention to what they were telling us". The scouts glanced at one another in a mix of realization and confusion, but before anyone could voice their vexation, a familiar sight appeared out of the fog some eight hundred yards or so away, "Looks like the main contingent made it out in one piece" Mike sighed with relief. "Then we better not waste any more time out here..." Erwin replied, as he gazed over at the forest, "...I'd say we've got all we need: for now. Let's move!" he barked, and together they all took off for the contingent.

* * *

A few miles away, on the outskirts of the forest: the children regrouped with the grown-ups and the god-titan's, as they all watched the scouts leave; the fog continued to swirl around over the river and trees, with more titans wandering into the towering column of mist. "Good thing we decided to bring along those hummers, _and_ the extra set of baiting chimes" Dale thought aloud. "I'll let Ratatosk know where to find them: he'll send some of the lads out to retrieve them in a fortnight" Falken replied.

As Ariana flew up and perched next to her brothers, she glanced up at Angel with a dry look: "You know? When I said we should try being friends with the scouts, trapping them in a magical fog _isn't_ what I had in mind". "Well Angel did raise a good point: it'd be interesting to see how they'd handle being on their own: and I think it's safe to say they know how to fly solo" Pascal shrugged, to which the bird-titan smiled and nodded with a satisfied chirp, "Plus it put everyone on neutral ground: no trees equals no chance to chase or trap anyone" he added. "Except for you guys" Josefa glanced over at Ariana, Ash, Rowan and Dale, "You had Shadow and Midnight to give you a ride out", "Not to mention you guys tagged along with Boar and Angel" Jaye glanced over at the Cooper twins and Clay and Hazel, "Hey, we had to make it interesting" Clay shrugged. "I don't see any problem with having the big guys tag along, It's not like we had far to walk" Belle shrugged as she glanced down at the seeing stone in her hand, "And Shadow did ask the spirits to help guide us out of that fog" she smiled.

"I can't believe how well these worked" Poppy smiled as she held her seeing stone up to her eye: "Great idea to have the spirits lead us outta there: or we'd be stuck too" she smiled as she gazed down at the ground: waving good-bye to the little line spirits, that led from the fog to the forest. "Not a bad trick, we'll have to keep that in mind" Hawk agreed. "I know the fog gave us the high ground, but I still think we should have done this up in the trees: where everyone would have been on equal footing" Ariana sighed as she folded her arms, "I know darling, but we had to do this in order to get initial results: there's always next month" Tyto assured her.

"So?" Clay sheepishly changed the subject, "I think that went pretty well, at least we know they're not the cold-shoulder types"

" _Pft!-_ That's certainly true!" Jaye and Josefa scoffed, trying to stifle their laughter: "Humanity's strongest? Are you kidding me?" Rowan grinned wickedly, "Oh I'm gonna have such fun with that!", :Not without me you're not: Midnight spelt out with a smile. "I like Petra, she's real nice" Poppy smiled, "Yeah, I wonder if she knows how to make daisy chains?" Gale added. "At least we know captain haughty-shorty's good for a laugh" Ash smiled, "Only if you can get a head start on him" Ariana deadpanned, "Or have Midnight here snag his lines again: seriously sis, we got it covered" Rowan brushed off; "I'll believe _that_ when I see it" she frowned at him.

Ariana then turned her attention to Fox, who'd been leaning against the trunk of the tree, brooding with his arms folded while Shyla stood close to him like always: she knew why he was annoyed, but asked anyway; "... So, what was with the attitude back there? Eld was talking to you, trying to be open, and you were giving him the cold shoulder: why?". "You _know_ why" Fox glared at her, to which Ariana frowned, "Fox, what happened last month is water under the bridge: it was a misunderstanding that was corrected; let go of it". "I'll believe _that_ when I see it" he shot back, "Fox," Shyla interjected, "Erwin is nothing like him: you can't do this every time we meet someone new: Erwin gave fair warning he might be ordered to come after us, doesn't that say something about him?"

Fox didn't reply, and simply continued to brood: Ariana knew the 'him' Shyla was referring to, and knew it was subject neither of them liked to touch upon. She dropped the subject, and glanced over at her father, "Well? ..." she asked as she joined him on the branch he was standing on: "What'd you reckon?". "Not one for beating about the bush, is he? I suppose now it depends on what his superiors decide to do" Tyto commented. "I think if it was left entirely to Erwin's discretion: he'll carry on with the supply route, _and_ try to find a way into our world; he doesn't strike me as the type to leave well enough alone, despite the fact he now knows we're not going to make it easy for him" Evrard stated confidently. "That doesn't mean he won't try, not if he's truly determined to learn our secrets" Carla pointed out.

"...Do you think we did the right thing though," Ash asked in concern, "Not telling them about the Hidden Land? About the city of Omnes Scientiam?". Tyto passed a sigh as he watched the scouts, now little green and brown specs on the horizon, grow smaller the further they rode away: "...I've no doubt when the time comes, Erwin will understand why we had to do this: but for now, it's not his greatest concern". "But what about the wall cult? What if they do ask questions, and the cult finds out somehow?" Carla asked worryingly. "It's out of our hands," Bryson sighed, "What goes on beyond wall Rose is up to them: we can only do so much from here": "Erwin doesn't know it's the wall cult per se, and I don't think the others cottoned on either" Pascal thought aloud, "All they know is that someone, or some entity will want us dead if we enter Rose"

"But the fact we let slip that we are in possession of forbidden knowledge is going to leave them with questions" Lucy pointed out, "Questions the top brass might want answers to". "If the military big-wigs are anything like the royal government, then all they'll do is try to find some way to get us into the interior, so as to silence us for good" Rook added pessimistically.

"If they wanted us in the interior so badly, they'd have ordered Erwin to spend this month's expedition trying to capture us" Bryson reasoned, "We don't know what the top brass are thinking, but I highly doubt they'll be in close league with the government. The military, to a greater or lesser degree has always maintained a certain distance from the royal family's rule, mostly because of the king's policy of non-interference with military affairs, unless there is a threat that poses a direct danger to the capitol itself"

"So unless the armoured and colossus titans show up again and attack both Rose and Sina: the government won't be too concerned about us?" Clay raised an eyebrow. "...Call it a hunch, but I have a sneaking suspicion Erwin and the military are going to keep us a secret for the time being" Bryson frowned, "The scouts main mandate, besides trying to beat back the titans, is to discover new knowledge about the outside world, so as mankind might be able to expand it's boarders beyond the three walls: (at least, that was the tenor back when I was still in the corps). The government's law on forbidding knowledge of the outside world flies in the face of what the scouts are trying to achieve, (ironic, I know) and if the top brass are eager to learn more of us, then they know keeping us a secret is the only way to ensure there won't be interference from Mitras" the scout sighed, "...But then, that's just an educated guess: I don't know what'll happen for sure. But I _can_ guess, if Erwin is allowed to, he'll try to get close to us; and scratch that itch that's now forming in his mind"

"I'd say we were pretty cryptic, don't you?" Lucius shrugged, "And if Erwin won't come back, Hange certainly will: I'll bet she won't let him hear the end of it" he smiled. "Speaking of which" Jaye smiled as he pulled out his little note book and writing stick, "There's no doubt Hange won't let Levi hear the end of it too, so who wants to bet he'll be doubly sour next month?", "We're starting at three to one, with Oruo at four to one" Josefa added with a cheeky smile.

As the kids and grown-ups placed their bets and bickered over who would be the favourite to win: Tyto, Bryson and Carla couldn't help but smile down at their giant friends, as they gazed out over the plains. "You know? You and Levi in a room together _would_ be interesting, if only to see how fast he can try to get away" the former scout couldn't help but chuckle, "Oh _please_ ," Carla shot him a wicked smile, "I'd cream the pipsqueak before he could even break down the door; a 'rude little sourpuss' doesn't even come close to my opinion of him"

"But you would leave him alive, right?" Tyto smiled, "We are going to try and stay on Erwin's good side, remember?". "Yeah but come on Tyto!" Carla deadpanned, "'Humanity's strongest'?, I'd certainly like to test _that_ claim!". "Well unfortunately Midnight and the boys called first dibs on that I'm afraid, so you'll just have to get in line like the rest of us" Pascal grinned from where he was standing on the branch below them, "It ain't too late to get in on the pool!"

"Seriously though Tyto," Bryson sighed as he glanced over at the Grey Owl, "We _are_ going to have to be prepared for if Erwin is ordered to capture us". "Of course," Tyto nodded: "It'd probably wouldn't hurt to have a word with the Queen, and come up with some contingency plan for if the scouts do come after us" Carla suggested. "Agreed, I'll speak with Ratatosk and the council when we return, maybe come up with a few ideas to keep the scouts guessing too" Tyto agreed, "...And with any luck, Erwin won't disappoint us...Though, that being said: I don't think capturing us is his top priority"

"So, I guess I was kinda right: about the whole 'we're no different from them' thing?" Ariana smiled meekly, "I think you made a prudent call: we are different, yet we are the same: we _and_ they" her father smiled as he put his arm around her shoulders, "And I think in time Erwin will see it too"

"Call it a hunch, but I think he already has" Bryson smiled.

As the scouts finally disappeared over the horizon, Elysia allowed her chest to swell with pride: **"Would you like some eggs with that ham?"** Hecate smiled up at her, **"Not bad brat: that certainly did the job of being able to inspect them one by one"** , **"** _ **And**_ **to make sure they couldn't get away or go after anyone"** the weather-goddess added with a smirk, **"I may not be as knowledgable as Jarus, or as all-powerful as Aureia, but I know my weather-magics: and I know how to use them in a pinch". "A bolt of lightning wouldn't have gone amiss to keep the lil' sourpuss from trying to slice your nape again"** Herne glanced up at Hecate with a cheeky grin, **"Oh hell no, Haughty-Shorty's too good for a divine smiting,"** She smirked slyly, **"I'll loosen that uptight lil' attitude of his"**

" **You know..."** Javorin grabbed their attention, as he kept his eyes on the horizon, **"What Ariana said: about just being ourselves,"** he glanced up at the humans in the trees, **"Trying to be something your not is one thing: but what happens when you try to be who you are, and it backfires on you"** he thought aloud. Hecate, Herne and Elysia all glanced at each other in alarm: **"Javorin, are you saying Ariana's wrong? That we shouldn't have trapped the scouts just to open a line of dialogue with them? I mean okay, maybe it was a little extreme, but you can't say we didn't make progress today; at least the scouts know we're reasonable, right?"** Elysia worried, to which the blue-eyed god replied frankly, " **...Reasonability is one thing Elysia: being fully aware of what your letting yourself in for is quite another"** : **"Huh?"** the avian goddess tilted her head in dumbfoundedness. **"Let's just say,"** he clarified, **"I don't disagree with what Ariana said: her heart's in the right place, it always has been; but I fear she (and some of the others kids) could become complacent. Don't get me wrong, I know she's not stupid, and her show of canniness and ambiguity kept the other scouts on their toes: but not Erwin. Back there in the fog I could see, despite her confidence and surety, he saw she was still a child: naïve, bold, and still wet behind the ears; something he's** _ **bound**_ **to take advantage of... Erwin is not sentimental, nor is he the type to make emotional investments: he** _ **will**_ **sacrifice, if it means bringing him one step closer to his goal"**

" **Which is?"** Hecate raised an eyebrow:Javorin sighed as he thought back to Ariana's conversation with Erwin, and how he noticed that spark of determination and hope burning bright and hot in the core of his being; the one thing pushing him forwards, the guiding star above the horizon of his dream, and not hesitating or doubting his decisions even for a second. Such clarity of mind and conviction was rare in any human, never mind the mental strength to back it up: on the one hand it gave Javorin hope, and on the other, he couldn't help but wonder...

" **...Call it a hunch, but I think he might be looking for the same answers we are: and that's why I believe he will accept our help, when the time finally comes. What worries me, is the path we'll need to tread to reach that point: how bad is it going to get, before all comes good again?"** he thought aloud.

* * *

Later that night:

The gentle glow of candlelight illuminated the office in a warm golden light with deep pitch black shadows dancing and flickering to the sway of the flame, while Erwin sat alone with his thoughts: gazing out the window as he watched the city of Trost quietly slumber. On his desk, the transcripts of the scouts encounters with the kids and painted titans sat neatly in a pile, waiting to be signed and sealed, and sent in secret to the Commander-in-Chief. Through the small gap in the door, the sounds of Hange's excited voice echoed down the corridor, as she accompanied the others to the main barracks...

"I'm telling you, we haven't even scratched the surface of what's possible here!" she hurriedly explained in a rush of excitement, "I mean sure we got samples this time, but what about next time?! If they're going to make us work for this then we've got to be prepared to meet the challenge! Be willing to take risks! Hell, we might even have to resort to capturing one of them, if that's what it takes to resolve the mystery of this new titan species!"

"Capture one of them? Are you crazy Hange?! -Well, crazier than usual" Oruo commented.

"What I don't buy is that whole bullshit about possessing forbidden knowledge of the outside world" Levi added in a particularly sour tone, "It's obviously bait to keep us interested in them: and this 'unknown enemy' that supposed to make you disappear if you go asking questions about them? Fair point, there's some real shady folks out there that don't want to be known about, but no one who'd be so bold and stupid as to purposely take on the scouts; it's just a ruse. They don't want to leave their home, and all the resources they can loot from the abandoned towns and villages, it's as simple as that"

"For all we know they could be something else entirely!" Oruo fumed, "I'm telling you, that fog wasn't normal: it was _witchcraft!_ I'm sure of it!"

"Sure Oruo" Petra deadpanned, "You keep telling yourself that"

"Whatever that fog was, it rendered us all helpless" Mike threw in, "They had the advantage over us, and they knew it"

"But still, they all showed us the way out: doesn't that count for something?" Petra reasoned.

"I don't know what they were up to, but I get the feeling this was both a friendly reminder _and_ a warning not to screw around with them" Levi frowned

"Oh come on!" Hange smiled, "-You're still sore from Midnight's little tussle: honestly, there's nothing to say she'll beat you a second time around; and besides, what did those kids say that pissed you off so badly?"

"That's not important," Levi huffed, "The point is, they compromised me: they got under my skin and I let them; I _won't_ make the same mistake twice. The next time they show up, they'll be getting more than just a piece of my mind"

"I think they'll be expecting that," Mike pointed out, "If what Erwin said is true and they got a pool on what you might try to do to get more samples, then it might not be out of the question to assume they're running some kind of bet on you too"

"Well frankly I take it as a compliment, and a challenge!" Hange stated boldly, "Oh _please_ ," Levi deadpanned, "Like I got time to be indulging those brats and that giant bitch: I'm _not_ going to play their game, and neither are you"

"Hate to burst your grumpy lil' bubble Levi, but if those kids are holding the high ground in the forest, then none of us are going to have much choice" Hange teased, "Besides, you know Erwin: he's going to take it as an opportunity to try and get the drop on them, play them at their own lil' stealth game: and frankly, I can't wait for next month to role around!"

"In the meantime, we'll have to revise our combat moves and tactical assault formations: you gotta think fast to be fast around a titan like Midnight" Mike commented as they walked away, "God only knows that one's going to give us more than just a few sleepless nights"

"Don't even start" Levi grumbled.

As their voices and footsteps faded further away, leaving the corridor in silence: Erwin pondered on how this was going to play out. The samples they obtained today were certainly going to cause a stir among the top brass, and no doubt Zackly in particular would be most curious to see what the scouts could glean further. But there was also the risk this could be leaked to the wrong people, and assumptions made in haste and fear were a hazard to the scouts mission; but Erwin knew Zackly wasn't one for letting fear cloud his judgement, and the man was more than capable of keeping the other high-ranking official in line. No doubt the most logical thing to do would be to carry on establishing the battalion route, and wait and see what these mysterious hunters and their titans would do next...

At least, that's the most logical assumption, but something about this vexed Erwin; while his head subscribed to logic and reason, his gut was telling him something else. He had this surreal feeling of sitting down in front of a chess board with all the pieces neatly laid out and ready to play, but the other player has already moved their piece, and it was his turn.

Was this indeed a game? Was this the family's idea of testing him and the scouts further? If so, it would certainly be quite the challenge to meet, and no doubt interesting to see what the family had in store; but at the same time, it was bold risk. And one where the outcome was uncertain if they were the ones that lost.

Despite the claims of possessing forbidden knowledge, despite the assurance of wishing for an alliance, at the core of all this the hunters and the painted titans were a game-changer: humans and titans fighting together was a crazy idea, but one that held the promise of being able to take another step further, in the quest to unravel the mystery of the titans as a whole.

As Erwin reached across the desk to grab some other papers, he noticed the chess board on the table across the room, and noticed one of the white pawns had been moved: as if someone had idly started a game, but then got up and walked off; and it was then he noticed, perched on the white queen was a large white butterfly: its wings so pure and light that they almost seemed to glow like starlight in the golden candlelight; it must have fluttered into the office by accident. Erwin got up, opened the window, and just as he walked across the office to catch it, the butterfly took off and fluttered out into the starlit sky.

 _Your move Erwin, your move_

Erwin glanced behind him, but no one was there: the office, like the rest of the castle, was as still and silent as a tomb.

* * *

 **Hey there! Long time no see :) Well, sorry it's been a while since the last instalment, but life, distractions, writers block and slew of other crap kinda got in the way: but hey I'm back, I'm rested, and ready to start drafting the next chapter. :) Hope you enojoyed this one, and stay tuned for next time ;)**

 **Oh, and don't forget to R &R before clicking off, okay? :)**


End file.
